Design Inspiration. Planet Stencil Library.

A flying start to the Diamond Jubilee Big Lunch

The first batch of our large, stencilled, card butterflies have emerged from our studio.  15 done.. 200 more to do.

Luckily this is a community project so there should be lots of eager artists to help create a swarm of brightly coloured moths and butterflies to decorate the lawns at our neighbourhood's Big Lunch on the Jubilee Weekend in June.   Children's groups and adults are pitching in over the next couple of weeks and I think the results should be fabulous. There will be updates as the various decorative projects take flight. 

60 Minute Makeover

The Dogs Stencil adapted from our book Stencil It had a starring role ITV 1's 60 Minute Makeover this week. There are 28 days left to view the episode.

Linda Barker and her dedicated team transformed three rooms of a Surrey home whilst the unsuspecting occupants where elsewhere. I've not seen the full episode yet so I hope that our stencilled offering was well received. What do you think.. do they look pleased or shocked?

I was unable to join Linda's team that morning because I had been invited to a garden party at Alnwick Castle attended by The Queen and Prince Philip...and that does not happen to me everyday. So, I stencilled the dog design onto several rolls of wallpaper, shipped them south to Linda and went to the party.  I will find the photographs that I took of the dog wallpaper project and post a 'how to' for you.. Meanwhile here's a couple of pictures from the garden party. 

Helen.

Introducing Senor Picklesworth

To Indulge in two of my obsessions Pugs and Jubilee I introduce Senor Picklesworth

I just discovered him at Folksy.com the same site where I sell my For Queen and Corgi bags. My finger is hovering over the buy button.   Visit his shop to find more smile inducing creations! Whilst you are in the Folksy neighbourhood please drop in on my place too.

Helen.

photos by Senor Picklesworth.

Fill your boots...with cherry blossom

Such a sweet idea from Karin Lidbeck Brent at Your Cosy Home

Karin created this shot for Good Housekeeping it was photographed by Gemma Coma and arrived via Twitter yesterday morning. By lunch time I had filled my wellies with cherry blossom

and had snapped my own version of it.  Your Cosy Home is full of lovely ideas. Karin suggests filling old wellies with stones and water before adding adding branches of blossom.

Stencils on the walls and floor come from the Arts & Crafts stencil collection at The Stencil Library.

Helen

Floral Stencils; a perennial favourite.

This morning a European magazine asked me for some images of flower stencils that they wanted for their pages. They submitted a list of their choices and these designs were amongst them.

GR7 Begonia stencil

GR27 Ranunculus stencil

I had not used these stencils for a while and had forgotton how charming a simple uncomplicated flower stencil can look.

GR19 anemone stencil.

Use them sprigged over walls, furniture or fabrics.

GR16 Phlox stencil.

Apply them as a decorative motif onto cupboard doors and cushion covers.

Put a 'spring' in your step by stencilling them onto stair risers!

The stencils can be found in the Folk Art and the Garden Room Collections.

Jubilee crown and corgi stencils.

Are you having a Jubilee party?

We are and we'll be using these crown and corgi stencils to make our decorations look fab... and you can do the same.

DesignInspiration is offering readers the special price of £10.00 for the pair. The size of the stencils are 125 by 165 mm. That's 5x6.5 inches. They are a good size for stencilling bunting, making party invitations, decorating napkins, plates, aprons... There are lots of things that you could stencil them onto once you get the imagination working.  We can make them in other sizes too.

UK postage is free, overseas postage will depend on destination. Contact me or leave a comment for more information. If you want your comment to remain just between us write 'Private' and it will not be published.

These plastic stencils can be used many times and decorating with them can be a fun, family or community project.

Brushes, paints, sponges etc can be ordered from The Stencil Library.  Alternatively, tell us what you need and we will post it with your stencils. 

Helen.

 

Simple beauty

A blast of spring sunlight greeted this morning and encouraged me to snap a few scenes of simple beauty around the house.

Faux pears bought from Bernhart

Reflections on a bowl full of mirrorballs.

that wander into neighbouring rooms.

Muscari bulbs and planter both from IKEA. Stencilled tablecover.

sunlight through lace above a bath.

Roses from the supermarket. Meander stencil on the wall.

Kiwi fruit for breakfast...then off to the office.

Helen.

Stencil of the week. CO Lily

 

Stencil of the week is CO15 an oversized lily bloom.  You can twist and turn the stencil and paint it in the brightest of colours....or

make it formal, pretty and pastel.

The colour and placement of the stencilled motifs is your choice.

For a denser, regimented, floral pattern try VN153 Lilies from the Vintage Collection. The design is based upon the CO15 Lily stencil but has repeating marks to help form a pattern. This beautiful, stencilled floor was created by Sandy Gunderson of A Visual Feast inc, Alberta, Canada. She used the VN153 lilies stencil. There will be more about Sandy and her amazing stencilled floors in a forthcoming 'Featured Decorative Artist' post.  

There are many stencils of lilies in our collection at The Stencil Library.  They include border stencils, motifs, repeat designs and panels.  To see a selection. Just type lily into the stencil search on the site. The stencils are designed and made in England and sent worldwide.

 

The End of an (Uncut Stencil) Era: sale stencils

A long post...but it's worth it. We are having a clearance sale and have listed all bargains below.

Recently, Helen has told you that within a couple of weeks we will cease offering UNCUT stencils for sale.   Many of you may have benefitted from purchasing an uncut version of a stencil at a cheaper price in the past, then cutting the pieces out yourself using either a heatpen cutting tool or scalpel.  This is particularly beneficial when ordering one of our fabulous chinoiserie panels, for example.  You still have a couple of weeks so if you want to take advantage and stockpile some uncut stencils, get your order in now.

We are offering some spectacular savings on a selection of uncut stencils we have left in stock.  These are sold on a first come, first serve basis and there is only one of each.

If you would like to order any from the list below, please EMAIL  your order to sales@stencil-library.com with your shipping address.  Postage within the UK is free, 5.00 GBP to Europe and 7.00 GBP to the rest of the world.  Do not include any payment details.  We will issue you a Paypal invoice for your total which you must pay within 24 hours (you do not need to have a Paypal account to pay).  We will not hold your order for you for long.  If you order several stencils and some have already been sold, you may not receive your entire order.  Please note, these are all UNCUT stencils and you will need to cut the pieces out with either a scalpel or heatpen cutting tool.  We are offering both these items at a special price for a limited time when ordered WITH any of these special offer uncut stencils.  Please do not order these through the website, or you will not receive the discounted price.  Items requested via this post must be put in an email to us.  If you have any questions, please contact sales@stencil-library.com

To help you I have made each of the listings into a link through to our site.  If you click on a listing below, it should bring up the page on the Stencil Library site so you can look at the design and check the dimensions.  As with all our stencils, these are non-returnable for refund or exchange.  All prices are in GBP POUNDS STERLING.  To check the current exchange rate, click here.

• DE154 Arts & Crafts Bird and Fruit Motif (was 9.95 GBP) now 3.00 GBP SOLD
• DE249 Art Nouveau Floral Motif (was 9.95 GBP) now 3.00 GBP SOLD
  DE24 Arts & Crafts Border (was 6.95 GBP) now 2.00 GBP SOLD
• 34 Turrets Border (was 14.95 GBP) now 4.00 GBP
• ER5 Egg & Dart Border (was 9.95 GBP) now 3.00 GBP SOLD
• ER11 Dot and Dash Border (was 8.95 GBP) now 2.00 GBP
• DE224 Art Nouveau Tile small 6" (was 10.00 GBP) now 3.00 GBP SOLD
• DE226 Art Nouveau Tile small 6" (was 10.00 GBP) now 3.00 GBP SOLD
  DE229 Art Nouveau Tile small 6" (was 10.00 GBP) now 3.00 GBP SOLD
  DE227 Art Nouveau Peacock Feather Tile small 6" (was 10.00 GBP) now 3.00 GBP  SOLD
• DE133 Arts & Crafts Bird Panel (was 9.95 GBP) now 3.00 GBP SOLD 
• DE335 Art Deco Lady with Sun (was 14.95 GBP) now 4.00 GBP
• DE334 Large Art Deco Alphabet (was 21.00 GBP) now 5.00 GBP SOLD
• 349 Large Leopard Spot Repeat (was 29.95 GBP) now 6.00 GBP SOLD
• T4 Medieval Tile small 6" (was 7.95 GBP) now 2.00 GBP SOLD
• DE123 Arts and Crafts Floral Motif (was 9.95 GBP) now 3.00 GBP SOLD
  DE41 Arts and Crafts Mini Dot and Dash Border (was 6.95 GBP) now 2.00 GBP SOLD
• DE32 Arts and Crafts Bird and Planter Border (was 21.95 GBP) now 6.00 GBP SOLD
• OTT48 Ottoman Panel (was 19.95 GBP) now 5.00 GBP SOLD
• OTT6 Ottoman Border (was 9.95 GBP) now 3.00 GBP SOLD
• OTT35 Ottoman Tile small 6" (was 9.95 GBP) now 3.00 GBP SOLD
  OTT36 Ottoman Tile small 6" (was 14.95 GBP) now 4.00 GBP SOLD
  IN31 Indian Border (was 19.95 GBP) now 5.00 GBP SOLD
• IN25 Willow Pattern Border (was 21.95 GBP) now 6.00 GBP  SOLD
• GMT83 Vine Tudor Flower Panel (was 14.95 GBP) now 4.00 GBP SOLD
• GMT68 Gothic Quadrant Small 12" (24" diam) (was 12.95 GBP) now 4.00 GBP SOLD
  GMT13 Gothic Medieval & Tudor Border (was 15.95 GBP) now 4.00 GBP SOLD
• GMT8 Gothic Arch Border (was 11.95 GBP) now 3.00 GBP SOLD
• GMT19 Gothic Border (was 16.95 GBP) now 4.00 GBP SOLD
• GMT23 Gothic Fretwork Border (was 15.95 GBP) now 4.00 GBP SOLD
• GMT14 Gothic Border (was 8.95 GBP) now 2.00 GBP
• 108A Nursery Flowers (2 layer version) (was 14.95 GBP) now 4.00 GBP SOLD
• 206 Peter Rabbit 11" tall x 8" wide (was 11.95 GBP) now 3.00 GBP
• 125 Mad Hatter (was 10.95 GBP) now 3.00 GBP SOLD
• 105 Rabbits (was 12.95 GBP) now 4.00 GBP SOLD
• 316 Counting Sheep (was 8.95 GBP) now 2.00 GBP SOLD
• DE141 Arts & Crafts Heart Tree Motif (was 10.95 GBP) now 3.00 GBP SOLD
• 355 Large Flowers (was 19.95 GBP) now 5.00 GBP SOLD
• CS46 Sweet Pea Solo (was 10.95 GBP) now 3.00 GBP SOLD
• 277 Rose & Trellis (was 13.95 GBP) now 4.00 GBP SOLD
• 340 Small Orange Tree (was 16.95 GBP) now 5.00 GBP SOLD
• 338 Small Lemon Tree (was 16.95 GBP) now 5.00 GBP SOLD
• 339-L Large Bay Tree (was 19.95 GBP) now 5.00 GBP SOLD
• 255 Small Peonies (was 17.95 GBP) now 5.00 GBP SOLD
• 255 Large Peonies (was 29.95 GBP) now 6.00 GBP SOLD
• FS4-L Large Chinese Tree of Life (was 49.95 GBP) now 10.00 GBP SOLD
• 301 Small Classical Alphabet (was 15.95 GBP) now 4.00 GBP SOLD
• 304-L Large Edwardian Alphabet (was 19.95 GBP) now 5.00 GBP SOLD
• 305-L Large Modern Alphabet (was 19.95 GBP) now 5.00 GBP SOLD
• 201 Small Roman Alphabet (was 11.95 GBP) now 3.00 GBP SOLD
• 186 Nautical Set (was 21.95 GBP) now 6.00 GBP
• 14 Greek Key (was 10.95 GBP) now 3.00 GBP
• 31 Fleur De Lys (was 5.95 GBP) now 2.00 GBP SOLD
• 268 Macrame Border (was 16.95 GBP) now 4.00 GBP SOLD
• 218 Harvest Border (was 14.95 GBP) now 4.00 GBP
• 219 Vegetable Border (was 15.95 GBP) now 4.00 GBP
• 86 Iris in Water Border (was 12.95 GBP) now 4.00 GBP
• 184 Shrub Rose Border/Motif (was 29.00 GBP) now 6.00 GBP SOLD
• 37 Medieval Flags Border (was 6.95 GBP) now 2.00 GBP SOLD
• 222 Summer Flowers Border (was 15.95 GBP) now 4.00 GBP SOLD
• 3 Chequers Border (was 5.95 GBP) now 2.00 GBP
• 40 Trellis Border 3.5" x 14" (was 7.95 GBP) now 2.00 GBP
• A6 Cancer (crab) (was 11.95 GBP) now 3.00 GBP
• AD6 Adam Border (was 12.95 GBP) now 4.00 GBP SOLD
• 159 Bowl of Fruit (was 19.95 GBP) now 5.00 GBP SOLD
• 336 Shaker & Folk Art Tile (was 5.95 GBP) now 2.00 GBP SOLD
• 332 Shaker & Folk Art Motif (was 11.95 GBP) now 3.00 GBP SOLD
• 343 Small Cornerpiece (was 9.95 GBP) now 3.00 GBP SOLD
• 347 Small Lemon Cornerpiece (was 9.95 GBP) now 3.00 GBP SOLD
• GR109 Small Moroccan Vase (was 12.95 GBP) now 4.00 GBP  SOLD
• CE1 Celtic Border (was 10.95 GBP) now 3.00 GBP SOLD
• CE30 Celtic Motif (was 10.95 GBP) now 3.00 GBP SOLD
• CE34 Celtic Crane Motif (was 14.95 GBP) now 4.00 GBP
• CS23 Thistle Solo (was 10.95 GBP) now 3.00 GBP
• CS66 Bee Solo (was 10.95 GBP) now 3.00 GBP SOLD
• CS91 Reformation Solo (was 10.95 GBP) now 3.00 GBP SOLD
• AR13-L Large Column Base (can also be used as capital) + AR10 Large Capital (was 34.90 GBP) now 7.00 GBP SOLD
• A14-L Large Planisphere (was 29.95 GBP) now 6.00 GBP SOLD
• AR74-L Large Chimera (was 17.95 GBP) now 5.00 GBP SOLD
• AR24-M Medium Alhambra Arch (was 19.95 GBP) now 5.00 GBP  SOLD
• AR33-L Large Gothic Pillar (was 29.95 GBP) now 6.00 GBP SOLD

SPECIAL PRICES when ordered with any of the above stencils:

• Heatpen Cutting Tool (26.95 GBP) now 20.00 GBP
• Metal Scalpel Handle and Pack of 5 Blades (4.00 GBP) now 3.00 GBP
• Disposable Scalpel (85p) now 70p

When you email your order, we will email confirmation of it's receipt and to advise you that you will receive a paypal request for payment.

Heatpen stencil cutter.

Disposable scalpels.

Scalpel handle and pack of blades.

Rachel.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A tip from Simply Wonderwoman

I met Joanna Gosling at The Country Living Fair recently. We were both giving talks and book signings at the theatre there and her presentation followed mine. Whilst I was packing away my stencil demonstration gear I could enjoy hearing her but could not see what she was doing.  This tip came floating to my ears

Decant leftover paint into cleaned food jars.  This will prevent the paint drying out, stop rust forming and most of all will look gorgeous lined up on the shelves. Plus, you can see the colours at a glance. Remember to label each paint with the manufacturer and code number.

 Joanna recommended a particular brand of Passatta for having good jars to recyle once when the sauce has been eaten. Another good tip was Collect glass jars that have pleasing shapes.  Pour a couple of spoon fulls of paint into them, replace the lid and swirl the paint around until all the inside is coated. Remove the lid and leave the jars to dry thouroughly.  You now have vases and vessels in many colors.

Some years ago Rachel did this in our house with a gold fish bowl and turquoise paint.

I've been having a clear out in my studio and I have just given most of my paint and jars away otherwise I would be doing both projects this weekend. Joanna's book is called Simply Wonderwoman by Joanna Gosling with photographs by Rachel Whiting. The tip is featured in Homes and Gardens Magazine this month.

Helen.