Welcome to the second part in the #RANZAmade series of stencil techniques. Today we're going to use one stencil in a few different ways. We'll create a repeated pattern to make an impressive background, in no time. How to add a light-colored image over a dark pattern. And how to add interest and little details that make a big difference. Don't forget to check out last week's stencil technique on bumping, too!
Once again, gesso, acrylic paint (both standard and fluid), a makeup wedge, and a palette will be the ingredients used on a tag for today.
When I saw this aztec pattern in the stencil I noticed it would actually work as a repeated pattern! I started with the pattern a little off the tag. I used the same pouncing technique I used in week one for the blues. I used a little of both the Manganese Blue Hue and Phthalo Blue on the makeup wedge. Pounce off the excess paint and into the stencil. The less paint you use, the more crisp the pattern will be.
Artistic tip: having a pattern or design run off your tag/page/canvas adds interest, because it makes the viewer's eyes keep moving and not just stop at one end.
Here's the part where the repeated pattern comes alive. As you can see here, I left one of the three aztec designs aligned. I bet you know what the next part will be after this…
You guessed it, pounce paint in the other two designs. If you wanted to be extra safe, you could tape off the other designs – but I played the rebel for this tag.
Keep repeating the process to fill up the tag to get the full repeated pattern background. It looks so cool! I know the 121x12inch stencil will look great on a bigger canvas too!
Once the tag is dry to the touch you're ready to move on to the next phase. Gesso will be key at this point. You can add as much or as little you like to block out the background. I used it in thin layers, again using the pouncing technique.
A little gesso goes a long way. You can see what a difference just adding one more layer does to cover the pattern.
To add color, I used Cadmium Yellow Deep Hue in with some gesso. Not fully mixing it, because I'm a rebel just for kicks. Pounce another layer on top and build up the color.
Using just two parts of the stencil seemed too minimal for me, we're maximalists around here! So I decided to add more nature designs found on the same stencil to make the deer head feel more at home. I used Carbon Black fluid acrylic (which I omitted from the product picture) for this part. Pouncing in the black, leaving the bottom hanging off the edge again.
Do you notice anything different about this picture? I wanted to add more of the branches to the other side of the deer, but decided to flip the stencil before painting. I know I tend to get in the rut of using the stencils using the same side once I start. If you have an asymmetrical design, this will add that little detail, with a special touch.
Pounce your painty heart, I mean makeup wedge, away!
I'm clearly obsesses with details. I wanted to have one of the sets of branches look a little different. I used the top part only to add a tiny section of the branch up from the bottom the tag.
You can see it a little better here once it's filled in here.
And there you have it! Woohoo! Second tag, but used in so many ways! I probably could have added more, but I wanted to keep it easy. It's all about breaking down in steps and adding details.
Just while looking at this, I can think of so many variations that would be awesome! Neon aztec with darker deer? Gold branches? Maybe more branches all along the edges?! Hope you liked this week's tutorial. Don't forget to use the tag #balzerdesigns when you try out this, or any other techniques or stencils in your art online.
Here are the product links:
Makeup Wedges, Palette Paper, Tags, Liquitex Gesso, Liquitex Basics Cadmium Yellow Deep Hue, Golden Fluid Acrylics colors; Carbon Black, Manganese Blue Hue, Phthalo (Red Shade).
You can pre-order the Trendy Images stencil from Scrapbook.com, among others!
