Upcycled Briefcase into a Stenciled Art Case with FolkArt paints and stencils

This is a sponsored post, which means I got free products and paid for writing it. All opinions are my own and based on my experience. 

Getting the chance to use FolkArt Stencils and Paints for a project was a lot of fun. So first I'd like to talk about the supplies because they are incredibly nifty. Find FolkArt® stencils, paint and more at Michaels.

FolkArt Multisurface Paint- If you're a craft painter, you want this paint. It comes in a bunch of colors and some really gorgeous finishes. I got to use a pearl finish and some metallic finishes in my project. In 3 weeks it air cures on smooth surfaces like glass and ceramics, it works on plastic, on paper, on every surface that gets painted in my home. We are using it this weekend on some white cups, and possibly on some white blankets. As much as everyone in my family likes to upcycle, this is our new favorite paint.

FolkArt Stencils- laser cut precise stencils, these have perfect sharp edges that are smooth, lots of detail and are reusable. They also come in lots of trendy designs, like the jaguar stencil that I used.

FolkArt Stencil Adhesive- I love this stuff. You apply it to the back of your stencil- it daubs on. Then your stencil is lightly adhesive and won't move around. If you make sure to get the fine details that might come up when you pounce your paint on, they don't move either. Then you can peel up the stencil easily and it doesn't leave a sticky residue. Best part? Even if you're re-using the stencil in your project, you only have to apply it once. It stays sticky for a few uses.

So I had a lot of ideas, but decided on making the art case for my daughter because she can keep a lot of her supplies nice and neat in it. So many people have switched to using laptops and bags that briefcases are all over thrift stores and garage sales. They are perfectly designed for paper and art supplies with a hinged lid and rigid build to keep everything very flat. So you'll need to find a briefcase in good condition in a thrift store.

You'll also need your favorite paint applicators, foam plates and painter's tape. I used a larger sponge for stenciling and a foam roller. My photos show a sheet of vinyl for the first part instead of painters tape because the vinyl was damaged and convenient.

The colors I used are
Metallic 14K Gold
Metallic Bright Gold
Metallic Chocolate Brown
Mandarin Satin Pearl

So the first thing you'll do is block off the middle top of your briefcase.

Put some paint on the foam plate. I put on a few colors, starting with the golds, and adding a few small spots of the other two colors. Paint the edges of the case. Pull up the tape and let it dry.

While it's drying, daub the back of the stencil with the FolkArt stencil adhesive. After the FolkArt paint is dry, put the stencil in place in the center of the case.

You can tell that I tried out the stencil first! Make sure the small areas that might come up while your pounce are well adhered. Because of the texture of the case, using a nearly dry brush and going over it twice worked better than using a lot of paint and helped prevent bleeding into the texture. Pounce the brush, and shade your colors from lightest down to the bottom with darkest. As you can see, the stencil needed to be moved to finish. I let the paint dry, then put the stencil on the bottom to put in the last little bit.

The final step is the stripe edging. Make sure all your paint is dry before taping.

As you can see- I used just the gold for the inner stripe, and gold and brown for the outer stripe. The difference between the stripe and the edging is subtle and looks really good.

My daughter is thrilled with the case, and even my son said it looks neat. I think he plans to pinstripe a case for himself using the same colors. The finishes are so nice looking.

Want a LOT of great project ideas? Check out these links.
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Peace symbols

My darling husband totally surprised me with a Yudu machine for Christmas. Honestly, I was expecting a bottle of perfume or possibly a new Nano. But there it was, huge and wonderful.
So while I'm waiting to go to the craft store and get more emulsion sheets and screens for it, I've been working on ideas for the single emulsion sheet and screen that came with it, deciding what to print for that first screen is hard!
One thing I've been wanting is to make more peace symbol shirts. My kids love them, but like me, don't like mass produced shirts. So, this is some of the art I've been working on. It's in GIF format and 2 colors because it's for silk screening eventually. You can use it as you wish. Except you know.. mass producing shirts for very low wages in countries that don't protect human rights. Since it is a 2 color gif, it would be easy to remove the white background and use them for digital stamping. Or print it to color if you wish. My son loves the faux bois effects best so that's in the near future.
Click on the images for the full sized versions.

I also posted some digital delivery 1 inch circles with peace symbols on them in my Etsy shop. 

Here's an example at full size. 300 dpi, on your monitor it will show a bit bigger than it's meant to print!

Peace symbol stencils

There is something that just makes me cringe about peace symbols on clothing and jewelry that are mass produced by countries with dubious labor practices and sold by big box stores that drive small businesses out of business. Because of that, my daughter's favorite peace symbol necklace is one I twisted for her out of wire.
Lately, I've seen seeing a ton of them on clothes, and I like the idea of wearing clothes with peace symbols, either embroidered or stenciled on, but for me, it really has to be something handmade with pride. The idea itself seems to need a personal commitment to the concept, not just buying something made and sold in a way that directly contradicts the ideal.
I did mention I'm a second generation hippie right?
ANYWAY.. *grins* a couple stencils you can use on a thrift store shirt turned inside out, or a shirt bought from No Sweat's going out of business sale. I hope you can use them and like them. As usual, click on the images for the full size version, print out at whatever size you wish. Cut out the gray parts, and there's your stencil. You can find a lot more information about stencils here at Stencil Punks. I have more stencils here.