Stenciling Sunflowers in July by Manu

Only stencils for this project and three stenciling techniques:
Royal icing
Luster dust
with sponge

I didn't add any additional medium, but I used a cutter to create a pattern on the stenciled center of the sunflowers. It is not a clean work, but today I couldn't find the right RI consistency, as you may have noticed on all the RI stenciled part.
And also I had issues with flooding the cookie, it never dried as it is hot and wet in Milan!
The edges are not straight and it was difficult to stencil the RI layer of grass, and also my watermark... my apologies to Belle and Kat, as I could have been somehow more precise.
I loved stenciling the green background with luster dust and the sponge. I wanted to have the space behind the sunflowers filled with sunflower stems and leaves, like in a field, adding depth but without having a crowded effect. Same with the grass.
I am overall pretty happy with the outcome, as this is something new for me.
After stenciling with my homemade ones I was glad to have the ones made by experienced cookier!

The title recalls some cookies with sunflowers made last February:

http://cookieconnection.juliau...ers-in-february-manu

Manu!  What a spectacular addition this is to the challenge, and what a beautiful, beautiful cookie!  I LOVE all of the process photos and how you used a combination of purchased and homemade stencils.  And what a terrific idea to get your logo made into a stencil.  Well done!

Love the texture!!!

Bakerloo Station posted:

Manu!  What a spectacular addition this is to the challenge, and what a beautiful, beautiful cookie!  I LOVE all of the process photos and how you used a combination of purchased and homemade stencils.  And what a terrific idea to get your logo made into a stencil.  Well done!

Thank you Christine, I was about to write some clarifications... I wasn't expecting your prompt comment!   I go preparing dinner and edit comment in about a hour.

I love it, Manu! Everything you do is just perfect! Great job! And all of your stencils are super!

Love your sunflowers Manu!! So pretty

Gorgeous - and it's also a scene!!!

Lovely!  Great, Manu.  I knew your entry was great.  I was really looking forward to seeing yours.  Now I am looking for sponge, is there any types of sponge suitable to stencil?   Your name stencil is really cool. 

carouselselsel posted:

I love it, Manu! Everything you do is just perfect! Great job! And all of your stencils are super!

Thank you, Zara, I am glad they worked out!

Cookies Fantastique by Carol posted:

Love your sunflowers Manu!! So pretty

Thank you, Carol, it was fun making them. 

Awesome job; great use of mediums, colors, and textures! 

Julia M. Usher posted:

Gorgeous - and it's also a scene!!!

Thank you, Julia! Yes, it has been in my mind during my vacation. As I couldn't decorate cookies I brought papers, pencil and plastic sleeves just in case I had time sketching and cutting stencils. Not sure the stencils worked out until today.

Ryoko ~Cookie Ave. posted:

Lovely!  Great, Manu.  I knew your entry was great.  I was really looking forward to seeing yours.  Now I am looking for sponge, is there any types of sponge suitable to stencil?   Your name stencil is really cool. 

Thank you, Ryoko. As you know I baked the cookie before leaving for vacation, so it wasn't anyway supposed to be eaten. I used the sponge for washing dishes and cut in stripes, but you can find in the shops the sponges made for this purpose, it is a stick with a sponge at the edge.

Rosemary Ann posted:

Awesome job; great use of mediums, colors, and textures! 

 

Thank you so much!

Cool Sweets posted:

Love the texture!!!

Thank you!

Wow! The cookie is fantastic, it looks like a Van Gogh painting... The tutorial is great and your stenciled name, just genial

Pretty

So very  lovely... you are awesome 

Bel lavoro Manu!!  Bella la sovrapposizione che da profondità  alla scena....great work!! 

NaGeRa posted:

Wow! The cookie is fantastic, it looks like a Van Gogh painting... The tutorial is great and your stenciled name, just genial

Rosanna posted:

Pretty

Teri Pringle Wood posted:

So very  lovely... you are awesome 

Dolce Flo posted:

Bel lavoro Manu!!  Bella la sovrapposizione che da profondità  alla scena....great work!! 

Thank you so much for all these wonderful compliments! I am glad you liked it. 

this is beautiful Manu! excellent design and technique execution!

so good Manu you inspire me very much being so new to this myself 

Lovely. I likeit so much, nice texture and use of colors! Good job, Manu

virago posted:

this is beautiful Manu! excellent design and technique execution!

Thank you! There are lots of sunflowers fields in Italy during this period and they are my favourite flowers. In a first sketch in the first sketch there was more sky and hills, then I decided for a close-up.

Cookie Bakes & Cakes posted:

so good Manu you inspire me very much being so new to this myself 

 

Thank you so much, Kim, for your words!

Magadiuz posted:

Lovely. I likeit so much, nice texture and use of colors! Good job, Manu

Thank you Ina! The heat here helped me a lot. There was no way I had a flat stenciled surface! But at the end I don't mind that rustic look.

Your attention to details is stunning, I can see it also reading your description about the cookie! I love it, amazing and colorful ❤️❤️❤️

Evelindecora posted:

Your attention to details is stunning, I can see it also reading your description about the cookie! I love it, amazing and colorful ❤️❤️❤️

Thank you Evelin, you know how much I appreciate your comments! ❤️

Wonderful, Manu! What I love is how you've managed to create depth with all of the layers. As always, thank you for sharing your very helpful step by step process! 

Beautiful work, manu! ❤

Sweet Prodigy posted:

Wonderful, Manu! What I love is how you've managed to create depth with all of the layers. As always, thank you for sharing your very helpful step by step process! 

Thank you Christine,

I love that effect as well. At the beginning I had planned to add some random leaves stenciled with RI. But I am glad I gave a try to luster dust instead.

The step by step pics process was made to help "decode" the stencils and techniques used. It also helps me to remember the single steps, the difficulties I met and to see if the next time I should add something more or maybe not. Sharing all of this is part of the fun, especially in these challenges where I feel I am learning a lot, and I hope could be of inspiration. I noticed more fellow cookiers are doing the same

Cookies by joss posted:

Beautiful work, manu! ❤

Thank you, Joss!

Love the layers & the watercolor-y look of the background painted stenciled area. Grazie for sharing your talent and your process, Manu~!

Barbara at Blue Sky Cookies posted:

Love the layers & the watercolor-y look of the background painted stenciled area. Grazie for sharing your talent and your process, Manu~!

Prego! (You are welcome!) It is a pleasure to share here on CC, as I am learning so much from this site.

Grazie for your kind words, Barbara.

Such a masterpiece. Reminds me of Monet's sunflowers painting. 

Chu-A-Cookie posted:

Such a masterpiece. Reminds me of Monet's sunflowers painting. 

Thank you, Arlene, what a beautiful comment... you said it reminds you of Monet, Nagera mentioned Van Gogh... well I am happy and glad that this humble cookie evokes the Greats!

When this cookie was finished it made me think about Eric Carle's books illustrations, which I have always found peculiar, while reading to my kids. I searched the Internet and find out he has used the collage technique, with tissue papers, acrylics colors, and different materials to color the tissue papers and create different texture. Probably the touches of the sponge on the background of my cookie reminded me his illustrations.

Beautiful! How awesome of you to have photographed your steps and share it with us! 

Tina At Sugar Wishes posted:

Beautiful! How awesome of you to have photographed your steps and share it with us! 

After taking the very second pic I realized I smudged one of the petals and thought maybe I should have focus only on stenciling! But I fixed it and kept having fun with taking step by step pic!

Oh, wow, like a canvas painting. So beautiful, Manu!

swissophie posted:

Oh, wow, like a canvas painting. So beautiful, Manu!

Thank you Sonja, glad you like it! Sunflowers are my favourites and July is my month.