Julia's March Stencil Release - It's Tea Time!

So what specifically is in this month's release? Glad you asked!  Here's a quick overview:

• My Vintage Tea Dynamic Duos^TM Background Set (upper left),
• My Vintage Tea Dynamic Duos^TM Message and Frame Set (combined with the Duos^TM background set in the upper right),
• My partner Confection Couture's French Hydrangea Basic Accent Stencil (lower right), and
• My To Mom Prettier Plaques^TM Set (a reminder of one of my favorite previously released sets, in the lower left).

If you're lucky enough to be in my Stencil of the Month Club, this month you'll get both my Vintage Tea Dynamic Duos^TM Background Set and Confection Couture's French Hydrangea Basic Accent Stencil - a $22.99 value for only $14.99 (plus 15% off anything else on the Confection Couture site)! In a picture, you'll get this:

To see similar savings on my stencils month after month, just sign up for my Club here. Or, if you're not quite ready for Club membership, don't stress! You can still get a discount on both of my new Duos^TM sets by taking advantage of the bundled deal on this page.

Before we take a closer look at this month's Duos^TM sets, just a quick story about how they came about. The imagery was inspired by the many vintage tea sets I've collected over the years. I also wanted an eclectic scrapbooking sort of effect - hence the combination of flowers and words on the background stencil, in addition to the usual layered foreground element (see graphic below). And as Mother's Day was fast approaching, I decided to tailor every message to that occasion. I mean, why not, right?!

Long story short, everything about this set was pretty much tied up with a neat little bow - at least, that is, until I heard from a former student a couple of weeks ago. She asked if I had any stencils suitable for friends recovering from illness or hardship. Well, I didn't, but it occurred to me that tea, with all of its calming and restorative properties, would be great subject matter not just for Mother's Day, but also for these other circumstances. So . . . just days before this set's release, I scrapped many of the messages and frames originally intended for it, and added "Get Well" and "Keep Calm" to the mix, hoping to address this customer's question and to extend the usefulness of this set. Moral of the story: If you have a stencil want or need, don't keep quiet! I can't guarantee I'll be able to incorporate all suggestions as easily I could this time or at all, but, at the end of the day, I am not designing for me. I am designing FOR YOU, and I would love more feedback about what you'd like to see!

So, with that diversion behind us, onto the contents of each Duos^TM  set. First, the background set:  

Vintage Tea Dynamic Duos^TM Background Set (4 pieces)

With just these four elements, you can make myriad designs. Here's the background straight up, without the foreground element:

And here it is with the cup superimposed on top:

Of course, the cup could be flipped over for a mirror image; it could be centered on the cookie, or located off to the right or left; it could be done in any number of colors, with or without shading in the back; or it could even be stenciled on its own without any background.

In keeping with the dynamic nature of these sets, when I add this coordinating message set to the mix . . . 

Vintage Tea Dynamic Duos^TM Message and Frame Set (5 pieces)

. . . the design possibilities become nearly limitless. Here, on the top heart cookie, I've got the background without the cup, but with a message on top:

And, here, I've got a cookie (center) that uses all elements in the background set (including the teacup) as well as a message and frame:

And, last, I've got a big (about 4-inch) heart with everything on it, PLUS a lovely wafer paper butterfly from one of my favorite wafer paper suppliers, MMT Productos in Argentina:

Because I know you want to appreciate that butterfly a bit better , I've got a closer view:

And one closer still:

In all of the above cases, I used the same basic color scheme, but mixed and matched stencils within and across my Duos^TM sets to create a range of different looks. As for those colors . . . they included (1) a mixture of AmeriMist Gold and Chefmaster Harvest Brown for the script letters in the background; (2) AmeriMist Electric Green, AmeriMist Royal Blue, and a blend of AmeriMist Sky Blue and lots of Dinkydoodle white for the hydrangea flowers; and AmeriMist Electric Green and Avocado Green for the leaves. The teacups and messages were done in one of two combinations: (1) light blue shading and Harvest Brown details on top (pictured directly above) or (2) Harvest Brown shading with Royal Blue details on top (not pictured). (Note: I like Dinkydoodle white for softening colors, as it is alcohol-based and less watery than most other white airbrush colorings. However, it has been tough to source in the US, and is even out of stock on many sites in the UK and Canada. I understand that it is similar to, if not equivalent to, Spectrum Flow, which I recently sourced with success from the UK.)

• To purchase my Dynamic Duos^TM sets, click here.
• To join my Stencil of the Month Club, click here.
• To see my entire stencil line, including my Prettier Plaques^TM sets, click here.

Note: If you've got cookie photos using my stencils that you'd like to see on the Confection Couture site, please share your images on the Confection Couture Facebook page and mention that you'd like them to be considered for this purpose. Please also indicate how you want to be credited for your photos (name, link-backs, etc.) should they be selected. Thank you!

If you have any technical questions about these stencils, please don't hesitate to email me at sweetlife@juliausher.com or to leave a comment below. Please, however, direct all ordering and Club questions to service@confectioncouturestencils.com. Thank you!