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I never expected my latest stencil to stir up so much controversy. But it did. I suspect that once everybody understands what’s going on with this word, they wont be quite so triggered. As a side note, it also created quite a few kind emails with helpful intentions!

What is the word that created a flurry of angry indignant emails? Regerts. Yes, the word isn’t spelled the way it is in the dictionary but it wasn’t a typo. It’s a reference to the epic tattoo OOPS, No Regerts. So technically it was a typo for the tattoo artist, but very intentional on the stencil. Perhaps you saw the Milky Way commercial that had fun with it or one of the many memes over the years.

Since it isn’t in an official dictionary, we can each take whatever meaning we want from it. My take on it is it’s a light hearted way of rolling with it when things don’t go as planned or a reminder that you only live once (YOLO). It’s a phrase I say frequently at home to keep things in perspective.

This all led to today’s play, No Regerts DIY tape. Start by putting the tape on a non-stick surface. I used both 1/2″ tape and 3/4″ tape artist tape. Links to what I’m using for the non stick surface and all the supplies I’ve used are listed at the end of this post.

Then let loose and scribble, paint, drip, smear color on the tape with whatever is within arm’s reach. It is No Regerts tape after all!

After everything’s dry, add some words to it with the Random Thoughts stencils. You can stencil the words just as they are or use a sticky note to easily adjust them. “Hadn’t” became “Had” and “Telling” became “Tell”. You can also rearrange the words, like I did on several of these by adding “no regerts” to the end of the line.

What can you do with the tape you create? Add a title to an art journal page, like I did below. It’s also fun to seal up an envelope with it or add a few words to a collage or ATC. Anywhere you’d use decorative tapes, like washi tapes, you can use your DIY tape!

Here are the supplies used. Some of these links may be affiliate links which means I 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!

The fluid paints I used are no longer available- they are the Pam Carriker Sheer Fluid Matt by Derivan Matisse. I used the White Washed and Sun.

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Anything can be used to make patterns and texture in gel prints! This play is courtesy of not wanting to cook dinner and getting takeout. The cardboard/paper container is what is making all this pattern!

In the video I share how to do it with 1, 2 or 3 colors of paint and using the tool, the sandwich container, just a few times versus a bunch! And why I chose the large Gel Press plate to use for this play.

Here are the supplies used. Some of these links may be affiliate links which means I 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!

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Words are so versatile. That’s why they always seem to end up in whatever I’m creating. They can be a source of inspiration, a design element and add meaning. My latest word collection at StencilGirlProducts.com includes random phrases, sayings, sentences, and miscellaneous words. So I bet you can guess why this is called the Random Thoughts collection!

Can you find the “typo” on one of the stencils? No regerts. Well, it’s not exactly a typo. The original was for the tattoo artist who meant to write regret but here it is totally intentional. That epic tattoo OOPS is a reminder to roll with it, even when things don’t go as planned.

Words add meaning

An example of using words for meaning is the art journal page below. Adding that bumfuzzled to the speech bubble summed up the meaning of the page with such a chaotic background and the look on that kid’s face.

Words are flexible.

Use them as they are on the stencil or rearrange them to fit your needs! The phrase, that envelope had my future in it, is all in a row on the stencil. But when you know a shortcut, there’s an easy way to reposition the words vertically. In the video above, you can see how I used the stencil to do the heavy lifting of equally spacing the words.

Ever draw a total blank on what to create?

That was where I was when I started this art journal page. I started by reading over the words and phrases on the Random Thoughts stencils and noticing what words jumped out at me. The word envelope inspired me to grab and envelope and start playing.

Words as a design element

What happens when you use only parts of a word? You get a great grungy layer! When I’m stenciling bits of text in several places on a page, like below, each area uses a different part of the stencil. That an easy way to add to the random look.

The spacing between the lines of text was intentional for two big reasons.

First, it lets you use a cosmetic sponge easily to stencil just a word. Second, it lets you create a design element by stenciling it twice. The letters will stack, just barely touching the rows above and below.

Here’s a closer look at how they stack.

Using reverse stenciling on tissue paper lets you create bold words that make great titles! How do you do reverse stenciling? I’ve previously made a video on that process and you can see it here.

The tissue paper I love to use with stencils fades into the background and is easy to work with because it comes in flat 12×18 sheets that I just cut in half. This is an affiliate link so that means I get a small percentage but it doesn’t cost you anything!

Love texture and want some dimensional stenciling? Then modeling paste is a great medium to use-it’s so customizable too! I’ve got an upcoming video where I go into depth on the full process for how to use modeling paste with stencils, so get signed up for my newsletter and you’ll be sure to know as soon as it’s out! Plus, there’s a weekly free download in there for you too.

Something to Say, the speech bubble stencil, was inspired by all the thoughts that pop into my head, the loud and soft voices heard, and all the distracting noise that seems to be filling the world right now. The colorful art journal page you see below is in progress and yup, there will be a full video sharing the simple trick for doing this as well as where it goes with the next layer!

Something to Say also includes all 8 masks.

The rectangular speech bubbles are adjustable. You can easily make them as tall or wide as you want. In the video, you see how I adjusted the width to make room for the words I wanted to use on this page with Trena Brannon’s Couture collection of playful paper dolls. Check out all of her designs here.

Create colorful conversations by overlapping the speech bubbles. I love that Trena’s Couture Models come in two sizes (and 3 shapes) which allows the orange and blue conversation to represent one that a person is having with herself!

These colorful speech bubbles were inspired by a quote – this is a very easy technique and you bet, there’s a video coming on this soon too! There are just so many ways to play with these stencils to fit in one video!

These are the tip of the iceberg of what you can do with stencils! The entire Random Thoughts collection is available at StencilGirlProducts.com. I’ve got lots more videos with them to share with you, so stay tuned! And when you get signed up for my newsletter you’ll be in the know about new videos!

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