It started with a feeling of wonder as I stood in an infinity room by Yayoi Kusama at the Speed Art Museum. Surrounded by a sea of mirrored circles, little did I know, those mesmerizing circles would spark the play that became the Spotted Layers stencil set for July’s StencilClub.

What I love most about playing with these stencils is the sheer range of possibilities. You can go for careful precision or let the layers land wherever they may.

Subtle or bold, random or intentional—every combination gives you a different result.

You might be wondering how the black and white spots were done with a stencil. It’s a technique I stumbled into and it’s snap to do.

Inside StencilClub, there’s a members only video where I show you the technique so you can make those shadowed spots. In fact, you can make all the papers in that photo above because there are 6 different techniques in the video. Some are gel prints, some aren’t and they’re all fun to try!

Even the clean-up papers are fun thanks to the spots!

What is StencilClub?

If you’re new to StencilClub, it’s a monthly club from StencilGirlProducts.com where on the 15th of each month you are mailed a set of stencils each month, an exclusive project video by the designing artist, a pdf, and a 25% discount for any stencils in their regular collection. 

Best of all, there is zero commitment. You can cancel anytime. 

StencilClub is only $25 a month in the US and it includes shipping. Each month you get either two 9×12 stencils or one 9×12 stencil and two 6×6 stencils. Membership mean the stencils are cheaper than if you bought them individually, if you could that is since StencilClub designs are only available in StencilClub.

One awesome change they’ve made to StencilClub is that you can swap out designs twice a year. The details about how that works can be found over at StencilGirlProducts.com.

The stencils ship July 15th so be sure to be signed up before then if you’d like to play!

Next week I’ll be sharing how I played with these on transparencies and what I used it for and I can’t wait to see how you play with Spotted Layers!

Embossing powders are one of those art supplies that always make me smile when I use them—but if I’m honest, they don’t see the light of day nearly enough. That changed when the muse dropped a little “what if” thought at me. So I turned on the camera and I’m sharing the play of layering patterns using embossing powders in this video create for the StencilGirl YouTube channel.

There’s something magical about experimenting with layers—especially when you let go of the “shoulds” and just see what unfolds. Each stencil in the Layer Me collection was designed to be used on its own or combined with others – as you’ll see in the video above. You can center the patterns, offset them, overlap them, or even let them run wild across your page. In the process, you get to choose: do you want crisp, defined shapes or a jumble of textures? There’s no right or wrong—just a playground for your creativity.

*****All my stencils are 20% off for two weeks only – use code RAINBOW20 at StencilGirlProducts.com*****

Layering embossing powders over stencils is a fantastic way to create your own collage papers. I ended up using one of mine on an art journal page, but you could use them for cards, tags, or any project that needs a spark of texture and shine. The best part? You can do this in any color combination that calls to you so it can be uniquely yours!

Steps for Embossing

In the video, you see this process in action but here’s the general process.

• Apply embossing fluid/ink pad/dabber through the stencil
• Remove stencil
• Sprinkle embossing powder over embossing fluid
• Tap off excess powder
• Heat with a heat gun until the powder melts
• Let cool and repeat with the second layer

Why use tissue paper?

I like the thinness of the tissue when collaging it and that’s a personal preference. You absolutely can do this with any paper or surfaces you can heat to emboss.

Why watercolors?

After the pattern is embossing, watercolors are an easy and forgivng way to add color. In the video, you’ll see that I just brush the watercolor right over the images. Since the embossed areas are glossy, they act as a resist so it’s easy to wipe away any stray color on the pattern.

How to Save the Ugly Ones

I’d love to tell you every color choice is a great one, but they aren’t. When one doesn’t turn out the way I expected, that’s just an O.O.P.S., an Outstanding Opportunity Presenting Suddenly. I simply add more layers on top of it. Here I used a Portfolio crayons because they blend and smear easily.

Your choice- strays or no strays

What you’re seeing here is the magic of embossing. I love how the stray bits of powder add to the uniqueness of the finished papers. But what if you want a very crisp and precise layering? That’s where an ant static pouch is helpful.

Supplies

Many of the embossing powders I used are old. So old that the companies are no longer in business. But you can use any brand/color of embossing powder you have with this technique!

Some of these links may be affiliate links which means I may get a small percentage and it doesn’t cost you anything extra! And you get a really good feeling knowing that you are helping keep the free tutorials coming!