4 years ago, I began designing, manufacturing and marketing a line of raised plaster stencils and ornamental molds. My focus was to introduce the art of raised stenciling to the general consumer, creating a new market for common stencils, which I did quite successfully.The typical slow down in winter due to harsher building conditions (and now the recent downturn in the housing industry) commonly left a gaping hole in revenues for businesses of this nature.Plaster stenciling simply involves smearing common wall mud (joint compound) over the stencil openings, removing the stencil and allowing the design to dry which creates an ornate raised design on walls and ceilings.Various mold designs are combined in artistic ways to create ornate ceiling medallions, ceiling corners, wall border designs, wall and ceiling frames and to turn plain fireplaces in to ornate beauties.Professional creation and installation of an ornate plaster ceiling design can produce as much as $50,000.00 from the high end client and can be scaled down to the simplest frame around a light fixture for lower end consumers or builders.Dont forget that areas such as above doorways, windows and exterior doorways also benefit from the beauty of this easy treatment, along with fireplace designs. Victoria Larsen 2006

Decorating Ideas Using Stencils

With all of the conventional designs from painting and wall papering, the concept of using stencilling has become more popular over the years. More and more interior designers are using stencilling into their plans to create that great look that they require. It is always good to add a bit of creativity and flair to really bring out the personality of the room in the family home. With stencil designs, it allows a person to use their creative side and also it can be a fun way to decorate too.

Using Stencils to Brighten up the Home

The great thing about stencil designs is that a person can use them for many different purposes. You may think that they can only be used to stencil patterns onto the walls but this is simply not the case. If you want to add some flair to furniture or even glass, stencil designs can help you to achieve that. It could be that you want to add your own designs to brighten up a window. So whatever you want to do, it is all down to you and your own creativity. Stencils can also be used for craft hobbies and people can make absolutely anything they want to from designing t-shirts to even making greeting cards too.

Decorating can be a boring experience but it also can be extremely stressful when it comes to choosing what to use to decorate the home. You may be after something different to help make the walls look better. Some decorators choose stencils to make a wall border and others choose to bring the whole wall alive with great patterns and shapes. You can even make your own stencil patterns to get the look that you desire so it can be a fun experience. If you want to do something different in the house, you could use stencil designs to bring curtains and cushion covers to life.

Getting hold of a stencil pattern is an easy task with access to the internet or going into your nearest craft shop being the best ways. As mentioned, before you can even make your own if you are after a specific look. However, just using the stencil onto a wall or for any reason might not be the best idea. It might be worth planning exactly what you what to achieve beforehand so that you can get exactly what you are after.

Stencils can be considered to be easy and fun to use but it is worth noting that you will need to do some research. You will need to know what brushes to use for different designs and what type of paint to use too. So, enjoy using the stencils and let your creative side come out in order to make your house a home.

More Stenciling Articles

Wall murals are an easy and inexpensive way to decorate your home. They can personalize and brighten any room, and, perhaps best of all, can be done by almost anyone. Even if you feel you have no artistic talent, you can design and paint a wall mural to be proud of and show to all your guests. Look for inspiration in your favorite books, greeting cards, or art. You can also incorporate words, like favorite quotes, into your murals.

Wall mural kits have made it even easier to create a beautiful wall mural. Wall mural kits exist for almost any type of mural, big or small. The smallest kits contain stencils for room accents, like butterflies, bugs, flowers, or stars. These kits provide an easy introduction into creating wall murals because they are small and dont require much planning. Themed wall mural kits, each with several stencils, start at around $30. Border wall mural kits are another easy way to decorate a room. They can accent furniture or woodwork and look cute painted on childrens furniture. Most border kits cost around $5.

You can also buy large wall mural kits. These kits will help you paint a mural on one large wall. The murals are usually around eight by five feet. Childrens wall mural kits are particular popular. You can find stencils with construction equipment, cowboys, castles, dance, garden, and animal themes, for instance. Large wall mural kits cost around $30. Many of the large wall mural kits also have matching accessory kits, like a wall border or dresser knobs.

Parents wave how much their children love the murals they created using wall mural kits. Adult wall mural kits are a bit harder to find and more difficult to do, for the most part. Childrens wall murals can look like cartoons, but adult wall murals are generally subtler and take more artistic talent. You can, however, borrow aspects of childrens wall mural kits for in your own home, or use the kits to create a rustic, homey feel.

4 years ago, I began designing, manufacturing and marketing a line of raised plaster stencils and ornamental molds. My focus was to introduce the art of raised stenciling to the general consumer, creating a new market for common stencils, which I did quite successfully.

However, as news spread of the revival of this lost art, I began to receive more and more calls from drywall contractors and builders across the nation quizzing me about the possible application of these techniques in their drywall/plaster business.

The typical slow down in winter due to harsher building conditions (and now the recent downturn in the housing industry) commonly left a gaping hole in revenues for businesses of this nature.

Smart drywall professionals began seeing Raised Stenciling and the application of Ornamental Ceiling and Wall designs as a way to bridge the gap between busy seasons and increase their revenues through this easy and inexpensive craft.

Plaster stenciling simply involves smearing common wall mud (joint compound) over the stencil openings, removing the stencil and allowing the design to dry which creates an ornate raised design on walls and ceilings.

Ornamental molds are just as easy! Spray the mold with mold release (a silicone based spray that prevents the plaster from sticking to the mold), filling it with plaster of paris mixed with water, allowing the plaster to harden then applying joint compound (used as the adhesive) to the back of the hardened piece and holding it to the wall until it bonds.

Various mold designs are combined in artistic ways to create ornate ceiling medallions, ceiling corners, wall border designs, wall and ceiling frames and to turn plain fireplaces in to ornate beauties.

The investment in stencils and molds can be minimal and as everyone in the industry knows, plaster of paris and joint compound are extremely cheap, allowing you to create a high ticket service for very little expense.

Professional creation and installation of an ornate plaster ceiling design can produce as much as $50,000.00 from the high end client and can be scaled down to the simplest frame around a light fixture for lower end consumers or builders.

How do you market such a service? Thats easy. By doing some of these designs in your own home, you can quickly begin a beautiful portfolio to show builders and clients.

Visit plaster restoration websites on the internet for lay-out ideas.

Dont forget that areas such as above doorways, windows and exterior doorways also benefit from the beauty of this easy treatment, along with fireplace designs.

In conclusion, do yourself a favor and look in to the possibility of extending your business services in to the area of decorative art to help you through the slow times. What you may find is a much more lucrative main staple in your business service line-up for the remainder of your career.

Victoria Larsen 2006