Faux Wood Grain Is Easy When You Stencil It

I can't help but to feature our faux wood grain stencils because customer Lynn Beacham turned her plain doors in to fabulous wood grained 6 panel doors with a bit of stain, some imagination and our faux wood grain stencils.

Check it out!

See how it was done Here

How to Paint Your Linoleum Floor and Design with Stencils

The last project with my kitchen re-decorating was to do something about that awful, white linoleum floor! 


I cleaned it to "squeaky", then primed it with Zinsser's Premium Pro Primer.

I decided that I not only wanted a soft faux finish, but that I wanted to create a design on the floor by taping off sections and doing them in different shades of the same paint colors.

I sponge painted cream and medium brown paints over the taped off rectangle in the center of the floor, blending, blending and more blending, with the light color being the most predominate.

I then protected the inner frame with tape and did the same sponging on the rest of the floor, this time using the darker color as the predominate color. Blending really well is what gives the faux finish it's softness.

I wanted a specific looking border for my kitchen. So I sat down in front of an old movie and drew this design as my "theme".

Once I cut the stencil, I used it with brown acrylic paint just inside the inner frame I sponged on the floor.

Yes indeed! That was exactly the look I was after!

4 coats of clear, non-yellowing polyurethane for floors and the paint job was now sealed and ready for traffic!

I'm just thrilled with how the whole kitchen came out. 

Next post, I'll show you how I did the back splash with the same stencil design!

Visit the VictoriaLarsen.com website for beautiful stencil designs you can use to give your kitchen a fresh, updated design.

How to Faux Finish Your Formica Counter Tops to Look Like Granite

The inside of my home was pretty plain when I moved in and I've been dying to do something about it! Now, come on.....I'm a stencil designer... I can't even force myself to have a plain home for too long! Because I took all spring and summer to improve my yard and gardens, it took until now to begin to work on the inside.

I began in my kitchen. This was a room I didn't want to even hang out in! Blah and boring!

I started out with the cabinets,  staining them to a luscious dark coffee color. That change alone changed the feel of the room, giving it a much more elegant feel.

Do you see those plain counter tops? They needed a new color and textural view. I made mine look like real granite with just primer, paint and varnish!

It's easy to do. Click the link to see the detailed, step by step!

How to Paint Formica Counter Tops

There's something about a plain kitchen that just makes you want to stay out of it! And I had no desire to be in mine.

It was just so boring!

But I had a vision in mind.... Deep, richly colored cabinets, granite counter tops, a beautiful floor and stenciling. (What else? I'm a stencil designer! Gotta have stencils!).

The first order of business was to stain those light cabinets. They needed re-finishing anyway. Even though they are only 6 years old, the varnish had begun to come off the doors.

I tried a new product I really like: Minwax Polyshades. The thing I loved about it was that the product not only stains but also seals with polyurethane at the same time! Any time I can save a step, I'm thrilled!

All I had to do was lightly scuff the surface with sand paper. No stripping needed (another thing I loved!).

I didn't even remove the doors to apply this wonderful finish.

This change alone just thrilled me! Ah, but more, much more was yet to come!

Visit the VictoriaLarsen.com website for beautiful stencils and plaster molds, plus tons of decorating ideas and tip to help you make your home a more pleasant place to live

I've always been a person who sees the possibilities, rather than "what is". And this home has tons of possibilities!

I began transforming my new home in the desert of New Mexico by planting, planting, planting! The inside of the house is plain, but that's something I could live with while I created a more pleasant place in which to live.

Over this past spring and summer, I learned a lot about how different gardening in New Mexico is versus other areas of the country.

Here, the soil simply sucks the life right out of every plant you place in the ground. So the learning curve was incredible! But I did succeed!

Starting with basically nothing, I started "painting" the yards with plants and lawn.

And the back yard (where I like to hang out) was even worse!

But even that barren scene became something much more lush with a lot of seed and a privacy wall that I had a blast creating with the branch stencil from our Raised Plaster Aspen Tree Stencil Set.

The summer proved to be very productive and finally, I could relax and start to create a beautiful home on the inside!

Visit the VictoriaLarsen.com website for lots of interior decorating ideas and the products to help make them possible.

Life has changed considerably over the past year. I sold my home in the high mountains of Northern Idaho and moved to the high desert of New Mexico to be closer to my family.

Starting fresh in a new home has given me the opportunity to start over with my decorating and make this new home an extension of "Me" and what I see as beautiful.
Take this journey with me as I transform this desert "diamond in the rough" in to my oasis in the desert.

Creating Ornamental Designs on Furniture is Easy with Molds and Water Putty

I love hand carved furniture and cabinetry. The beautiful patterns that protrude and catch the light. They look so "high end" and the intense beauty just makes me gasp for breath!
But have you ever priced the stuff? Yikes!

Though I do Raised Plaster Stenciling to create ornamental raised designs on furniture and cabinets all the time, I do love the look of much more high profile designs on some items.

Raised plaster stenciling

Besides wanting to create those luscious Hollywood movie set ceilings and walls of ornamental plaster, that's one of the reasons I dove head first in to making molds for plaster.

Photo shows the artwork of Beth Savoie using our plaster molds on a head and foot board for a bed.

Finding just the right product to create a "hard as nails" casting from these molds was sometimes daunting. I wanted it to be easy, to be fast like plaster and to create a rock hard ornamental piece to attach to cabinetry and furniture. Bake-able clay and self hardening clay works fine but I like to try new things.

Alas, Durhams Hard Water Putty was discovered. I'd heard of this product before but never tried it until now. It's fabulous! You can pre-tint the putty with craft paints or dry pigments which is very cool, and you can mix it to different consistencies for different projects.

It comes in powder form in small, medium and large quantities and is readily available at your local hardware store. Now how convenient is that?

So when your next project includes adding ornamental beauty to your kitchen or bath cabinets, re-doing your headboard or adding the look of hand carves ornaments to your Armour, do give Durham's Water Putty a try.

Visit the VictoriaLarsen.com website for hundreds of painting stencils, raised plaster stencils and plaster molds for beautiful interiors.

Victoria Larsen's Plaster Molds Get Attention from Glo Magazine

I've always loved it when our products get featured in a major publication!

Glo Magazine included us in their "DIY's That Instantly Change a Room" article!

It's easy and a lot of fun to create plaster wall art using our Plaster Molds.

For instance, choose a medallion mold and cast it in plaster of paris.
Create a wall hook by simply unfolding a paper clip. Bend it in the the shape of a "U".
Crimp the ends to create hooks then insert those ends in to the wet plaster leaving about 1/2" of the closed end of your hook protruding from the wet plaster. Once dry, this will serve as your wall hook.

Once the piece is totally dry, prime the piece and then paint it a pale color. Wall paint or craft paints are perfect for this.
Mix a deeper shade of the same color with translucent wall glaze and paint the piece with this mixture.
Now, using a dry terry towel, wipe off all the excess, leaving the darker paint in the recesses of the design.
This brings out the beauty of the piece.

Hang groups of different pieces on the wall to create a collage of ornamental plaster.
It's beautiful!

Visit the VictoriaLarsen.com website for more great ideas plus tons of plaster stencils, painting stencils and plaster molds to help you create the beautiful home you've always dreamed of.

Decorating Your Windows Isn't Only About Draperies and Curtains. Introducing Etched Glass Elements

When we think of decorating our windows, our minds instinctively swirl around curtains, draperies, valances, tie backs and window bling such as tassels and hardware.

Now, open your mind to something new and exciting: Etched Glass Window Elements.

If you've ever investigated having glass "etched" with a design, you already know it can be incredibly expensive. But isn't that the case with most "high end" decorating? Not always. Now you can get the look of real etched glass for a fraction of the price with highly durable, realistic look etched glass vinyl elements.

 This vinyl material is high quality, impervious to high heat and extreme cold (trust me, I know, because my own windows are done and I live in extreme climate!). It's washable, has a 10 year life but yet can be removed with a razor blade at any time.

It doesn't lift, it doesn't peel and is easy to apply with a simple credit card or small squeegee.
Simply clean your window, then apply the design to the glass and use a credit card or squeegee to smooth the design to help the adhesive attach firmly to the glass.

Now, gently peel back the backing paper to reveal the design on the window. Wha La! It's just that simple.

 Why are Etched Glass Elements different from any other etched glass vinyl design? Because they are not created to cover an entire window, but to simply add a bit of "design" to it. Just enough to add "beauty" without detracting from the vision outside. And the designs are truly different and exciting.

Etched Glass Window Elements range from life-sized Aspen Tree Designs, to elegant designs, to modern, contemporary designs. Small, medium and large sizes are available for varying window sizes, so you can get just the look you crave.

Etched glass elements aren't only for windows and glass doors, but consider using them on shower doors, glass tables and mirrors as well.

Personally, I'm considering putting one of these elements on the front of my stainless steel dishwasher front. I just thought it would look so cool!

So the next time you're gazing out your window, think of how much more beautiful it would look with an Etched Glass Window Element.

Visit the VictoriaLarsen.com website for more great decorating ideas, instruction and inspiration. 

Create Your Own Removable Wallpaper. Great for Apartment or Rental Decorating!

Sometimes we are just in situations where we don't want to, or can't add permanency to our decorating. For instance, adding Raised Plaster Stenciling to walls or ceilings or putting up your favorite wallpaper stencil or rolled wallpaper. Well, here's the answer and it's easy!

Whether you are wanting the look of soft wallpaper patterns, a mural, embossed designs with plaster stenciling or brilliant flowers on your walls, the easy answer is DIY wallpaper out of canvas.

That's right! You can get large rolls of canvas on Ebay for very reasonable prices.

Protect your flooring with a drop cloth then un-roll the canvas on to the floor. The great thing is that it's easy to work on when it's on the floor.

Now, prime, paint, faux finish, stencil, do raised plaster stenciling, do anything you want to it! Anything you can do to a wall, you can do to canvas instead.

Now comes the even easier part! Putting it up on the wall.

Now, this little trick works SO well that you will just not believe it. What will you use as removable adhesive? Joint compound!

I'm the absolute queen of joint compound, and years ago, I painted a ceiling mural on canvas. I evenly spread joint compound over the ceiling, stuck the canvas to it, smoothed it out using a wallpaper brush (beginning in the center and working my way out to the edges. Wha La! What a fabulous adhesive!
That was 5 years ago and it's still there.
But I did a test first. Could I remove it?
Yes.

I allowed the canvas to stay in place for 4 months. I then lifted one edge and pulled the canvas just slightly away from the wall to test the adhesion. It began to peel away quite easily. I smiled.

Where it became a little difficult, I sprayed a light spray of water between the canvas and the wall. With a plastic scraper, I began prying the canvas from the wall, repeatedly spraying and prying as needed until the entire canvas fell to the floor. Victory!

A bucket of warm water and a large sponge completed the job as I watched the residual joint compound melt away like old frosting on a cake knife.

The cool thing about joint compound is this:
1. It's water soluble so removal is easy.
2. It won't damage or discolor the wall.
3. Residual compound simply washes away with no tell tale signs of it's presence.

Joint compound is appreciated even by finish carpenters who recently posted that they were using joint compound to adhere moldings to ceilings. How clever!

Best of all, you can roll that canvas up and take it with you to your next home.

So the next time you think you "can't" decorate because you live in an apartment or rental, think again!

Add Super Style To A Plain Rug With Medallion Stencils

It's covered my deck for two summers and by golly, I was sick of how plain this rug was!

Besides that, an unfortunate spill had discolored the rug right in the center. I had to do something about this. I hate throwing out something that is completely usable. That's such a waste in my book and it's rare that I do it....I'd rather RE-do it!

 So I grabbed our new Amour Medallion Stencil and went to work. But my first order of business was to make sure the rug was clean as a whistle, so do vacuum or shampoo your rug first if needed.

Add a little fabric medium (available at your local craft or fabric store) to acrylic paint. Fabric medium helps craft paints to adhere to the fabric, but also keeps them pliable so they don't flake off over time.

Tape the stencil to the rug.  I used a 1" stencil brush and stenciled the medallion in brown first, using a swirling motion (rather than dabbing up and down) to create a solid pattern.

 Once the first repeat was complete, I overlapped the stencil over the previous medallion and this time, stenciled it in black for extreme contrast.

 Overlapping is cool! I love the look.

 Continue to add medallions to your rug. Some overlapped and some singular. Some half off the edge of the rug and some not. It's fun to decide just where you will place the next medallion.

Not only did I quite effectively hide the nasty discoloration, but my rug is worth of indoor or outdoor use to add a bit of style and fun to my home.

Consider using the same medallion stencil to place mats or large napkins and it makes an absolutely striking wall treatment!

Visit the VictoriaLarsen.com website for a large variety of Painting Stencils, Raised Plaster Stencils and Ornamental Plaster Molds to help you create a beautiful home!

Selling Your Decorated Home; Is There Anything to Fear?

I'm in the process of selling my stencil and plaster decorated home in the high mountains of Northern Idaho.

Naturally, there are raised plaster stencil designs all over the house.

Since I realize (and was told by my agent) that my style or ornamental plaster decorating is not for everyone, I felt just a little nervous as the first showings were scheduled.

When potential buyers walk in to my home, they are immediately greeted by my

 Raised Plaster Aspen Trees on the walls. A glorious statement to "forest living".

In the master bedroom, they find my ornamental plaster ceiling frame and
Victorian plaster wall frames that were created using my line of plaster molds and stencils.

In the bathrooms, they find raised plaster stenciling on the doors of the cabinets and scattered over the walls.

I wished I could be a fly on the wall to hear their comments.

And then one day I was. I was asked to stay as a second showing to one set of buyers was conducted. I sat quietly in my office as I overheard my real estate agent tell the buyers agent that any decorating could be painted over or even removed (I cringed!). And then, I heard him say: "Heck no! These are artsy folks...they're diggin' it!". I loved hearing that.

Have I yet to receive an offer? No. (It's only been shown 6 times) But it's not because of my decorating. It has to do with location, home lay out and other issues that each buyer faces with their home buying decision making.

In fact, I'm wondering if it isn't the decorating that keep them lingering as long as they do.

So rest your fears my friends. It may be that when you go to sell the home that you have put your personal style on, you just might find it actually helps it to sell!

Visit the VictoriaLarsen.com website for a complete line of Raised Plaster Stencils and Plaster Molds and so many decorating ideas that YOU can do with our products

An Amazing Cabinet Make Over With Stencils

I hated them!!!!! I mean, truly hated them....those nasty, ugly barn wood cabinets in my master bath. The rest of my home is elegant; decorated in traditional style with lots of corbels, soft materials, restful colors. So this thing had to GO!!!!

 Now, you know me...I refuse to simply go buy new when something old is still in good shape. These cabinets were custom made, with heavy, thick wood, sturdy construction and in excellent shape. I can't just tear them out!

My plan was to create 1/4" oak inserts for each of the doors and drawers; My dilemma was that the barn wood was seriously glued in which prevented the panels from seating properly. Trusty claw hammer to the rescue!

Panels were cut, sanded and inserted just fine.

The entire vanity was then sanded down, primed and painted rich brown on the doors and drawer inserts and I used cream colored cabinet paint for the rest of the cabinet.


I then used our Elegance Wallpaper Stencil to repeat the vine over the cabinet doors, drawers and sides. Using a roller with metallic gold paint made that project quick and easy! When stenciling with a roller, just be sure to roll off all excess paint on to newspaper or a paper towel before beginning. This helps to prevent paint bleed up under the stencil openings.

 I added a repeated leaf border from our Furniture Stencil Borders #4 Stencil Set to the front trim. That was a cute addition!

 
I decided to add even more beauty to the cabinet so I cast a plaster medallion from our
Ornate Plaster Medallion mold. I painted it the same gold and attached it to the front of the center door.

A coat of satin varnish was all that was needed to finish the project. Now the master bath has taken on the same elegant look as the rest of my home and finally, finally, my major decorating projects are done!

So what is stopping you? I know you have a list of things you'd like to do to give your home more personality, creating a prettier space. Get out that list, plan to start something this weekend and then feel the satisfaction of your efforts when it's done.

Visit the VictoriaLarsen.com website for decorating projects, stencils and ornamental plaster molds to help you create the home of your dreams.

Fashion Stencils Create Awesome Designs on Jeans

The thing about someone like me who loves to decorate is that we decorate everything! And I mean anything and everything!
In this instance, that includes clothing. Jeans in particular! Jeans with designs on them has become a new fashion trend and I've been watching those designs get more and more elaborate an sassy.

I thought they were way too cute, so I developed my own designs for clothing. Now I'm decked with glam everywhere I go and I can't count the number of times I've been stopped by someone asking "Where did you get the cute jeans?".

These designs are now produced in my new line of "Attitude Fashion Stencils". Ranging from sweet to outrageous, there's something for everyone!

Stenciling clothing is easy! Click the link to see how.

Now, once your stenciling is done, glam your jeans even further by gluing on sparkly gems!

Mind you, this new line of fashion stencils isn't just for jeans! Dress up that plain little black dress, down the front or sleeves of a jacket, on the back of a coat or ski set....dress up your work out clothes and how about that plain robe you have been sick of?

And then? (You know me!)...use that design on walls, furniture, cabinetry and more! 

14 new designs on the website at Attitude Stencils.

http://www.victorialarsen.com