Design Inspiration. Planet Stencil Library.

How to fake the look of mosaic with stencils

An alternative title to this post could be 'Taking the Ache out of Mosaic' We show you how to fake the look of mosaics with stencils.

Originally, we designed our mosaic stencil collection to enhance floors and walls. However, the smallest of the sizes is a good scale for use on furniture and looks rather splendid on fabrics too.  There are three sizes available to order in the mosaic section. They are all in scale with each other so if you want a medium sized border make sure that any tiles or motifs are medium sized too. The large size has impact and is fast to stencil, the smaller sizes look more realistic. My first two pictures shows the small (or standard) size on the wall and the medium size on the floor. 

A medium sized mosaic tile and border stencil was used to decorate these concrete pavers in the yard behind our office.

Most of the mosaic stencils have layers; one for each colour so the application of the paint is simple and precise; you will not have to worry about colour separation because we have done that for you.   You just need to decide which colours you would like to use. This fabulous collection of stencils is simple to use and looks great.

A mid-tone background is best to stencil onto when using the mosaic stencil collection, both grey and brown are suitable colours because they offer a realistic grout effect when combined with light or dark colours. 

The mosaic collection of stencils from The Stencil Library can be accessed from our older, larger website or from our newer, smaller website.  If you type the word mosaic into the site search on either of our sites you will find even more mosaic borders that are not part of this collection. 

Recently, USA customer JCM Studio of Decorative Arts in Westminster, Maryland used our mosaic stencils to decorate the entry ramp area to the workshop.

photo by Jutz Moreland. The owner Jutz Moreland said it took her a while to do but was thrilled with the outcome....so are we. You can see her photos and videos on The JCM Studio Facebook page

Northumberland based decorative artist Sabina Rose stencilled the window sills in a conservatory with border no ML6-M

......and I stencilled this stencilled canvas floorcloth using the MT1 Plain Tile, the ML5 Border and the ML17 Corner Tile; it was one of the classes I taught.

A helpful instruction leaflet full of tips and information is included with stencils from the Mosaic Collection.

Feeling inspired? 

Helen.

 

 

 

Di Overton, Designer's Block, blogger and friend

At the close of November, I attended a celebration for the life of Di Overton, designer, businesswoman, creative force and pioneering design blogger. She was also a friend for a large part of my life. I am writing this because many of DesignInspiration's readers were Di's readers at Designersblock and you may have wondered why such a dynamic blog as hers has not been updated for a while. Di was the person who persuaded Rachel and me to write this blog. She'd encouraged and nagged for a couple of years before I published DesignInspiration's first post in February 2007 and she helped in our first few months. Di revamped the pages for us last year when she got fed up of waiting for me to do it.

I was a model for Di and her business partner, Liz, in the early 1980's, they produced desirable and distinctive knitwear that was worn by the celebrities of the time. A decade later Di and her partner Harvey Roll gave me one of my first decorating commissions when I stencilled their home. Di moved from fashion into advertising and media and with Harvey turned her hand to designing websites, publications, furniture and interiors. Some of you will know her from @1ltd, or 'Where Did You Buy That?'.  Some may know her from Ghost Furniture, or from her blog Designer's Block and if you knew her from the fashion days it was Dizzy's. Those that did not know her....you missed a treat. 

She survived Harvey by four years and died in her sleep after a short illness. Thank you Di, you will be much missed by many of us.

Helen  

 

An exhibition of Scottish art including work by Michael Chippendale.

Corrymella Scott has an art gallery in Corbridge, Northumberland. Between now and December 10th 2017 she is presenting an exhibition of Scottish Artists at The United Reform Church in Jesmond, Newcastle Upon Tyne. I was at the preview. Some of the artists come from Northumberland which is the border county between England and Scotland. My husband and Stencil Library partner Michael Chippendale was one of the Northumberland artists and three of his paintings were for sale at the exhibition. When I arrived one had already been sold, it was the tartan version of Kate of Many Colours.

I am very fond of most of Chip's paintings and tartan Kate was a particular favourite but now she will be enjoyed by someone else. I have an Islamic tile version on my staircase.

Corrymella's artists are represented on her website. However, if you are close enough to visit the exhibition the opening hours are Mon to Fri 10am-6pm. Sat 10-5. Sun 3rd Dec closed and Sunday 10th Dec 1pm-5pm.

Here are some more of my snapshots from the exhibition:Portrait by Michael Chippendale, abstracts by Susi Bellamy.

The artist Ruth Bond used a square of Harris Tweed as a starting point for her landscapes, there were a few 'red dots' beside her paintings. 

Chips and I standing near another of his portraits.

Isle of Harris Gin provided refreshment. I did not get to sample it because I was driving but I heard good things....and there is a small chance that I might win the prize draw. 

Helen

 

 

 

 

Behind Closed Doors, a tour of a gem on Holland Park Avenue

There is a tiny jewel of a home near Holland Park in London. Brian Lewis lives there. Brian has an array of decorative skills and if you had booked a tour of his flat through Open House London you may have seen some of them. I tried to book in previous years but was always too late. I host tours of my home and like Brian decorative painting is both my passion and business, so I had many reasonsfor visiting. Brian's place is theatrical and he is a showman, prepare to be entertained.  Volunteer assistants greeted ticket holders at the door and advised those waiting outside of any cancellations. The assistants were dressed in robes from far-flung exotic locations, just as the rooms were. On the tour, one visits India, China, New York, The Devil, ancient Rome and a fusion of France and Bavaria. 

We will start in the combo of France and Bavaria. Brian names Mad King Ludwig and The Sun King amongst his style icons. Take a careful look at the pictures, the cabinet came from IKEA, it has been 'Versailled' in silver and gilt. Storage is important to maintain the fantasy. The tv, the computer and the music centre are all present but unseen.

Look at the trims around the ceiling, Brian makes, adapts or transform everything with a toolbox of decorative finishes, skill and experience. 

Notice the Art Deco style doors, we will come back to those later. Every surface tells a story or holds a memory, usually both.  The dog was a childhood pet. Painted postcards,  putti and trompe l'oeil photos in picture frames all appear in the mural and feature the faces of those that are important to him. "I don't do Facebook or any of those other social sites, my friends are painted on the wall If I fall out with someone, I just paint them out." Said Brian.

This could be a painted floor cloth under the rug. They are usually made from canvas, decorated and then varnished. I've made them for a few of my rooms. Look at the way Brian has extended the design from the rug onto the floor. If you are inspired to stencil something similar you will find appropriate designs in our 'Architecture' stencil range and 'Regency and Empire'

By the way, the marble effect is the only Magnolia colour that you will find in his flat.

Now, brace yourself because the next photo is hideously out of focus, there were five of us going from the lounge to the dining room and as we traversed this tiny and sumptuous space my camera hand wobbled.

The decoration of the hallway in Brian's flat is inspired by the elevator doors in the Chrysler Building in New York. Klimt-style paintings line the walls. They are glittery, beaded and all feature Brian.  The walls are fashioned from cork tiles, featuring mirror mosaic and gold. The floor is painted to look like marble tile and features playing cards, I am so disappointed not to show you details but I can show you a picture of the source of the inspiration.

At least I did not have camera shake at The Chrysler Building.  Now, we move to the dining room.

A large table is suspended from the ceiling. This is such a practical idea. One can adjust the height with pulleys and no one gets a table leg. I expect that the underside of the table is decorated and will become a ceiling rose when drawn up to full height.

Look at the ceiling, the mosaic echoes the pattern painted on the floor. The theme of Brian's dining room is witchcraft and black magic. If you wanted something similar in your home I can recognise gothic arches, dragons and heraldic beasts that are similar to stencils in our range.

Notice the light reflected in the gilded surfaces.....and Brian's fab beaded slippers.

Below the trompe l'eoil drapery you see dragons, find AR82 in our 'Architectural' range of stencils. It is based on one at The Royal Pavilion at Brighton. Between the skulls and the gryphons in tiaras....

St Brian looks over his guests...

The sun streams in through the stained glass-effect windows, stained effectively by Brian and his paint brush.

On leaving the dining room we were led through the kitchen to the grotto bathroom. Bryan asked us not to look at the kitchen "There is nothing interesting there" he said. Dutifully I averted my eyes and can, therefore, tell you nothing about it. The floor of the bathroom is modelled on a mosaic from one of the ancient Roman Villas.

Tentacles unfurl through shards of mirror. It is colourful and pretty with no sharp bits to hurt bare feet.

I enjoyed the effort that Brian put into making our tour a theatrical experience, as we entered each room the music enhanced the spirit of the illusion.

A white swan with glitter on his wings floated in the bathtub surrounded by flowers. There is another loo in the flat; the Maharaja's throne room, I did not get to see much of it because I was at the back of the queue but no doubt it was as full of colour and fun as the rest of the home. Brian has been opening his home to visitors at the Open House London weekend for many years.  Whether he intends to in 2018 I have no idea, but if he does I can recommend it. There are three rooms that I have not featured in this piece.....so there is still plenty to see. Brian accepts decorating commissions that interest him including domestic and commercial interiors as well as fashion and theatre, just don't ask him to do 'bland' 

I visited many decorative buildings during my stay in London, please check back to see where else I got to.

Helen.

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Stop and stair at the stunning stencil work of Albert Sultan.

We featured the paint, plaster and stencil skills of the professional decorative painter Albert Sultan back in 2007 and he checked in with us recently and emailed some pictures of a stencilled stairwell that he was commissioned to decorate. He ordered our CH31 Chintz no1 stencil and asked us to make it twice its usual size and weight.

The oversized version of the chintz pattern works well in such a tall space and allows Albert to use sections of the stencil in feature areas without losing the impact of the detail in the design. The heavier weight film is beneficial if using plaster through the stencil. Both the scale and the adaptability of a design such as this gives a great advantage over wallpaper.

Albert has used the design in its entirety on the wall with the piano; I notice that as one travels up the stairs the foliage decreases as if you have reached the mountain top and there are just the birds for company. The effect is of a peaceful walk in an exotic, albeit vertiginous garden. The bird stencils are not from The Stencil Library although we do have similar ones. Just type 'birds' into the search on our site to find them.

I thought it timely to show his pictures this week because the stencil that he chose from us was one that I featured on our Facebook Page and on DesignInspiration earlier this month

It is worth showing again and is one of the selection that USA based stencil company StencilEase chose to licence from us. They cut and desptach from Connecticut and can also do the same custom sizing service that The Stencil Library offers.  You can find the StencilEase selection of designs from The Stencil Library on this link. I note that Stephanie at Stencilease chose a similar restrained colour pallet to show the stencil and like Albert chose to use a paint roller to apply the pattern.

Albert's base is New York City, USA and you can learn more about him and his work from his web site.

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Mrs Jones and a love of blue willow

Image credit Me & Mrs Jones I have featured Stephanie Jones from Me & Mrs Jones a few times on DesignInspiration she creates fabulous work with our stencils, her photography is gorgeous and I enjoy her blog posts...so  that makes three good reasons to feature her again. In her latest journal post Stephanie confesses that she has a weakness for wheeled furniture and for our CH32 Willow Pattern stencil and I know that she has used that stencil on walls and furniture on many occasions in the past few years.

image via Me&Mrs Jones

image credit Me&Mrs Jones.  You can order the stencil from our Chinoiserie collection at The Stencil Library. Stephanie's business is located in Memphis,Tennessee; she has a shop, she decorates and she runs classes. Stephanie is the author of two books so far and her latest is Upstyle Your Furniture. I met Stephanie in Memphis when she was a student in one of my stencilling classes a few years ago at the IDAL decorative artisans's convention. You can purchase stencils, books, paints and many other items for home decorating from her shop.  If you can't be there in person I would recommend a visit to her web site.  There are many step by step tutorials there including one showing us how she decorated the chest of Blue Willow drawers.  All photos Stephanie Jones via her web site. 

Helen Morris.

 

Chippendale Revival revisited

Extreme carpenter, salvage supremo and anarchic gardener Peter Chippendale was featured in DesignInspiration in Feb 2010; at the time I was coveting some garden furniture from his Chippendale Revival Collection and in particular a twelve seater table.

Peter finds things on bonfires, road sides and rubbish skips then fashions them into pieces that would grace the most glamorous of gardens.....and mine. His own garden is stunning, visitors suggest that he hires it as a place for location shoots and bijou events. I must ask whether he does.

My first visit was around 1982, we had a picnic with Peter and his family, it was summer and the garden was in its very early stages, it was magical.  A tiny white pony called Stubbs and a couple of guineas pigs lived in part of it, looked after by the very young Chippendale children. With each visit I would be impatient to see the garden to witness the progress and hear the latest plans. Peter's wife Anni is an artist, teacher and accomplished maker of all sorts of things. The interior of their 16th century cottage was her creation. On that occasion I remember it as a tiny jewel of a place, richly coloured, unusual and beautiful. A decade later it was featured in Period Living magazine, one of our Tree Of Life stencils decorated the walls. At one period Peter was making frequent business trips to Japan and that inspired a new decorative direction for the cottage and its surroundings.

The garden has evolved into an unusual art project, the magical quality has developed along with it.

There are some fabulous touches, he has sculpted ornament from all kinds of unlikely materials. In a recent email he wrote 'When the creative wind and materials are right I make things from acquired unwanted treasures'. He sees the potential treasure in discarded polystyrene chunks, rusting spikes and broken window frames, all are loaded into 'The Bananamobile' his ancient yellow Skoda pick up.  The treasures may languish for years until the creative wind blows in their direction, the more mundane aspects of keeping a garden 'keep getting in the way' he adds.

I should add 'Shrub and Grass Pruner Extraordinaire ' to his list of accolades.

Peter told me "I have loads of plants that I control into architectural shapes - not just bushes, shrubs, trees but also grasses and especially sedges. These number into the hundreds but a sort of salvation came this last birthday with the purchase of Bosch's new li-ion shrub pruner. Don't know how much shaping you do but it's great - once you de-activate the dead-mans-handle feature."

I was whining about the masses of stinging nettle growing over the formal areas of my garden. I let them run a little wild to help butterflies but now they are mocking me along with rampant lemon balm, ground elder and mint; maybe I should review my problem planting as a topiary challenge I shall investigate the shrub pruner idea but may not take up his tip of de-activating and dead men; sounds a bit dubious on the health and safety aspect.

Peter and I share an enjoyment of mixing chaos and order in our gardens, I am planting another border of 'buns' shaped from buxus and santolina, he will coax weeds into shapes. Neither of us have low maintenance gardens, we both have seriously old pear trees and we have both broken our ribs during garden labour; the latter similarity was news to me, I learned it from reading World Of Interiors... the May 2015 issue. Writer Martin Hemmings wrote such a warm, funny feature about him and Bob Smith took the photographs. I knew the story well because Peter Chippendale is my brother in law but Hemmings tells it much better than I.

The World of Interiors interview tells of Peter's workshop made from found fence panels and greenhouse plastic.

Hemmings described as a 'nostalgic-smelling organised chaos of works in progress'. I can believe that. Peter described it to me as 'suitably odd' It cost him the princely sum of £14.00 to build it and that was for the hinges.  Recently, he told me "I built another, twice as big, for £1.80 - the ludicrous expense due solely to herself hearing that I was searching for a washing line and actually buying one in IKEA!!!"  Herself of course is Anni.  The two young children that I met in the garden at the summer picnic have both taken an artistic path and I wrote about Bec Chippendale in a post in 2011, on our last exchange she was designing stage sets for Matilda and Groundhog day. 

So, if you are making plans for home and garden this year it may be worth visiting Chippendale Revival and see whether Pete has created someting to enhance your home or garden. He accepts commissions and will consider transforming your own unwanted pieces  ... if the creative wind and materials inspire him.

I am still coveting that table.

Helen

 

 

Beauty, Love and Hope. Hirst, Lalique and butterflies

 

Have you seen the result of the collaboration between British artist Damien Hirst and the house of Lalique? It has caught both my attention and imagination. Hirst has created 'Eternal' a limited edition of crystal art panels with France's famous, artistic glass creators at Lalique.

Together they have created 3 different crystal panels; each one is engraved with Hirst's signature and there are just 50 of each design in 12 scrumptious colours. Along with René Lalique and Damien Hirst I too have a fondness for butterflies. In my imagination I have a wall into which the panels are set as windows and sunlight beams through them showering the floor with coloured reflection.

I love the way that the light travels through many of Lalique's pieces... slowly, as if it just wants to remain there and languish in the curves, contours and colours of the crystal. Couldn't you sink into those hues of green, amber and blue?

I have a small crystal fish made by Lalique; a souvenir of working in Paris with my friend the artist Sabina Rose. We were exhibiting my stencils to museums and galleries and had enjoyed a visit to the Lalique showroom on Rue Royale.

The fish was designed by Rene Lalique in 1913. I told Sabina that I'd like to collect a shoal of them and she treated me to first of my collection. It is still the only one that I own and he's gorgeous.

Lalique are launching more exciting projects, their Facebook page will keep you up to date.

Damien Hirst's exhibition diary can be found at damienhirst.com 

Photo credits Prudence Cuming Associates copyright Damien Hirst and Lalique 2015.

....The fish picture is my own.

Helen.

 

Golden Chinoiserie, meet Matt Austin.

I know that I keep featuring our CH32 Willow Pattern stencil but I'm mentioning it again beacuse I discovered this glorious gilded mural on Matt Austin's website.

Is that not scrumptious? Follow the 'gilded mural' link to see more of his work.

Mr Austin is a multi talented designer working in New York City. He did not use our stencil to create these walls... at least I don't think he did.

Those of us that are more at ease with a stencil than hand painting could create a gilded willow pattern surface by using the CH32 willow stencil. Dutch Metal Leaf and Instant Size can create a gilt effect on a lesser budget. Matt Austin used 22kt leaf.

 

This wall was stencilled by Stephanie Jones of Me & Mrs Jones, She has stores in Memphis TN and Germantown. Stephanie employed our CH32 Willow Pattern stencil and used Dutch Metal on the Greek Key Border. It is a different effect and also delicious.

Another favourite interpretation of our stencil appears in this powder room decorated by Tiffany of The Worthwhile Domicile blog

On a joint project with student Emma Robson elements of the Willow Pattern stencil design were enlarged and used in one of my attic rooms; There are several photos of it on this DesignInspiration blog. Look in 'Projects' and 'Tour our home' on the blog sidebar. 

Meanwhile, back to Mr Austin and his fabulous Midas walls; Check out his web site, you can buy from it and commission him. Amongst the goodies are some gorgeous, carved, wooden animals, works on canvas and this beautiful grisaille mural. 

Earlier this month I was a student on one of gilding supremo Annie LeMarie's classes in the USA. I was experimenting with 24kt gold leaf and one of my Gustavian style stencils. When my luggage is located and returned to me I shall show you what I learned.

Helen 

Betty's stencilled silk scarves

At Christmas I was given a gorgeous hand dyed and stencilled silk scarf.

It was made by my friend Betty using cold water dyes in colours that she thought would suit me. She was right and I have worn it often. Rachel and my mother also received stencilled scarves from Betty, one was decorated with roses and the other with Chinese dragons both stencil designs are Theme Pack stencils from The Stencil Library. The scarves are not here or else I would have photographed them too.

Betty stencilled a pashmina shawl for herself and sent me pictures of her friend modelling it.

It is the same butterfly design that featured on the scarf that she gave me. The effects on the two garments are very different. The butterfly stencil has two overlays, both layers were used for the pashmina but only the top layer was stencilled onto my silk scarf.

Like Betty I enjoy stencilling onto fabric, especially silk, to see some of the results visit the projects section of this blog. The butterfly stencil is included in the book Stencil It by Helen Morris. Alternatively, it is one of many, different, stencils of butterflies that can be ordered from The Stencil Library.  Have you used our stencils with fabric? We love to see photos.

Helen.

Restoration Man 'Starring' in Brixham, Devon

Last year Rachel and I enjoyed helping a customer called Neil Worral and his family. We should see the result of his efforts on television this week. Neil needed us to custom size a stencil of stars to decorate the ceiling of an historic church in Brixham, Devon.  Cost and ease of use were two important considerations. Neil had not used a stencil before and a ceiling several metres high is not the first project that I would recommend to a first time stenciller. His endeavour to convert the church to a family dwelling was being followed by Channel 4's Restoration Man television series.

Rachel and I were at the other end of England so the basics of using a stencil were conveyed by phone and email. How did he fare? We don't know. Along with many other people we will watch Restoration Man when it airs on Channel 4 at on Jan 16th in the UK. A glimpse of the stencilled stars feature on the trailer for the series. Even if I don't see much of the stencilled ceiling it will be lovely to see Brixham again. My family used to live close to there.

Helen.

Sarah-Jane Szikora, have we met?

Sarah-Jane Szikora makes quirky paintings that make me smile. In this snippet from the painting Damien's Dress  a woman has fashioned a dress from a canvas on the gallery wall. If she had thinner legs it could have been me.

The scissored painting looks like ones that I create from my MD33 dots stencil. She is wearing my trademark red shoes and that hairdo and colour is spookily familiar!

Visit sarah-janesszikora.com to see more of her paintings, prints and other arty things. I challenge you not to smile.

Helen

 

All I want for Christmas is a pug dog...

Of course, I will not be getting a pug dog for Christmas but here is the next best thing.

UK design company The Graduate Collection have licensed some of my paintings of pugs. They have reproduced them onto various items and so my Pugnalia Collection will be going to homes..including mine this Christmas.

There are pug pillows. The image is printed onto cotton satin and the back is made of velvet. The cushion is as soft, squishy and stroke-able as a pug!

Three of my original pug canvases have been reproduced as prints and I have framed one of each to sell at a forthcoming art exhibition. I bought the picture frames from Ikea and I purchased a small square frame to display one of the greetings cards.

I think the framed card may make a nice gift.

This morning The Graduate Collection sent me two notebooks, one with the Pugs & Kisses design and one with Pug Rocks, these are the newest items on their website and they feature in the latest 'Graduate Collection Pop Up Event' which opens for one week from Nov 28th to 4th Dec at 211-214 Piccadilly, London. 

The Graduate Collection wholesale the work of their designers to stores and shopping sites. They sell individual items worldwide by mail order.  Pugnalia can be ordered through me at The Stencil Library if preferred, however, I think that it is worth visiting the Graduate Collection's site and pop up shop because they represent a diverse selection of artists and designers from Britain. My work is shown as 'Helen Morris' rather than Pugnalia. The framed prints are for sale at The Forum Cinema in Hexham, Northumberland from 30th Nov to 26th Jan 

Helen

 

A simple, sophisticated and speedy stencil project

Lesley Dickinson of Clartycraft blog bought a log burning stove then updated her fire surround with a combination of stamp and stencil work.

The design is CO21 Fern stencil from The Stencil Library. Jane writes 'I used a match pot in black to create the outline within the main part of the wall to make a faux fireplace and used the colour I have on the other three walls for the background colour of the insert'.  You can follow Lesley's craft projects on the Clartycraft blog. 

Helen.

What has eight legs, hangs around in the lavvy and is rather chic?

Ned the Octopus stencil of course!

We were delighted to see this interpretation of the slippery sucker stencilled by Jane Craycroft.

Jane wrote 'Thank you for another successful project.  Ned looks fabulous in my tiny powder room.  I love the people's reaction when they discover him.  So fun, and sort of glamorous'.  

We agree with her, there is something about the octopus stencil that makes us smile and we loved seeing the pictures of Ned in her home. The photo on her wall gave us a giggle too. Thanks Jane.

See other stencil projects that feature VN160 Octopus here, here and here.

Helen.

 

A touch of Klimtomania in shades of grey.

I found a gorgeous piece of stencilled wall on the pages of Jacque J at pinterest.

She has stencilled it with VN3 Klimtomania from The Stencil Library. Jacque J describes herself as 'a textile artist loving felt'.  Immediately I pinned the picture to my 'Walls with wow' page and asked her if I could show it here. Jacque J replied that she had mixed her own colours by adding black acrylic to white emulsion paint and applied them with a sponge. She wrote 'It was really easy and I love it'

So do I and I am sure that others will too.

 

 

 

The personal touch

A regular client of ours sent photographs of her latest stencilling project.

We thought it was great and wanted to show it to you.

Originally, our client had contacted us to discuss monogram stencils. The monograms were to be stencilled onto fabric which would then cover some Louis style dining chairs that she was refurbishing.  She wanted to use initials of her grandchildren's names.  Initially (no pun intended), she had found some lettering online that she quite liked the look of and asked whether we would make a stencil of it for her. However, making stencils of lettering is not always straightforward and in this case, we did not have access to the full alphabet and there would have been copyright issues (many lettering styles may be under copyright as they are still "designs").  In the end, I advised her to look at our Art Deco font  it is part of our "In Your Own Words" stencil range where you can choose the lettering you need and at the size you want it.  Art Deco seemed the perfect solution because it was modern and similar to what she had originally seen.

Monograms add such a personal touch to anything you put them on.  Stencilling fabric is quite easy and quick to do.  Because our customer had ordered individual letter stencils, she had to create the arrangement of the initials for each chair.   Measuring is not as important as creating a pleasing composition in this instance (as well as making sure the letters fit within the space shown).  Our customer had stencilled the fabric and then simply handed it over to the upholsterer to put on the chairs.  To see more about the chairs and dining room, you can view them on her blog, Zoomin24-7, HERE and HERE. 

The results are stunning.  The chairs look amazing and modern. Also, they are special because they relate to her family.  Monograms can be created with letters from our Alphabets or In Your Own Words ranges.  We also do a dedicated range of monogram stencils. 

We are already chatting about her next stencilling project which will be more challenging, but if it comes off, will look just as fantastic.

Rachel.

Angela Beaumont, designer, artist and super stenciller

We could add teacher, author and many more accolades to her title.  Angela makes many of her own stencils from her studio in Yorkshire but occasionally she takes advantage of our design and stencil cutting services to make her job a little easier. Sometimes she finds one that one of our collection suits her so well that she uses it for many projects.

She wrote in praise of our CH45 Rococo Flowers stencil and sent a few photos. I have known of Angela for many years she does beautiful work and you can see more on her web site. One of Angela Beaumont's stencil designs was sold through The Stencil Library.

We called it The Angela Beaumont Swag, it appears in this photo borderina ceiling cornice. The swag  got missed when the new web site went live but you can still order it from us by email or phone and it may reappear on site when we have a tweak and tune up. It measures 13 inches by 24.5 inches and costs £34.50 There is postage charge if going outside the UK.  Contact us for more details.

Helen

 

Meet sugar craft expert Alan Dunn

Stencilled decoration is a piece of cake when demonstrated by sugarcraft specialist Alan Dunn.

Alan has written many books. His new book Creative Cakes hit the stores recently and he is running classes in UK and Germany in the next couple of weeks.

Both these cakes were stencilled using designs from The Stencil Library. 

Meet Zebo Ludvicek, she's the cat's whiskers and the dog's b...best artist.

I could spend hours looking at the work of Zebo Ludvicek an extremely talented artist working from Port Charlotte, Florida, USA.

There is an infectious sense of joy about her work whether she is painting on canvas, illustrating books or creating the most beautiful murals. I get extremely enthusiastic when I look through albums of her work, I think I have a 'art crush' on her.  The breadth of her output is wide and diverse but on this occasion I am bursting to show you some of her series of pet portraits.

I sense an enjoyment and celebration of the subjects in the pet portraits so I asked Zebo if the animals are more fun to paint than other commissions.  

ZL."Absolutely, yes. Without a doubt YES! I LOVE painting these. Love the entire process. I mean, how fun is it to be painting an Irish Water Dog with a French name ("Armand" because he is strong and bold) in armor, hair tied back, whilst listening to the soundtrack of Les Miserables for inspiration?

And where just curving a little dog's tail around its owners paw (Pandora, the Queen of Cats) can evoke such a feeling of love and trust? People say my portraits show emotion, convey their pets personality. I work diligently at this. It is what sets my work apart from all others. It's these details. The upturned head angled just a bit higher, the hooded eyes with a hint of twinkle (or twubble) and most of all, the little tail wrapped around its owner."

I asked Zebo. Why should I commission a pet portrait from Zebo Studio, why is your style different?

"What could bring a little smile to your lips more than your beloved fur child in jodhpurs or a bustier? Immortalized in paint to bring whimsy to the hum drum of life? A perfect portrait where your little Buster's bad habits and "little packages" in the living room are totally forgotten and only his loyalty, bravery and charm shine forth. A work of art, that at a visitor's first glance appears to be serious, sophisticated portraiture, but then, wait a minute......that's not the Mona Lisa! That's Fluffy!

Plus, since you are involved in the process, (as much as you would like to be), you will feel a wonderful sense of satisfaction when your portrait is finished and you stand before it loving it. Loving who's in it". 

"Ok" I say,  I have no babies, furry or otherwise... but I'm sold. Tell me how to commission one of your portraits.

ZL. "Easy! Call! Email!Facebook! Whatever works.

HM. "I shall put your contact information at the conclusion of this chat. Then what happens?"

ZL."We first chat about their fur baby and what they have in mind as far as style, medium, size, detail, era, etc for the portrait. We discuss their budget and Zebo Studio pricing and see if the twain shall meet. When I have a general idea of their vision for the portrait, I email samples of my work and also various reference photos to help the client narrow down their choices. Renaissance? Armor? Simple background? A village? Heavy texture? Flat? And so on.....I deal with them as I would like to be dealt with if I knew next to nothing about art and felt slightly intimidated. I make the process simple and visual. It's much easier for a client to SEE a photo of a 17th century dutch painting and say "That's the style! That's what I want!" than to DESCRIBE that look. When I finally know "the look" the customer wants, I give an accurate estimate for the cost of the portrait, with 1/2 due with contract and remainder due at job completion.

I think that her pet portraits have humour, sparkle and buoyancy about them and the sitters radiate personality. Apart from possessing huge talent how does she achieve that? Zebo continues

"If the project is a go ahead, the client emails me photos of the pet. If local, I visit and photograph the subject myself. I also like the client to write me about their fur child. Their personality, likes and dislikes, good things... bad things.  This is vitally important as it helps me to grab their character and release it into the painting. I work up very quick digital sketches which I email the client for approval. It's a back and forth collaboration. Two are better than one. The client will have total approval on the final sketch before I commit anything to canvas so they know exactly what they will be looking at in their completed portrait. No surprises. Everyone is happy. Plus, since you are involved in the process, (as much as you would like to be), you will feel a wonderful sense of satisfaction when your portrait is finished and you stand before it loving it. Loving who's in it"

I asked whether there a likelihood of some of her work being made into cards, calendar or a book?

ZL. "I would love to take the lives of these noble creatures and weave a story about them for millions of children to read and enjoy. To keep them alive forever. So yes, a children's book? Definitely. Illustrating is my true passion. While I am painting portraits, I write a story about my subjects, but only in my mind. It makes them more real to me, allowing me envelope them with history, and adventure, feelings and life. Cards?  Some of my clients have me design their Christmas card from their pet portrait. Other than those contracts, I have never thought about a line of cards nor calendars. But I have thought about puzzles."

Okay, publishers, licensing agents take note. To see more work from Zebo Ludvicek visit her. There is so much to enjoy about her work I hope to talk to her later in the year about her floral paintings, mural work and book illustration but for now I will leave the last word with her.

ZL. "People say I am the best there is. Let me prove it to you"

 

Email [email protected]  Facebook Messaging  http://www.facebook.com/zebostudio

Telephone (001) 941-400-7353

links to view more from Zebo

http://www.facebook.com/zebostudio

http://www.be.net/zebo/frame

All photos supplied by Zebo Ludvicek.

Helen

 

 

 

Inside the studio of Me & Mrs Jones.

I think if I was visiting the Memphis area tomorrow I would be indulging in 'emergency shopping' at the studio of Mr & Mrs Jones.

Every time I visit their blog there is something new to enjoy.

Now they are teaching their skills with painted finishes

 

and retailing the goods to achieve them with. Scrumptious!

All pictures by Stephanie Jones.

Helen

Theresa Cheek stencils scraffito style

Theresa Cheek of Arts The Answer has been creating more decorative loveliness.

She has used our GMT30 stencil and Marmorino plaster to give an illusion of scraffito.

What is scraffito?  Find out more at Arts The Answer. Theresa's blog posts are delicious to look at as well as being informative.

Helen.

Betty's Butterfly Pashmina

Betty Cooper has acheived fabulous results with the stencils that she adapted from the book Stencil It and I enjoy seeing them.

Betty wrote 'How do you like your butterfly stencil floating on a pashima? The lovely model is my office -mate, Ingrid  who has the stature and profile for showing off your designs at their best."

I think a stencilled pashmina is an inspired choice and one that I have not yet tried.

Betty continued 'This Friday night is a private reception   Very exciting and, of course, I needed a new outfit worthy of the occasion.  And the new outfit needed a little coverup in case it was chilly.

  Stencil It came to the rescue.  I printed out the butterflies in several sizes and cut them as stencils.  I used textile paint for the stenciling which dried soft and vibrant  I am very pleased with the finished scarf and am thrilled to be wearing it at such a momentous occasion.'

The butterfly stencil is one of 15 ready cut card stencils that appear in Stencil It and the book is available from me and other bookstores. The stencils can be bought from the Stencil It collection at The Stencil Library. I don't know which paint Betty used but if she reads this she may tell us.  The paints that I use with great success are from Jacquard and from Liquitex.  I have a bottle of Golden Fabric Medium and if I am using a paint that does not come from the afore mentioned sources  I mix it with the medium.

Thank you Betty and Ingrid. 

More decoration inspired by butterflies.

Just when I think I can not possibly be inspired by another butterfly project...I AM!

Here's a pretty and unusual idea from Carolyn Blahosky of Stencilwerks, Allentown, PA. She stencilled onto Roc-Lon fray proof canvas with SIB15-S  butterfly stencil from my book Stencil It by Helen Morris (also available from Amazon) She then cut around the shapes, stapled them to the painted canvas and pushed the wings into position. If applying directly to a wall instead of canvas use a suitable adhesive.

J'adore this waxed and painted butterfly table. Realisation : Eve-Marie Briolat, Céline Dupuy for Marie Clare Idees Issue 61. Via The Daily Basics via Leaf. 

Finally this is a detail from a bed cover that I stencilled last week. I used a stencil of willow in a vertical stripe and some of the butterfly stencils in our new variety pack. I'll post the full story when I have the pics edited.

Helen

 

Sandy Gunderson. Featured Decorative Artist

 Prepare to be floored...

by A Visual Feast from Sandy Gunderson of Fallis, Alberta, Canada. (Stencil VN3 Klimtomania).

(Stencil VN49 Salome).

stencil VN153 lilies.

Sandy includes stage and event design in her list of talents but specialises in aesthetic re-design/decoration and improvement.  She can jazz up a building both inside and out.  Sandy sent photos of one of her recent commissions the 11 storey Empire Building in downtown Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.

A Visual Feast was involved in many aspects of the improvements but I will show you some floors because they are stencilled.

Not all the designs used in the Empire Building are from The Stencil Library but a good number are. The stencil pictured left is JA52 Waves.

Sandy wrote "I loved going through your hundreds (thousands?) of patterns and always found perfect designs for both mens' and women's' bathrooms:  your collection is a veritable encyclopedia of stunning designs from every era and style. In particular I was thrilled that you had such a comprehensive range of Art Nouveau/Arts & Crafts/Art Deco patterns, as this is the era in which I specialize.

I am an art historian and my thesis related to the Glasgow Four and the Vienna Secession so I was ecstatic when I found so many Klimt-inspired images as well as the Glasgow Rose and of course numerous designs from the Arts & Crafts movement."   

She continued " I've used several of your designs a number of times, and since I use a fast-drying paint and we're not often near large sinks, some of them now weigh several pounds and they still work perfectly.

I also work in various finishes such as Shimmerstone, Lustrestone, Granicrete and Skimstone The floors have a lot of depth and huge range of color there are 19 completely different floor patterns and there is one remaining floor to be done". She adds "I am planning to use your VN 289 Birth of Venus repeating stencil"

I'm looking forward to seeing that.

Sandy distributes and teaches with some of the product used in theses floors.  She teaches Aurastone in small group sessions at her studio in Fallis, Alberta.

The next few pictures show the resurfaced and upgraded mens' and womens' bathrooms at the Empire Building Sandy provided the artwork and florals as well as design, decor and the stencilled concrete floors.

OTT29 Repeat

VN78 Baccarat

VN78 Baccarat

VN139 Feathers large and VN214 Fan Dancers large

VN214 Fan Dancers

VN201 Fans

VN83 Gatsby

Sandy Gunderson - President

A VISUAL FEAST INC.

6 Beach Way, BOX 255

Fallis, AB Canada T0E 0V0

Phone: 780.892.2590

Fax: 780.892.3306

 

 

Featured Decorative Artist Janet Gonzales

Photo by Kert Kley  

I always thought that our VN298 Fennel stencil would work well with plaster and Janet Gonzales from Jans Creative Finishes  proved me right.

She sent these pics via Facebook so I went to her page to see more.

Don't you love the colour and shine on this wall?

What about this one? She has used a border stencil from Royal Designs at the top of the walls...look at the ceiling. Janet is surely a 'master of the plaster'.

Here's our VN298 fennel design again, we have several stencils of cranes but this one came from Jeff Raum.  I think it all looks fabulous, thank you for sending them Janet,if you get a moment please tell us more.

Helen

Artists on Facebook using Stencil Library stencils

Amy Christensen at Faux Get About It shared pictures of her stencil work on my Facebook Page this week and I thought that they should reach a wider audience especially this unusual finish using the MD5-M croc stencil from our Modern Design Collection.

Amy wrote ' I learned it from Annie Hoffman Omar ! She has great classes! It's Modern Masters products with the embossed croc done in a clear medium'

Click on photo above to get a good look at the detail.

So, you could employ Amy to replicate the finish or take a class with Annie (she is in Fort Worth Dallas and also on Facebook). The stencil can be ordered here.

Amy has used the same stencil with a different technique on this music centre both the croc finishes are so tactile as well as attractive. Amy shared a photo of door panels. This time the stencil that she used was JA114 Bird and Blossom from our Japanese style stencils.

The Stencil Library has it's own Facebook Page. I am slowly building up content on it and have posted some of my projects. When I have found out how transfer stuff to The Stencil Library pages from my Helen Morris page there will be a lot more to look at. It will be interesting to see more pictures of stencil work from our customers. Meanwhile, Thanks Amy.

Photographs by Amy Christensen. Faux Get About It.

Betty Stenciled It

Look what a clever person armed with a copy of Stencil It can do.

Betty Cooper transformed her well worn cabinets from this 

to this.

Drawers started like this

and were upgraded with some pretty stencilling and a new set of drawer knobs.

Betty wrote '  I finished my project- and I am thrilled with it.  I hope you will enjoy seeing your designs used to save my old cabinets. I used a super paint to cover the old finishes- Cabinet Coat , a water base product meant for kitchen and bathroom cabinets  It levels out very nicely and went on quickly with a foam roller.  It comes only in white, but can be tinted pastel and mid tones.  As you can see, I chose a cafe au lait.  
  I then turned to Stencil It for inspiration.  I chose the Damask pattern for the cabinets and cut the designs in 4 sizes (stencil burner only, my hands are too old for a craft knife).

She continues 'Most of the designs were stenciled in white, but I took some of the leftover base paint, added some raw umber, and came up with a shale gray for some of the prints.
  For the dresser, I wanted a lacy effect, and used your Elizabethan pattern.  It looks great and gives the effect of lace panels applied to the background.
  The end result is a lot better looking than anything new that I could have bought, and everything fits perfectly.
  I have to admit that the paint project was easy... figuring out how to send this email with pictures was way more challenging for me'.

 I am glad that she persevered.  This is just one of the stencil projects that Betty has sent me. There is another where she has stenciled a pashmina shawl with the butterfly design from Stencil It. It's lovely and I'll post it soon. 

We have stencil burners that work with UK electrics and can recommend where to get USA versions.

Helen