DIY Stencil Revolution

Put your crafty hat on my bloggy friends, it’s time for a bit of crafty inspiration. Stenciling is one of the best ways to make a crafty statement. All you need is a great stencil, a steady hand and a little creativity time (a.k.a. me time). No matter what type of craft I’m doing it takes me 5 times as long to complete it. I have such terrible tremors sometimes, so “the shakies” are unpredictable. I had a good day and a bad day with these fun craft projects. Please join me for a Stencil Revolution!

Some of you will recognize this extra-large tote bag from my shop please click HERE to get yours. I found the smaller tote bag in my crafting with our grandchildren box. I have everything you can imagine in there. It is a much smaller tote, but easy for little hands to carry.
I am loving these wonderful stencils from Stencil Revolution.

The stencils for my projects were generously provided by Stencil Revolution in exchange for a product review. You can read the product review HERE. They have a plethora of very affordable re-usable stencils ready for your next bit of craftiness! Don’t you just love the opportunity to use the word “plethora” ( wink)?
I had three stencil crafts on my list

1. A Wish Tote Bag using the dandelion stencil in 5 x 6 inch size
2. Butterflies are Free Embroidered Extra-Large Tote Bag using the 5 x 6 inch butterfly and
3. Stepping Stone Butterflies using the 8.5 x 11 inch butterfly

If you have been a reader for a while you know I have an affinity for butterflies and I truly believe they are lucky (at least for me), as they have been present in one form or another on many happy occasions. This butterfly stencil is perfect for the large tote bag and the stepping stones.

For the stepping stones, all you need is a great stencil, some tape and a can of spray paint. I did tape down all four sides but neglected to take a photo, sorry. Don’t spray all in one big sweeping motion. Instead “pulse” the spray. Once you have the stencil securely in place. Hold the spray can about 6-8 inches above the stencil with the spray nozzle facing directly above the stencil. This is important, you don’t want any paint to sneak in from the sides or your paint will get underneath the stencil.

For the extra large tote bag, I clipped the bottom gusset of the bag at the fold with clothespins ( clothes pegs) to create a flat surface and added a bit of tape too. To get a nice even pattern you don’t want your stencil to move or have a gap. In addition, I held it in place with 
my left hand while I traced the stencil with my right. When working with stencils I always trace the pattern with a pencil first. Tracing with a pencil allows for easy error corrections (on most surfaces). You can just erase the mistake and move on. Make sure your pencil is sharp and has a clean eraser.
I traced over the pencil lines using colored fabric markers to indicate which colors I wanted to use for the embroidery pattern. I used similar colored embroidery floss and a medium thickness needle and went to work. I started out using an embroidery hoop but found it easier to embroider the thick canvas without it. I used basic stitches, a simple back stitch, satin stitch and split stitch. If you are new to embroidery I found a video for those of you who want to learn the basic stitches, you can find it HERE. I have provided a free downloadable pdf pattern with all of the details below.

As you can clearly see from the photos I only managed to get 2 and a half completed, that’s life in “shakey town” my friends. Stenciling takes patience, and a steady hand, and so does embroidery. I created this PDF for you to download just in case you would like to embroider a butterfly on your tote. The stitches are basic. I do not recommend punch embroidery on a canvas bag though it is too rigid and punch embroidery requires a much softer fabric. Please purchase the stencil from Stencil Revolution, my pattern is for the colors and stitches.

click to download butterfly tote embroidery stitch and color pattern

For the wish bag, I secured the stencil with tape and clothespins. I simply traced the dandelion with a sharp pencil and filled it all in with a black fabric marker, adding a few little dandelion “wish carries” to float across the tote. I freehanded a simple make a wish message.

 

There you have it, my friends, fun with stencils and a big thank you to Stencil Revolution! Which of these projects will you make?

I hope to see you all back here tomorrow for the TFT blog party.

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“May the Lord bless you and keep you; may He let His grace shine upon you and be gracious to you; may the Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.” Numbers 6:24-6:26 NIV