How to Create Your Own Stencil Masks

Posted on | May 27, 2010 | 4 Comments

A mask is the negative of a stencil. It blocks certain areas from being painted so that the paint or whatever medium you’re using creates an outline of the image.

Catalogs and magazines are great sources for creating your own masks. Here’s how to make one:

1. Leaf through your magazines and choose a photo/image that would make a great silhouette.
2. Cover the front and back of the image with clear packaging tape so that you can reuse your mask.
3. Carefully cut out the image from the page.

Voila! Your very own stencil mask!

Here are some masks that I made from a Victoria’s Secret catalog that I regularly get from the mail. When going for people silhouettes, remember that images with expressive arms and legs make the best masks. You can cut away parts of the image to create a better silhouette. For example, the first stencil mask above might work better if I cut out the part of her hair that’s showing on her left side so that I get the shape of her head.

Here’s an example of how I applied the mask. I used the third one from the samples above. You can use a stencil adhesive to temporarily tack the mask on the surface where you’re applying the mask to make sure it won’t lift or move. Here, though, I just held it in place with my fingers and rubbed distressing ink around it with a foam applicator to create an outline. Because the image is protected with packaging tape, I just wiped it clean after I used it so I can use it again next time.

This is actually the outside part of a security envelope from a bill I got in the mail. I’m using it in one of the junk journals I’m currently making. It was full of print so I decided to paint on it.

Memoirs: An Altered Book Journal

Posted on | May 16, 2010 | 2 Comments

I recently started an altered book project that will serve as a journal of my recollected childhood memories. I’m going to show you how I prep my pages and I invite you to play along with me by altering a book of your own. If you’ve never altered a book before, I promise you, it’s very easy, and more importantly, incredibly fun.

This is the book I’m using. I bought it at the library for 25¢. Check your public library. It’s a great resource for acquiring old, used, hardbound books. In my local library, they’re 25¢ or 5 for $1. I haven’t done anything to the cover yet but I do have some ideas on how I’m going to transform the cover. I’m just pumped to fill up the pages so I’m going to wait a while before I work on the cover.

When choosing a book to alter, there are a few things I consider. I make sure the condition and material of the cover is something I can work with. I check the size and weight of the book, and make sure I like how it feels in my hands. I also check the texture and thickness of the pages, and like the cover, I make sure they are pages I’d be happy to work on. What I particularly love about this book that I chose is how the edges of the pages are roughly cut, giving the book a handmade feel.

I glue every two pages together to make my pages thicker. And for every two pages that I glue, I tear out a page or two in between the two glued pages to compensate for the layers of photos, paints, and textures I’ll be adding to the pages. I hold a ruler by its edge along the spine while I tear out the pages to help keep the spine intact.

After my pages are glued, I’m ready for gesso. Gesso is a primer for painting. It resembles paint but is thinner and dries hard – making the pages stiffer. I use a palette knife to apply gesso to my pages. You can use a brush instead of a palette knife but I find that a palette knife keeps the surface smooth enough to write on while still leaving subtle textures on the pages. I’ll be doing a lot of writing so a smooth surface that won’t make my pen skip is very important.

I’m not worried if my pages do break away from the spine. I just restore the pages with a masking tape. Then I can treat the masking tape as another ‘layer’ on my page.

After the gesso dries, I create a simple background for my pages. First I color the entire page using watercolor crayon – a special type of crayon that is water-soluble. You can see on this page spread that gesso doesn’t completely cover the text of the book, which I like because the exposed text gives another ‘layer’ to the page.

After coloring the entire page with watercolor crayon, I squeeze some acrylic paint on a palette and spritz it with water to thin out the paint a little bit. I use a mini spray bottle (the one I have is called Mini Mister) to control the water I add to the paint because I don’t want to accidentally drown the paint with water.

I use a 3/4″ angle brush to apply the acrylic paint to the pages. While I’m painting, I spritz more water to the pages. This helps blend the crayon and paint and leaves a spattered effect on the pages.

This is the finished background page. It’s very simple because I know I can add more to it as I fill up the pages.

Like I mentioned, this altered book will be a journal of recollected memories and stories about my ancestors. This week, I’m focusing on my maternal grandparents. If you’ve decided to play along with me, here are some prompts for this week’s recollection to help you create your pages:

• Give a brief description of your maternal grandparents’ family history.
• What did you call your grandparents? Create a collage that best describes your grandparents or that reflects how you remember them.

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Please don't steal my text or images, it's disrespectful and you'll be subjet to karma! If you want to use any of the images, please email me for a written permission. Thank you.