At the start of 2018, I never imagined that the year would be more cookie-rich than 2017 . . . but I somehow managed to trot the globe from Japan to the Dominican Republic; attend a record number of trade shows (which, for me, was four); judge four cookie competitions; keep Cookie Connection going; and launch (and retire . . .) a new airbrush system. While there have been some ups and downs over the year (most notably in the airbrush department 
), one thing has been constant - and that's been you and your support of my stencil line! I am so grateful for your business, your feedback on the line, and the many photos you've shared of your wonderful creations made with my stencils. Thank you!
To celebrate you and what you've contributed to my 2018, I'm ringing in 2019 early with this month's New Year-themed release! Enjoy!
- Ring in the New Year Dynamic DuosTM Background Set (upper left),
- Ring in the New Year Dynamic DuosTM Message and Frame Set (combined with the DuosTM background set; upper right),
- My partner Confection Couture's Champagne Toast Basic Accent Stencil (lower right), and
- My Pop the Bubbly Prettier PlaquesTM Set (my favorite New Year set from a year ago; lower left).
And, don't forget, there are many other already-released New Year stencils, designed by me and Confection Couture Stencils, all on Confection Couture Stencils' site. Just click here to see them. Also to note: each year, we update all stencils with a year (i.e., 2018, 2019, and so on) on them, so there's no need to worry about getting a dated set.
Now . . . if you're in my Stencil of the Month Club, this month you'll get both my Ring in the New Year Dynamic DuosTM Background Set and Confection Couture's Champagne Toast Basic Accent Stencil - a $22.99 value for only $14.99. As long as you stay a member, you will also get 15% off anything else on the Confection Couture site! In a single snapshot, here's what this month's offering looks like:
If you're not a Club member and want to be - or if you would like to gift a Club membership to a friend for Christmas (what a great idea! 
) - simply sign up here!
So, it's time to dive into each of my new DuosTM sets, starting first with the background set and its contents.
Ring in the New Year Dynamic DuosTM Background Set (6 pieces)
With this six-piece set, you can do SO many things: just show the buildings and fireworks; add one of two "2019" graphics (designed to mimic the big, blinged-out signs in Times Square); and/or superimpose the ball dropping at the stroke of midnight. Below, I show a few of these variations - first, in completely flat form, just airbrushed and stenciled in the traditional way (directly below), and then, second, with dimensional fondant appliqués and royal icing transfers.
A note on colors: I used a few very vibrant colors across all the cookies in this post, but I mixed them up on each cookie to give the appearance of more diversity. The colors used were AmeriMist Super Black for the buildings and messages (but any black will do); a combination of AmeriMist Electric Pink, AmeriMist Sky Blue, AmeriMist Electric Green, and Chefmaster Violet for the fireworks; and those same colors in various permutations on the "2019" signs and balls.
I love this stencil set because it takes so well to dimensional appliqués and transfers. I mean, that ball is just crying out to be round and not flat, right?! 
Below, I airbrushed the "2019" in black on rolled fondant and cut around it to make an appliqué. I also airbrushed the balls onto round royal icing transfers, just as I made the globes in my recent back-to-school set. As a last step, I "glued" these elements onto the airbrushed background with thick royal icing. For a little more dimension, I elevated the "2019" using tiny balls of fondant underneath.
(If you're not completely clear about how I did these things, no worries! I plan to release an in-depth instructional video for this set a little closer to the New Year!)
Now, onto the complementary message and frame set. Here's what it contains:
Ring in the New Year Dynamic DuosTM Message and Frame Set (5 pieces)
Two frames and their associated masks plus four messages for a total of five separate pieces! My upcoming video will show how to add framed messages to cookies, but the process is exactly what I've shown in previous videos: lay down the mask where you want the message to be; airbrush around it; take off the mask and set down the frame stencil associated with the mask you used; airbrush over it; and, last, set a message in the center of the frame and airbrush over it once again.
That being said, I did put a twist on this process on the "Ring in the New Year" and "A Toast to You" cookies below. I basically did all I said above; I just did it on fondant and turned the framed messages into appliqués. "Hello 2019" was airbrushed directly onto the cookie in the traditional way.
Appliqués and transfers obviously add more dimension, but their other advantage is that they make it easier to overlap elements in interesting ways, as shown on the "Ring in the New Year" cookie below.
There are no real rules for how to arrange dimensional elements. I just make a bunch in advance, in permutations of my "master" color scheme, and then shuffle them around on the cookie backgrounds until I get the right balance of elements and colors on each cookie, and across the entire cookie set.
And that concludes all I have to say about this month's DuosTM sets . . . except for: don't forget to add a dash of pixie dust or edible glitter for the requisite New Year's Eve sparkle!
To close out this post, I leave you with a photo of my Pop the Bubbly Prettier PlaquesTM Set, one of my New Year faves from last year, and a recap of my key stencil links. Enjoy!
- To purchase my Dynamic DuosTM sets, click here.
- To join my Stencil of the Month Club, click here.
- To see my entire stencil line, including my Prettier PlaquesTM sets, click here.
- To view my videos that show how to create layered looks with my stencil sets, click here.
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 my stencil partner, Confection Couture Stencils, at service@confectioncouturestencils.com. Thank you!
** ADDENDUM - JANUARY 1, 2019 **
Finally! Here's that in-depth instructional video I promised:
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