Gwen

Introducing... Ceramic Tiles!

Surprise! I bet you thought that with last month's stencil release that I was done for a while, right? Nope! I'm thrilled to share that I'm the StencilClub designer for July! This month's collection is called Ceramic Tiles - I think you can see why. Here's a little peek at the stencils that will ship to members on July 15th:

I also filmed a quick introduction where I share the background on the design inspiration as well as a few fun little tips and tricks about how the stencils can work together:

Of course, I also have few samples using this months designs... (and seriously, now that the cat is out of the bag, I'm going to be using these all over the place!) First up, I've started yet another new artist book, and the first two spreads both use these new stencils. This is a handmade book, and the pages are a bit under 8" x 8." On the opening page, I used the 6" x 6" Fleur de Lys tile and cut out the center - that's backed with a vintage letter written in a beautiful Slavic script, and then I used the center of the 4" x 4" design in the middle.

On this second spread, you can see where I used one of the medallions from the 9" x 12" repeating Circle Tile stencil as part of the focal point:

One of the perks of StencilClub is that each month's collection comes with a mini online class... you get a sneak peek in the video above, but here are a few photos of the project we'll make in the class, which is a mini art journal made from a single sheet of paper.

In the close-up here, you get a better idea of what the 4" x 4" stencil looks like when you repeat it to create a full medallion:

During the video, I also create one of my collage papers as part of the process:

These stencils are exclusively available to StencilClub members, but it's only $25 a month and there's no commitment. You get all three stencils, plus the online class and downloadable PDF! Not to mention the fabulous and supportive Facebook group and a monthly coupon. If you're interested and you aren't already a StencilClub member, you can sign up before July 15th and this will be your first kit. (Plus, club members can order any previous StencilClub collection, including my December 2016 collection, Heraldry.) So what are you waiting for?

Gwen's Gems - Winter Art Journaling

Hi all! Just popping in to let you know that I have a new project available over on StencilGirl Talk... this month I'm sharing a tutorial showing how I made this page in my art journal featuring my new Christmas Cardinal and Holly stencil.

Be sure to check out the full post for lots more photos and that tutorial I mentioned :)

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More Art Journaling from The Artist Tribe!

Artist Tribe member Jill McDowell is at it again... today she's sharing a gorgeous art journal page filled with collage, stenciling, and mark making!

Jill is using my Art Deco Borders and Ornamental Petals Screen stencils here, along with the flowers from the December 2016 set of Heraldry stencils that I designed exclusively for StencilClub! Make sure to head over to her blog for more photos, including some in-process shots and explanation on how she made this page!

 

PS... if you're looking for stencils or other shop goodies, I'm having an end of summer Flash Sale in the shop at Gwen Lafleur Studios!

I've extended the sale through Labor Day! From now until 9/4 you can save 10% off any order with this coupon code: WhereDidAugustGo

Get my newsletter for the latest projects, tutorials, and updates from the shop!

 

Gwen's Gems - Textured and Layered Art Journal Cover

Hi all! I'm over on StencilGirl Talk today with the June edition of Gwen's Gems. This month I'm using lots of stencils and even more molding paste to make a layered and textured cover for a new 9"x9" handmade art journal.

Head on over to the blog for more photos and a tutorial on how I made the cover! Enjoy!

Mixed Media Medallions with StencilGirl and PaperArtsy!

If you're looking for the post and tutorials for these projects from the blog hop with StencilGirl and PaperArtsy, it has moved to my website.

You can still get both tutorials on my website, or check out all of my mixed media tutorials.

If you're looking for more inspiration from the original blog hop, you can still find links to all of those posts here:

Blog Hop Order:

Dec. 21
Darcy Wilkinson
Kim Dellow
Mary C. Nasser
Gwen Lafleur <-- now on my website

Dec. 22
Jo Firth Young
Lauren Hatwell
Kristie Taylor
Tina Walker

Dec. 23
Clare Lloyd
Lin Brown
Anna Friesen
Janet Joehlin

Dec. 24
Kay Carley
Emma Godfrey
Cindy Gilstrap
Karen Gaunt

 

 

May StencilClub Inspiration - Handmade Book

It's StencilClub inspiration day over on the StencilGirl blog! This month's exclusive club stencils were designed by Terri Stegmiller and are perfect for Spring! Of course, my project ended up going in the opposite direction, but I still absolutely love it. 

This month I made myself a new art journal - it's a 6"x8" codex-bound book and I used the stencils to make the covers and binding.

Head on over to see the full post with more photos of my project as well as more fabulous inspiration from the team!

 

StencilClub Inspiration - A Stenciled Decorative Box

Hi everyone, it's StencilClub Inspiration day again! The whole team at StencilGirl is sharing some fun new project ideas using this month's awesome StencilClub designs from Mary Beth Shaw. Here's what I made this month - I refinished a decorative box that I picked up for half price at the craft store.

Make sure to pop over and check it out for more photos and a bit of explanation of how I made my cool little box. You'll also want to be sure and check out the fun projects from the rest of the team to get you inspired to start creating :D

 

 

Going Into the Deep with March StencilClub

If you're looking for my original post and process tutorial for this StencilClub project, it has moved to my website.

The post has been updated and is now available on my website, or you can check out all of my mixed media tutorials. If you want to see the original StencilClub inspiration post, you can still find that on StencilGirl Talk.

February 2016 StencilClub - Mixed Media Portrait

Hi all - if you're looking for the original post and process overview for this project, it has been updated and moved to my website.

You can still see the updated version of this post on my website, or you can check out all of my mixed media tutorials. You can also still see the original group inspiration post for this month's StencilClub inspiration on StencilGirl Talk.

Wrapping Up Inspiration Wednesday 2015

While I'm in the mindset of catching up with projects that I completed at the end of December, I thought I'd post the last 4 challenges from Inspiration Wednesday 2015. I'm not usually one who does well at following through with year long challenges. Most of the time I can't even manage a month long challenge! But I did all 25 challenges from last year and I'm pretty proud of that! A few of them I don't like (but I always learned something,) and most of them I like or even love. That's a win! Without further ado, here are weeks 22-25.

Week 22: This was one of the weeks I liked but didn't love (although I loved Donna's!) I just need some more practice with the blobby flowers. lol. In the background I used the 9x12 stencil from the November 2015 StencilClub kit along with molding paste and paint.

Here's the view with the inclusion flipped over:

Week 23 is one of my favorite spreads in the whole journal. I used the December 2015 StencilClub kit for this one - I'll definitely be coming back to this technique again! I used my "inspire" stamp since it's an inspiration journal so I thought it was a propos.

And the backside of the inclusion:

Next up, week 24 - another week that I really loved. I used the Woodcut Roses stencil by Desiree Habicht for the background, along with joint tape and lots of paint :)

Last but not least... challenge number 25. I used the Wall of Words stencil by Carolyn Dube - this one got quite a workout in this journal throughout the year!

The flowers are actually a Sizzix low-profile die that I cut from very thin chipboard multiple times and then layered for lots of dimension on the page. Here's the back of the inclusion so you can see the quote I used for this one.

So that's it! A whole year in my inspiration journal. Here it is at the very beginning of the year...

... and here's what it looks like now - it's hard to tell from the photo, but it's about 3" thick!

I signed up for 2016 of course, and have already done the first challenge. I'm looking forward to what fun new things I'm going to try out this year!

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January StencilClub Inspiration

Today is the group inspiration post over on the StencilGirl blog where we're sharing projects using this month's awesome StencilClub collection. Here's my finished piece - mixed media paint and collage. This one kind of evolved from nothing as I went along... I actually kind of love it!

Make sure you head on over to see details and an overview of the steps to create this piece, as well as the other awesome projects being shared today!

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December 2015 StencilClub

Hi everyone, today is StencilClub inspiration day over on the StencilGirl blog! I've got two art journaling spreads using this month's fabulous stencils - another release from Mary Beth's Private Collection.

To start, I used them for one of my Inspiration Wednesday challenges:

You can see the other side over on the group post.

I also did another art journaling spread in my junque journal:

It's hard to tell from the photo above, but the numbers have a dimensional, glossy finish. If you're interested, here's a quick little tutorial so you can see how I made them.

First, I used the 4x4 stencil with bronze metallic paint all over a sheet of vellum finish mixed media paper.

Next, I used the 6x6 numbers stencil and black paint:

Once that was dry, I used my Dina Wakley Media paints with fine liner tips to outline the numbers. I tried a few different colors since I wasn't totally sure what I wanted to use.

Once all of the paint was dry, I used JudiKins Diamond Glaze and covered the numbers and let it dry overnight. This gives you a hard, clear, raised and glossy finish. When that was dry, I cut out the numbers - some in strips, some individual.

It's really hard to get a picture of the dimension since it's clear, but here you can kind of get a sense of it. Anyway, I hope you're feeling inspired! And if you're not a member of StencilClub yet and you love this month's stencils, sign up by December 15th and you'll get this as your first kit!

Happy stenciling!

November StencilClub - File Folder Art Journal

Hi Everyone, today is our creative team post sharing projects for this month's StencilClub stencil collection. I say it every month, but this is my new favorite StencilClub release. Take a peek at this month's stencils designed by Seth Apter:

(Here's a little plug... if you sign up for the club before November 15th, you'll start your membership with this collection! Just sayin'...)

I may have gone a teensy bit overboard this month. (Cough cough...) Of course, I was sitting in my empty house with nothing to do but play with the stencils and a few bags of art supplies I brought with me from Chicago in the trunk of my car. Thus my file folder art journal was born! I took three file folders, nested and bound them to make the journal (I just used a pamphlet stitch with some waxed thread.)

Without further ado, here's my project... starting with the cover.

I used the 9x12 and 6x6 stencils for this... I took the "TRU" from "TRUTHS" and then the "E" from another word to spell "TRUE" and then stenciled "story" from the 6x6. Word stencils don't always have to say exactly what's on them - you can mix it up!

Since I'm still working out of boxes, I pulled out a few random things to collage onto the cover that I ended up loving. A piece cut from some Chinese ephemera (it's probably a good thing I don't know what it says.) Also some fussy cut glittery pieces from a fancy paper scrap, some rubons, some dicrofibers (hard to see in the photos) and more stenciling. I love how much depth you can get while keeping the actual project relatively flat.

Next up is the first spread:

On the left I used a lot of repetition from the 9x12 stencil (my favorite of this set) with paint, ink, and a little collage. On the right, I used the textural elements on the stencil with molding paste and paint. I also added a little window that's framed with a chipboard slide holder (I believe it's a Maggie Holmes embellishment from Crate Paper.) It's backed with a piece of 7 Gypsies printed transparency.

Here are a few close-ups so you can see more of the stenciling on these pages:

Moving on to the second spread...

Both of these pages use the 6x6 stencil - words and textural elements (plus a few details from the 9x12.)

I also used some of Seth's stamps with acrylic paint to get layers of texture into the background. On the right I just used a very old library card pocket and a shipping tag along with a strip of beaded and embroidered ribbon.

For the third spread I kept going with the 6x6 stencil and more of the textural elements on all of the stencils.

The butterfly is a Chinese papercut that I picked up in Beijing a few years ago. I added some old Basic Grey rubons, paint (most of this actually came from cleaning my brushes on a spare folder that I ended up using,) very light stamping in the background, and lots of stenciling!

Next up, the fourth spread. I used a mix of the 4x4 and 9x12 stencils for this one.

Bits of collage, ink, paint... I really loved using the stencils to create repetition with the words - I felt like it made a powerful statement on the pages.

Last but not least, the final spread in my mini journal (which I actually did first!)

I felt like using the entire 9x12 stencil on the right side was begging for an interactive element. It's a little literal, but I couldn't resist.

First, the left-hand side using the 4x4 stencil on the back of my peacock tag and the 6x6 underneath it (the design in the background is from one of my handcarved stamps.)

And my overly literal but fun interactive flap on the right hand side:

So there you go... that's my project for this month! I hope you enjoyed it, and for you StencilClub members, I know you're going to adore this month's stencils!

Don't forget to visit the StencilGirl blog for our group post - there are several other awesome projects using this month's stencils that you won't want to miss!

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StencilGirl: October StencilClub

Hi everyone, just popping in quickly to let you know that this month's creative team inspiration post is up on the StencilGirl blog! This month we have a very cool set designed by Mary Beth Shaw that is actually nine stencils in one instead of our usual 3. Make sure you check it out! Here's the art journal spread I did this month... you can see more details in the blog post.

There are more projects from the other three creative team members included in the post this month, so make sure you check them all out!

StencilClub: September Inspiration

Hi everyone, I'm just popping in to let you know that I've got a project I'm sharing in today's group inspiration post for the new September StencilClub stencil kit.

Here's what I came up with - going with this month's theme, I'm calling it "Hidden Messages." It's a 10"x10" mixed media canvas.

There are a few in-progress shots over on the StencilGirl blog, as well as more inspiration from the rest of the creative team. I hope you'll stop by and check it out!

August StencilClub Inspiration

Hi everyone, just popping in quickly to let you know that I have a project in today's August StencilClub Inspiration post over on StencilGirl Talk. Here are some quick peeks at my projects:

Make sure you click over to see the whole post... I have a few step-outs so you can see how I painted the fan, and there are also two other projects from the creative team!

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Art Journaling with July StencilClub

Hi everyone, just popping in to let you know that I have a new art journal page up over on StencilGirlTalk using this month's new StencilClub stencils.

This was a fun one... I experimented with some more collage in my art journal. Head on over for more photos and a bit of explanation on how I did some of it.

Sequined Art Journal with May StencilClub

Just popping in to share a project that I have over on StencilGirl Talk using the May stencils from StencilClub. This was a fun month, and I love how my sequined art journal turned out! If you want to see more, head over to StencilGirl Talk for more photos of the finished book, as well as some details on how I made the cover.

StencilGirl: Paint and Paper Collage with Stencils

Hi everyone, I'm over on the StencilGirl blog today with a new project using a stencil as the basis for my own Paint and Paper collage.

I'm sharing a bit of the process with a few additional photos and close-ups, so make sure to head on over to StencilGirl Talk if you're interested in seeing more.

StencilGirl: April Club Stencils

Just dropping in to let you know that I have a post up on StencilGirl Talk today where I share several projects I made using the new April StencilClub stencils.

This month I got the embroidery bug - it's been a while, but I had a lot of fun pulling these together. I also included some fun tags showing how you can take the same technique and use it with paint and paper if you're not in the mood to sew.

If you're interested, head on over to see more photos of the individual pieces along with some details.

StencilGirl: March Club Stencils

Hi everyone, I'm over on the StencilGirl blog today with a post highlighting the new March StencilClub stencils. I've got several new projects that combine stencils with hand-carved stamps.

Head on over to StencilGirl Talk if you want to see the full projects and get more details on how I made them :)

Catching Up: Documented Life Project

Just popping in to do a little catch-up on posting recent projects. I've shared all of these on Instagram / Facebook, but I wanted to get all of my pages so far this year that I've done for The Documented Life Project posted here as well, including the cover that I did months ago.

I started this back in July of last year, thinking I'd start half-way through 2014 and then do all of this year. I did the cover, prepped all the pages in my 18-month Moleskine planner, and then did 4 layouts and never really got back to it. But this year I'm really trying to keep up because I just love the concept, and I like having a place to just jot down a few notes about daily life, even if I'm not writing a ton. So, here's the cover... and I have to say, I totally love it! (so much humility!)

Full view front / back:

I used the Elephant March stencil along with the small one from the June 2014 StencilClub set. And the front cover when the book is closed:

The first week, I did a start to 2015 page that I've already shared - this was done with DecoArt Media projects for a blog post on StencilGirl Talk.

The next one was the challenge to use gesso. I painted and stenciled the background, then used DecoArt Media black gesso to cover a lot of it up. The circle and background stencils were from the January StencilClub kit.

The next challenge on 1/17 was based on the Color Wheel. I decided to take this one pretty literally and used the Complimentary color wheel stencil by Pam Carriker to make my own color wheel. The butterfly is a stamp from Dina Wakely, and then I used the 4x4 dots stencil from the October StencilClub kit to finish it off.

I kind of skipped the Words with Friends challenge... I'll go back and do that page, but I might just do something besides the challenge. Then this week's 1/31 challenge was to use some of your under paper (the scrap paper that gets all junked up with paint as you work on top of it.) The piece I used reminded me of an underwater scene, so I painted a tropical fish on top.

In the bottom right corner, you can see some remnants from working with Carolyn Dube's Small Union Stencil, and I finished it by using the Bubbles Stencil.

So that's my Documented Life Project work so far this year... looking forward to keeping this up as much as possible. More catching up to come :)

StencilGirl: February StencilClub!

Hi All, I'm over on the StencilGirl blog today sharing a new project that uses this month's StencilClub stencils. Believe it or not, I actually did a scrapbook layout!

Head on over for more details :)

StencilGirl: December StencilClub!

Just a quick FYI... I have a post up today over on StencilGirl Talk showing a technique and a project using for December StencilClub.

I'm doing mono-printing with a handmade printing plate made from this month's stencils:

I hope you'll stop by!

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Quick Update!

I have a few projects and updates that I haven't gotten around to posting here yet, so I'm doing a very quick round-up post...

First up, a few art journal pages that I did last month. The smaller book is a vintage physics book I found at the used bookstore and I've been working on top of the pages. I used the September StencilGirl StencilClub stencils on this page. The page on the right uses the Moroccan Doily stencil, acrylic paint, and lots of Liquid Pearls.

Next up, I got the chance to go to see the Black Keys in concert last month at the United Center with my friend Mary. It was SO amazing!!!

Then I got to play around a bit with some new stencils by Nathalie Kalbach - I used Elephant Parade and Art Deco Wallpaper to do a page in my planner / art journal.

This last weekend I got out my sewing machine to make a little travel paintbrush holder for my upcoming mixed media classes in Connecticut (there are still some openings in my classes for anyone who's interested and on the fence!) I really just wanted an excuse to buy this awesome Cloud9 dragon fabric. lol. No pattern - I made it up based on some that I've seen. It's not perfect, but it's functional!

A very cool and flattering thing... for those of you who don't already follow him, Seth Apter has a weekly blog series where he highlights various blog posts - it's called the Week Links. This week he featured my post on StencilGirl Talk making the coptic bound books we'll be doing in my class on the 18th. I'm so excited to be included! Awesome inspiration if you haven't checked it out...

Another art journal page... more playing with the October StencilClub stencils! Love them this month... (and if you aren't in the club, if you sign up before the 15th, this is the set you'll start with :D) I had a background of acrylic paint and then used molding paste for the large circles (shaded with PanPastels) and then Wendi Vecchi gold embossing paste for the small circles. Various letter stickers for the message in the center.

I started a few new classes, including the Paint Mojo eCourse with Tracy Verdugo (I'm already more than 2 weeks behind. sigh.) and my beginning drawing class at SAIC started this week. I haven't been drawing or sketching lately, so this should be a good jump start!

And last but not least, for those who haven't heard but who have been asking about it, I opened a shop at Society6 where you can buy prints, phone cases, decals, totes, stationary cards, and other stuff made from some of my art. I only have some of my doodle / Zentangle pieces up right now, but I may add paintings or other things later if it goes well. For those who are interested, right now there's a free shipping promo that goes through Oct. 12th.

Whew! It's been crazy lately... and that's not even getting into how busy things have been at work! But it's all good, and more fun times and projects on the horizon!

StencilGirl: October StencilClub!

It's the start of a new month, and that means this month's StencilClub stencils have been revealed over at StencilGirl! I'm totally in love with this month's stencils... I've been playing with them since I got them. Today I'm sharing two art journal spreads that I made with them over on StencilGirl Talk... head on over for more details!

A little hint... the one on the right uses my first (but not last!) homemade screen print. It turned out great!

Anyway, hope you enjoy :)

September StencilGirl Stencil Club

I'm over on the StencilGirl blog today with a post showing off this month's StencilClub stencils by Andrew Borloz. They're super awesome and extremely versatile! Hop on over and check it out!