January 31, 2010

stenciling galore

To start, let me just say my little girl better LOVE her room. A lot.

So I got the idea to stencil my wall from a nestie, Myst33. You can see her powder room tone on tone stenciling project here (scroll all the way to the bottom). She has some great instructions posted as to how she did the stenciling, so I'll let you read those, and let my visual directions do the talking.

First hubby measured out a 20 x 20 inch grid on the wall. I'll admit it was really fun to see a grid on my wall, because way back when I was in graphics 1 making posters on the grid was my favorite project. The grid was something I could handle well.



I practiced making my stencil shape on computer paper. Then I moved to tracing paper to make the larger shape. I cut my stencil out of illustration board.



While painting I first centered the stencil in the square. Then after all 24 squares had been stenciled (and dried) I centered the shape over the cross hairs of the grid. Thanks for the help Katelynn!! :o)



For the edges I had to cut my stencil up. I had actually made two stencils, because my first one warped so much through the first set of painting. Surprisingly, today the stencil worked pretty darn good because it had dried flat, and the paint then acted as a barrier between the stencil and the new paint, so I didn't experience any warping. If you can find a sturdy plastic material to cut your stencil out of that would be the way to go.



Although the wall needs some serious touch-ups (paint seeped behind my warped stencil) I have to say I am pretty pleased with the results. I think it adds a little fun, texture and whimsy to the nursery. I seriously can not wait until I get everything in here. Two weeks until the furniture arrives!!




17 comments:

Ashley Antkowiak said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Ashley Antkowiak said...

Sorry about the deleted comment! Just wanted to say that I love the stencil - looks like you guys worked so hard on it, and it turned out great! Super cute blog - found you through the bump :)

Meaghan said...

L-O-V-E the stencil!!! You are so good at this! Can't wait to see the room in person :) Hope you have a good week- miss you friend!

p.s. the pregnancy photos are great too- love that they are at home :)

Kelly Loy Gilbert said...

That look fantastic!!!!!!!! I wish I could paint my walls-I would totally copy. She will LOVE it. :)

Kate said...

Adorable! And I love those curtains - where are the from?

Unknown said...

That looks so cute Ashley! :)

ThoughtsON said...

That looks fabulous! What a great idea!

Beth Ann said...

Impressive!

Mrs. Jenna said...

Can I ask where you got the curtains? The room is FABULOUS.

The Barkemeyers said...

I LOVE the stenciling. I feel like I say I LOVE everything you have on your blog : ) Baby Jenks is going to love her room, and what I love about it is that its not a really babyish room, its very classy, like your baby girl is sure to be!

Ashley said...

Glad you guys love the room so far! The curtains are from Urban Outfitters :o). They are no longer available in yellow, but do come in grey and ivory or white I believe.

kathy from ct said...

Am I missing a step? "Then after all 24 squares had been stenciled (and dried) I centered the shape over the cross hairs of the grid." You centered after stencil? Is there perhaps another color not showing on my monitor? How can I copy your awesome job without all the steps>;)
It's beautiful and sophisticated without the cloying baby nursery affliction so many suffer from. Thanks for posting.

Lovely Little Nest said...

This room is amazing!! I came over from "You paid more than me" and am so glad I did! You are truly talented. What are the colors you used on the wall? I love them both! :)

Amy said...

What a beautiful room!

Anonymous said...

LOVE this nursery!! You must be soooo pleased with it!!

What paints colors did you use???

michelle said...

Love the stenciled wall. How did you get rid of the pencil lines?

Anonymous said...

Love the room, what colors did you use on the walls?