Stencil Mania!

Do you want to make one of those cool stencil suits that everyone's wearing?

Well, here's how!

All you'll need is a utility knife, a marker, a couple of those plastic "yard sale" signs,  and some spray paint.

First, draw a picture on a piece of paper.

I drew a picture of a pantsuit, but you can draw whatever you want!

Next, draw it onto a piece of mylar. Or easier still... use one of those "For Sale" or "Yard Sale" signs you can buy at any hardware store.

Draw your picture onto the plastic. If you want more than one color for your stencil, then you'll have to cut out more than one stencil. Each stencil must be cut according to where you want the color. 

Using a utility knife, and cut out your image. I recommend putting a piece of cardboard under your stencil if you don't want to cut into the table. Not a good idea!

Now we're ready to get to the really fun part.

Next you will need some spray paint. There's a world of color out there, so take your pick!

  The black stencil, for detail.

The basic pantsuit stencil.

Meet my assistant Bingo, she'll be helping us out today.

Choose a light colored fabric to spray your stencil onto. I'm stenciling a pantsuit, but you can stencil a t-shirt, jacket, or whatever you want. Do a practice run on something you don't care about first.

 I'm using Pedro, the mannequin, for easier demonstration, but you can spray flat on the ground, on top of a tarp or use a piece of wood. Just put some cardboard between the front and the back of the fabric so the paint doesn't bleed through... and always, always spray paint outside. 

Bingo holds up the stencil for the first spray... orange, Bingo's favorite color.

I make the first spray. You will want to spray lightly, a little goes a long way.

 Don't worry if it's not perfect, spray painting isn't an exact science. 

Now we add the second color to the mix, I've chosen black.

It's looking good. Now on to more stenciling using other colors.

Stenciling is easy, fun and fast! I should be wearing this suit in about 15 minutes!

Oh look, our stencil suit is done... and in record time! You can wash your stenciled garment in the washing machine. It won't fade or run. It's all about wash and wear!

Bingo and I are so happy with our art project, we're jumping for joy!

That's all there is to it. Let's review...draw, cut, spray, wear!

This has been lots of fun, but we've got to be going now. See you around the neighborhood!

(Photo credit: Charlene Mitchell)