Hand Forged Craft Stencil

Our craft size stencil Hand Forged is perfect for smaller DIY home decor projects where a wall stencil would be too large. These trendy stencils are great for stenciling your own designer pillows or curtains or transforming garage sale furniture finds into cool decorative pieces. It doesn't end there: try stenciling lamp shades, kitchen backsplashes, doors, table tops, picture and mirror frames, or create your own work of art on pre-stretched canvas. Decorative possibilities are endless with these versatile reusable stencils! This stencil (large Wall version) is being featured on HGTV's Great Rooms hosted by Meg Caswell winner of HGTV Design Star! Although usually it is not necessary to use spray adhesive with our stencils, adhesive can very helpful if you want to minimize paint seepage or are using high contrasting colors. (Elmer's spray adhesive seems to be the best). Make sure you shake the can well and lightly mist (not drench) the stencil, and let it dry for a moment before positioning it. This step will prevent the adhesive residue transferring to your surface. You'll need to re-mist the stencil after a few repeats. Clean-up tip: Spray the stencil with Simple Green to help to remove adhesive residue. Did you know you can stencil your own fabric and use it for curtains, tablecloths, pillows, etc.? When stenciling on fabric, stencil adhesive is very helpful. First, tape your ironed fabric to the surface so it doesn't move around while you stencil. Use stencil brushes, or dense foam roller, and add some textile medium ( sold in craft stores) to your acrylic paint. You can also get a special fabric paint, but, frankly, good craft acrylics with a dollop of textile medium work just as well, and cost way less too! :) Textile medium is optional: it only makes the acrylic paint more flexible when it dries, which is important for wearables like t-shirts but not so much for pillows and curtains. Complete the stenciling and let it dry fully, 24 hours is best, then heat-set it by ironing the fabric for about 20 sec. ( more or less) on a LOW setting through the piece of cloth. Heat-setting will cure the paint and will prevent it from being washed off in the washing machine. Always experiment with a sample of your fabric first to ensure good results. I've stenciled on silk, cotton, linen and even sheer fabrics with great results. It's always better if your fabric doesn't have too much texture. All of our stencils are made of thick, sturdy but flexible 12 mil clear plastic, reusable, easy to clean and stenciler-friendly! In our 20+ years of professional stenciling this material has proven to be far superior than any other material we used, including the industry standard 8 mil mylar. We are certain you'll notice the difference and will love working with it, just like all the folks who already bought our stencils. Our stencils are made to last and with proper care and storage will serve you for a long time.