Stencil ideas

I think this is the 3rd time I've posted today. Yikes.
That's a record for me!!!
I've sort of been sweeping up some odds and ends of things and finishing up Zentangle calendars and doing a journal prompt and now I've switched to organizing stencils.

I had my stencils out for something in my journal recently.
And I remembered I had seen a video on YouTube recently about "reinforcing" the edges of stencils using back to back duct tape.  I have several packages of very small stencils that I got at Michaels or WalMart or some place like that because I really liked the patterns (even though very small).  And I like the price.  Have you noticed how expensive stencils ARE????

Anyway…I took two, a heart shaped and a zig-zag one and I taped the edges.  You can see the black paper showing through those two stencils above.  Now instead of being 3.5" x 4.5" they are about 7" x 7.5". Quite a difference and lots of edge to hold on to when you are using them!!! 

Then I rolled out some Liquitex Basic acrylic paint in gold and using a "foam" roller I roll-printed over the stencil.  Foam rollers are my NEW favorite way to use stencils.  A big Tracy Batista tip!  This stamping with foam make up sponges or padded little foam stampers is for the birds.  The sponge rollers work so smoothly and print so well and are so easy to wash out afterwards!!!!

You can find these small sponge rollers in the hardware stores or Walmart stores or Dollar Stores.  They run under $5 and often come with an extra sponge.  Perfect for painting with Yupo paper as well by the way.  Another story.

I also practiced with the zig-zag stencil, continuing on with it to make a large print.  By matching up the design of the 
stencil and "continuing" on with the print making you can make a LARGE print of the stencil without actually having a large stencil!  Voila. 

I was stenciling over some watercolor patterns, by the way, that made last spring and have not used yet.  I laid crumpled Saran wrap on the wet watercolor and let it dry that way.  I am sure you have done that at one time or another yourself!  That's the pattern on the far right at the bottom under the gold zig-zag.  

Because this is watercolor underneath, I would lightly spray this whole thing with an acrylic clear mat spray (outside) to set it and make it waterproof OR you can roll out the mat medium thinly on your Gelli plate and print the paper onto that surface and when it is dry it is permanent!  (That is also the way to make ink jet photos and printing permanent as well, by the way.)  Especially if I plan to add anything else on top!  

My other favorite way to use stencils is with a spray.  But I don't have very many of those…one black and one white and they are both water soluble.  So, like wc above, they would have to be made permanent before adding anything else. 

Okay…we are having company later today and so I need to get this studio a little straightened up!!!  I keep getting distracted!!!  WE expect some rain later this afternoon but I hope that it shifts off quickly.