Stenciled Woodblock Flower Possibilities

The brand-new Woodblock Floral by Gwen Lafluer for StencilGirl Products really spoke to me when I saw it, and I just had to get my hands on it. I think its going to be my new favorite. Here's some things I made.

First, for the pink page (on the right in the photo above) I used the stencil with white embossing powder on a blank Dylusions square journal page. the embossing powder acts as a resist, and mimics the look of batik, a technique that I loooove. I covered the page with some pink tones of watercolor.

Next, I added one of Gwen's PaperArtsy stamps from set EGL22 with white embossing powder, drew some freehand lines, and put dots of white Nuvo Drops along the lines.

Then I added watercolor inside the shapes that the dots created and extra color inside the stenciled and stamped florals.

I felt that it needed words, and remembered a quote I loved from Frida Kahlo, which is also attributed to Ruth Bader Ginsberg, so I added it to the page with Posca paint pens. The quote is: "Not fragile like a flower, fragile like a bomb."

Last, I added some highlights to the letters with a grey calligraphy pen, and a few spirals to fill in empty spaces.

Detail of my "Fragile"  journal page, done using the Woodcut Floral stencil with watercolor and embossing powder.

Next, I tried a very different look for the Woodcut Floral stencil. I began by stenciling the design with an indigo blue Archival ink in the middle of my journal. I love the look of blue and white china and traditional indigo blue textiles, which inspired me to try an allover design. 

It was really pretty just as an allover design, but I love color, and couldn't resist adding more. I used a watered-down salvaged patina distress ink.

I used the same light grey brush tipped calligraphy marker to add accents to the page.

Here's the finished page. I darkened the background color and accidentally added some splotches of the salvaged patina ink from a gothic arch I was working on, which leaked onto this floral. However, I like the distressed effect and decided not to even out the color. Sometimes accidents happen for a reason!

Last but certainly not least, I used the stencil on a gothic arch shape. The background was made by using painted canvas paper with an assortment of colors, a method I learned in a workshop with Seth Apter. I used the Woodblock Floral on top with gold embossing powder over VersaMark clear embossing ink. I love the rustic look of the background against the elegance of the gold floral.

I hope you enjoy using this new stencil as much as I do!