Stenciled Canvas ~ Meet Natalee from Eat Nap Play

I’m so thrilled to have Natalee guest posting for me today while I’m making the big move! I met her at Elevate this year and she is so darling! You need to check her out!

Hello Everyone! I am Natalee, and I blog over at Eat Nap Play. I met Jen back in May at Elevate Blog Conference. I have been following her blog ever since, and I am so excited that she asked me to be a guest here today while she and her family are moving. I have been blogging since February, and I really enjoy it. It provides me with a place of my own where I can relax and have “me time” while sharing my adventures and connecting with others. I like to blog about many different thing including family, healthy living (including recipes and fitness) and crafting. I also enjoy the occasional beauty product post and giveaway post. Today, I am going to share a recent crafting project with you. I thought this would be a fun project to share because it would be the perfect addition on a wall of a new home after a big move. Decorating is the best part of moving, right?

Yesterday I decided to use the Royal Design Studio stencil that I received from Elevate to make a simple wall art project for our home. I really want to use it as a pattern for one of the walls in our room, but for now I thought I’d try it on a canvas. Here is the stencil I used…

I centered it on a blank 12×12 canvas that I purchased from Michael’s and taped down the sides with a couple pieces of clear office tape that I had lying around.

Once the stencil was taped down where I wanted it, I mixed my paints and started painting.

I took a couple of acrylic paints that I had on hand and mixed them to make the perfect shade of turquoise. I mixed a small amount of black paint into my Aqua Cool Pearl color.

After I mixed the perfect color, I started painting. Luckily, I mixed just the right amount to finish the project. If you decide to mix your own color, I recommend mixing more than you think you will need just in case you run out because it may be difficult to mix the same exact color if you end up needing to make more. {Just a helpful hint that I learned along the way ;)}

I started at the top and worked my way down brushing in vertical strokes. I used quite a bit of paint in each section, and some paint ended up getting underneath my stencil. Fortunately, it turned out pretty cool looking. It looks kind of 3-dimensional. If you want your edges to look more crisp, I would recommend using less paint or even tracing the stencil with a pencil before painting it (if you have a steady hand). I also just learned that you can use a special stencil brush with short, firm bristles to help avoid getting the paint under the stencil. I will definitely go this route if I stencil our walls. I am pleased with the way mine turned out though. I decided to hang it in our hallway to add a pop of color.

What do you think? Let me know if you try this simple wall art project. I’d love to see your creation and hear about your experience!