Pamela Macauley helps you create a place to store all your strewn-about treasures – in a monogrammed memory box. Perfect as a gift or a décor accent for your living room, this easy-to-make project gives you a gorgeous way to organize your home.
MATERIALS NEEDED:
• 1 unfinished wooden box
• fine and medium grade sandpaper
• white matte paint for undercoat
• blue matte paint for base colour
• printout of stencils to size
• white bristol board
• soft lead pencil
• x-acto knife
• masking tape
• 1 stencil brush
• 1 fine artist brush
• printout of initials to size
• black acrylic paint
• matte varnish
1. Lightly sand box with fine sandpaper. Apply 2 coats of white paint inside and out. Apply 2 coats of base colour to outside of box.
2. Transfer stencil onto bristol board by rubbing over back of printout with a soft lead pencil. Place pencil side down on bristol board and draw around design with a pen. When paper is lifted you should be able to see the design. Cut out stencil with x-acto knife.
3. Position stencil on top of box and secure with tape. Pour white paint into a small container. Dip tip of stencil brush into paint – don't overload the brush, as paint may bleed under stencil. Stipple paint onto cut-out areas. Remove stencil. Repeat on front of box. With fine brush, paint stems on leaves (marked with a dotted line on stencil).
4. Transfer initials onto box by rubbing over the back of printouts with a soft pencil and positioning initial in centre of stencil design. Secure with tape and trace around outline of initial. Using the fine artist brush, fill in the outline with white paint. You may need to apply 2 coats.
5. Mix a small amount of black paint with base colour. Imagine a light is shining above the stencil design and add the shadows to the underneath of the leaves on the stencil with a fine brush. Add shadows on the right side of initials. Rub some of the base coat of paint away on the edges and corners of the box with medium sandpaper. Rub sandpaper lightly over stencil design to distress it a little bit.
6. Clean away any dust left on the box and then give it 2 coats of matte varnish to seal.
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