Stenciled Wonderful Friend

Today I noticed on SoShelli.com (Stampin' Up!'s CEO, Shelli Gardner's personal blog) that the challenge for March is to use a stencil for a project. Love that idea! I bought a pack of the Folk Flowers Decor Stencils from the Occasions Mini Catalog a while back and have only used them once or twice. In fact, I hadn't used this pattern at all yet. So I was excited to get it out and play! This time I sponged Whisper White ink onto only certain parts of the design to get this look.

I added a few extra touches with the Scallop Trim edge at the top and some piercing and dotted grosgrain at the bottom. I really wanted a Melon Mambo brad for the center of the top flower, but since there aren't any I decided to just punch out the center of the flower with my 1/8" hold punch so the paper shows through.

The one part I'm not sure about is the dots on the "friend" piece. I think that might be a little over the top for my simple design. What do you think? I may just make another one just like it but leave the dots off and glue it right on top. I'll wait to hear from all of you though!

Stampin' Tips:

• Only want to use part of a design in a stencil? Block off the other areas with strategically placed sticky notes. Have a smaller area to block off? Either tear the sticky note, or try using one of those sticky note flags that are really small.
• Have old In Colors and not sure what to do with them? Why not try combining them with a current In Color for a fabulously unique color combo! (Shown here are Marigold Morning and Melon Mambo)
• Don't have a brad in the color you need? Try punching a hole instead and allowing the paper to show through from behind!
• Want to see more Decor Stencils? Click HERE to see SU's entire collection!
  

I hope you like it! Thanks for stopping by today. Feel free to go play along with Shelli's challenge- I'm sure she'd love to have you!
~Kristin

PS- If you are ever in need of Stampin' Up! products I'd be glad to place an order to be shipped directly to your door. Feel free to contact me at stamp_for_smiles(at) embarqmail(dot)com

SUO Supplies

Stamps: Wonderful Favorites

Colors: Melon Mambo, Marigold Morning (retired In Color), Whisper White, Chocolate Chip

Accessories: Folk Flowers Decor Stencil, Paper Piercing tools, Small oval punch, Melon Mambo dotted grosgrain, Scallop Trim border punch, 1/8" hole punch, sponge

Shimmer Stencil with a hint of color

Oh boy are these decor stencils neat! You can find this one, Folk Flowers, on page 18 of the new Occasions Mini Catalog. This is the first time I've ever used one and I decided to dab some of our Platinum Shimmer Paint with a sponge dauber to see how it looks. So what do you think? It is so dramatic on black I could've just quit but I wanted to play around and experiment a little so I added some chalk to add a hint of color. Funny thing is, this paint dries so much more quickly than I anticipated that by the time I decided to add the chalk it was mostly dry. Good thing I was going for a subtle look. In real life the shimmer paint is very... well, shimmery and the various colors of chalk show up at different angles, so it has a neat effect that I can't show real well on camera.

If you haven't tried these Shimmer Paints yet SU has announced they will be available as a write-in to the catalog after the Holiday Mini is no longer available. Speaking of the Holiday Mini, today is the last day to order from it so don't miss out if you've been on the fence on something!

Have a great day!
~Kristin

SUO Supplies
Stamps: Teeny Tiny Wishes

Colors: Basic Black, Melon Mambo, Platinum

Accessories: Folk Flower Decor Stencil, Platinum Shimmer Paint, Modern Label punch, sponge dauber, Stampin' Pastels (chalks)