DIY Stenciled Shower Curtain

Need something stunning in your bathroom?  How about sprucing up the shower curtain for a striking, instant change? I'm going to share a 'fascinating'(?) question and answer exchange, featuring the stenciled shower curtain I just completed. Read on for the how to!!! Thanks 'readers' for your insightful questions!

Q: Cindy, you have such interesting articles on your Sunset Coast Blog. What fabulous treasure will you reveal today?
                        Signed, DIY Blogger Mom
A: Thanks for asking! Today I'm showing my wonderful readers how to stencil an astounding shower curtain to make your bathroom spectacular.

Q: Cindy, you always do things in a thrifty, yet awesomely creative way. How will you do this without spending a lot ?
                       Signed, Thrifty Blog Reader
A: Yes, my cheapness is legendary. I already had the shower curtain, a plain black one with some subtle pin striping. I made the wonderful stencils many years ago for another project. I just pulled things out of my craft stash. All I needed to buy was some white acrylic paint. I made my own stencil sponge by cutting an old sponge into a cube, then rounding off the edges with scissors.

Pathetic Stencilling Sponge

Q: Cindy, you really are clever in designing your  remarkable projects. How did you figure out how to lay out the design and use the superb stencils? It looks so professional!
                      Signed, The  Crafty Housewife
A: Yes, it took some figuring out. First I played with my stencils, trying them out on some old Trader Joe's Bags.

Cheap bag practice paper

 I decided to use 3 different stencils. Starting with the 'fleur de lis' stencil, I used one up, one down.

Fleur De Lis Stencils

The other stencil I used the same way, but with 2 stencils on the sides. I decided to change it up and use a 3rd stencil on the sides in alternating rows. I know this sounds incredible, but the pictures show what I ended up with.

Work in Progress. Note the white marks and center X's between stencils.

 

Used different stencil on side of this design, alternating rows

I took the measurement of the largest stencil design. It was 17.5 inches by 17.5 inches. I made a piece of paper template that size, with a hole in the middle to lay out my design.
I just used that one size paper for my 3 different designs, it made it easier to lay out on the shower curtain using the same size template for each stencil combination. Make sense?

Crappy Paper Big Enough for Template

Q: Cindy, was it hard to layout your design on the shower curtain? And what did you use to mark it? I'm sure you have a great answer! 
                   Signed, Obviously Staged Question Asker Reader

A: When making my designs, I figured out that I would have 16 squares using my 17.5 in by 17.5 inch template. So I just started in the top corner of the shower curtain and marked the corners and centers of the paper template. I just kept moving down and across, marking edges and centers.The pin stripes really helped out in keeping things straight. That was just a little unplanned luck! I used a dressmakers marking pencil to mark the corners and centers of the paper template. The marker was the most annoying piece of ... Every time I sharpened it, the lead just broke off. Use some chalk or other disappearing marker instead of this worthless little tool.

Q: Well, you certainly had quite a time with that marker thing. You're usually so patient! How did you use the stencil to paint on the breathtaking shower curtain?
                         Signed, Inquiring Minds Bloggerette
A: I know, patience is my middle name. First of all, protect your table surface. The paint did bleed through and I just used a white shower curtain liner to cover it from the back side when it was finished and I hung it up.

Masked off Part of Stencil

Well, about the stencilling. I used blue painters tape to hold down the stencil. I lined them up using the marking in the center of each square. The pin stripes were also handy to keep them straight. I put a blob of white paint on my aluminum foil palette.. I also had a square of paper towel handy for blotting.  Using my little sponge, I popped it into the paint, then took a little off on the paper towel or on my aluminum foil. I just use the foil, it's easy to throw away when I'm done. You don't want to have too much paint on the sponge. Next, use an up and down stippling motion to paint the spaces in the stencil. Be careful not to go off the edges. I used blue tape to mask off some parts of the stencil that I didn't want as part of the design. After I painted one stencil, I pulled it up and moved it to the other side to complete the design.  When a design was complete, I moved to the next square and used the other stencils. I tried not to move the shower curtain too much while the paint was wet, it would smudge the other side. If you pull up a stencil and there is some smudge or something you don't like, quickly use a damp rag to scrub off the paint. If it's a little dry, try some rubbing alcohol. If you get to it right away it comes off pretty readily.



3 Stencil Patterns Used

The paint dries quickly and you can move to another section. When you're all done and the paint is dry, wipe off the marker or chalk and  you can put it in the dryer to heat set the paint. If you used a disappearing marker, wait for it to disappear before heat setting!

Q: Wow! Thanks for the great instructions! The bathroom looks absolutely delightful! Did you paint that mind blowing chair? And tell us about the ' to-die-for tile'!
                       Signed, Overly Enthusiastic Makeover Mama




Whimsical Painted Chair and Stencilled Shower Curtain

A: I know, I know... The shower curtain really  makes the bathroom sing! Of course I painted the chair, isn't it delightful? I had the tile done a few years ago. It's a gray striae, large rectangle tile.  The tile design has a soft, natural striped texture. I used the same tile on the floor. The shower is lined with carrera marble trim and charcoal gray porcelain tile was used in the wall insert. The charcoal gray was also used  as a baseboard around the floor and on the sink counter in the other half of the bathroom.. ( too messy to show!). I've really enjoyed the tile design in this bathroom that was formerly used by my daughters. The stenciled shower curtain is just adds a little flair. Next project, a window treatment?

Thanks for visiting the Sunset Coast today! I hope you liked the tongue in cheek Q and A. If you have questions about making a stenciled shower curtain, please ask! I'd love you to follow my blog and sign up for emails too...

 Have a Clean Day!

Cindy

 

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