It is very easy to stencil a cushion or pillow with doilies.
I gave my outdoor canvas cushions a bit of a makeover by using doilies as stencils to paint pretty patterns on them.
It was a very affordable and fun pillow upcycle that gave great results for very little effort. I warn you it is a very addictive craft, as the cushions are so lovely. It’s very tempting to make many stenciled pillows, I’m on the lookout for more fabric.
I got so carried away with using doilies as stencils I even painted some old vintage plates for a cute upcycle.
A couple of weeks ago I made some Map Table Mats. When I was putting them away in the kitchen with all my other table stuff, such as paper napkins and cloths, I struggled to shut the drawer. It was time for a clear out!

Firstly I discovered that I must stop buying paper napkins no matter how pretty they are. Secondly, I found right at the bottom a packet of paper doilies.
I’m not one normally for fancy doilies, these must have been leftover from the traditional English garden party we held for the Queen’s diamond jubilee.
These doilies did, however, give me an idea and that didn’t involve cucumber sandwiches and Victoria sponge cake. I would use them as a stencil.
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Doily Stencil a Cushion/Pillow
What you need to stencil a pillow
- An assortment of paper doilies.
- Repositionable spray mount
- Acrylic paint
- Fabric Paint medium
- Foam paintbrush
- Plain canvas pillow covers.

How to Doily Stencil a Pillow
1. First, remove the cover from the cushion / pillow. Then using the repositionable spray mount, spray one side of your doily. Place the doily on the cushion where you want to stencil.
I liked to create a random pattern with my doilies on the cushion covers and used doilies in an assortment of sizes as well as patterns.
Top tip: If you don’t want to use spray paint another method is to pin the pillow cover to a foam board to stop it moving around and to pin the doily stencil to cushion cover.
The idea is to make sure that the cushion/pillow and doily don’t move while stenciling.

2. Next, it is time to add the acrylic paint. With these cushions I painted with the acyrilic paint neat and they have lasted well.
However, I have since discovered fabric medium which if added to acrylic paint turns it into fabric paint which makes it more robust when washing.
When painting with a stencil it is best to use a foam brush and to use a dabbing motion. Load up the foam brush with not too much paint and dab it over the holes in the doilies until all the fabric is covered.

3. When you have finished stenciling the cushion quickly and carefully remove the doily.
Especially if you have used repositionable spray rather than pinning. If you leave the doily too long on the pillow it will get stickier and be harder to remove.

4. Repeat with the next doily until you have the pattern you want. The paper doilies will get wet so it is best to use a fresh doily with each pillow stencil.

5. To finish off, if you just used paint and no fabric medium you will need to seal soften the doily stenciled pillow.
To do this, once the paint is thoroughly dry, spritz the paint with a 50/50 mixture of clear vinegar and water. Then place a clean cotton cloth such as a tea towel in between the paint and the iron, iron with a hot iron.



I love how these cushions turned out. It is best to use a paint colour that contrasts with your cushion cover.
So if you have dark cushion covers then use a light paint. For example, I used a navy blue cushion and white paint. If you have a light cushion cover use dark paint.
I had a light turquoise cushion and stenciled with dark blue paint. I’m tempted to go and by some more colorful cushion covers and try out lots of different color combinations.



These doily stenciled pillows sit on my outdoor sofa in the summer. Since making the doily pillows I have Shibori dyed the sofa cushions and the doily pillows go really well with them.
There are more ideas of stenciling with paper doilies here. I also have a tutorial for turning vintage cloth doilies into a cute angel wings ornament.
I have also stenciled a denim fish pillow but this time I used bleach instead of paint.
As well as stenciling fabrics I have stenciled a wooden pallet in my garden to make a Moroccan painted wood planter wall that matches these cushions very well. I’ve also made a pineapple stenciled table for my living room.

Ann Martin
Such a nice idea! I linked to your post via my newsletter today.
Claire Armstrong
Thank you and thank you for the link.
Debrashoppeno5
The pillows are so delicate looking and pretty. I love how they turned out.
Claire Armstrong
Thank you !
Kellie
This is so pretty! I love how the cushions came out! And what a great blog you have! Thank you so much for linking up to our Waste not Wednesday Link up!
Claire Armstrong
Thank you ! The cushions do brighten up my outdoor sofa.
Lisa
Simply beautiful and easy to do! Love this idea and I have some pillow inserts that need covering. I know what I’m doing now! Thanks for linking up this fantastic tutorial on Happiness is Homemade – we’ve featured it this week!
Claire Armstrong
Thank you so much and thank you for the feature.
Nanacf
Thank you EVER SO MUCH for this inspiration!! I cannot wait to try my hand at brightening up indoor pillows!! Love your ideas!!
Claire Armstrong
Thank you and good luck with your pillows.
twochicksandamom/Donna
So cute and easy! Glad to feature your post at Funtastic Friday this week!
http://bit.ly/24EFO5h
Sherry
Just want to let you know that your tutorial is featured at Funtastic Friday #78. The party opens tonight at 9pm EST.
Claire Armstrong
Thank you very much look forward to seeing it.
Merit
Such a pretty pattern! Love the way these turned out. Thanks for sharing this with us at the #HomeMattersParty
Claire Armstrong
Thank you very much.
Mary-the boondocks blog
These are just too cute Claire. Did you spray on the water and vinegar to seal the paint on the fabric? That is a new trick I did not know. Pinning and sharing. Thank you for giving us loads of sweet inspiration in a small package.
Claire Armstrong
Yes I did and the heat sealed with a n iron. THank you !
Tuula @ Thrifty Rebel Vintage
Love how your pillows turned out Claire. The contrasting colours look fabulous! Thanks so much for sharing at Vintage Charm.
Claire Armstrong
Thank you !
Sheri Ann Richerson
I love this idea! Thanks so much for sharing! Those pillows are adorable!
Sheri Ann
Claire Armstrong
Thank you very much.
Laura - The No Pressure Life
What a fun idea! Your pillows look so pretty. I didn’t know about the vinegar/water trick – great tip!
Claire Armstrong
Thank you !
LydiaF
Claire I love how pretty your project turned out. I will definitely keep the doily stencil idea in mind. Wouldn’t it be great on a little tote bag, too? Thanks for linking with us at Creatively Crafty #ccbg Hope to see you again! 🙂
Claire Armstrong
Yes it would look great on most things including a tote bag. Thank you !
Wynn
These are very very pretty. Lve the contrasting colours you’ve used. Have you tried washing them .I just wondered how they would stand up to hand washing. Awesome idea and thank you for sharing. Wynn x
Claire Armstrong
I haven’t washed them yet, but accidently left them out in the rain the other day and they were fine. They should be ok on low temp easy wash. I have used acrylics on other fabrics and they are still going strong. The heat sealing process with the iron helps.
Carol@blueskykitchen
Claire, what a pretty and creative idea. Using doilies? Would have never have thought of that. So many colors, so many possibilities to try.
Claire Armstrong
Thank you ! Yes I want to make some more in different colours.
Charlene Asay
I am so glad that you linked up at Family Joy Blog Link Up Party this week. These look great!
Claire Armstrong
Thank you !
creativejewishmom/sara
Gorgeous, I’m so inspired! Thanks so much for sharing on craft schooling Sunday!
Claire Armstrong
Thank you so much.
Katherines Corner
they look lovely. Thank you for sharing at the Thursday Favorite Things link Party, Pinned xo
Claire Armstrong
Thank you and thanks for the pin.
Beverly
I love these pillows. I have so many doilies and I have some paper ones to try this. The end result is awesome.
Thanks for the idea,
Bev
Claire Armstrong
Thank you ! Glad to have sparked an idea.
Elsie Pop
Wow, these are beautiful – what a simple but effective idea! xx
Claire Armstrong
Thank you ! yes they are so simple.
Vasudha S
This is so awesome. The outcome is so simple yet elegant.. You make it sound so simple.
Claire Armstrong
Thank you !
Sue Nelson
I loved this idea and how it turned out. I have started to redo my bathroom, and everything is done in white and a teal color. I made a cute bathroom shelf using an old house shutter and I put white porcelain brackets on it, and white porcelain hooks for towels. However, I used a chalk paint. Now I need a new shower curtain but the only way to match the color is to use that same chalk paint. So I was wondering, if I buy a fabric shower curtain, would I be able to do this same stencil ing technique using chalk paint? Would I still be able to seal it using a hot iron? I hope to hear back from you soon as I’d love to get started on it and finish my bathroom. Thank you for your great ideas!
Claire Armstrong
I’m not sure about the chalk paint, but it’s worth trying it out first on an old piece of fabric. I have seen lots of tutorials on like for painting fabric with chalk paint so it may be worth googling it to see if you need to set it or how they do it.
Pam
These turned out so pretty! I’d never heard that technique for setting acrylic paint. Can’t wait to try it! Thank you for sharing at the Creatively Crafty link party.
Claire Armstrong
Thank you ! I’ve seen it in several different places online but can’t remember where I first saw it.
Lynn
Claire…these are fantastic. They look a little Indian Batik-ish. How fun. And I love that you used your doily stash! Those pillows will forever remind you the Diamond Jubilee now, which is really neat. Thanks for sharing your creativity with the rest of us.
Wishing you a lovely weekend.
Hugs, Lynn
Claire Armstrong
Thank you very much !
Barbara Viney
I love them, can you do some blue and white for me please.
I have the cushion but won’t be able to get the paint here.
Claire Armstrong
Thank you ! I’ll see what I can do.
Elina
So simple and what a difference it makes!
Claire Armstrong
Thank you, yes very simple.
Laura
What a pretty project and the final product is lovely.
The colors of the pillows you chose are perfect.
Thank you for being at TOHOT.
Claire Armstrong
Thank you ! I kind of have a blue thing going on outside.
Kim Sharman
As one who loves doilies I love this idea. =) Your cushions look very cool. I love the contrast. Just visiting your lovely blog via Sweet Inspiration.
Claire Armstrong
Thank you very much. I love the contrasting colours too ! I think I will try some other colour combinations.
Pam @Threading My Way
So, so effective, Claire! Love your cushions.
Claire Armstrong
Thank you very much !
Mary Anne Komar
Wow the ideas are endless! Beautiful project, maybe tablecloths, quilts, knapkins, even clothing! Thanks!
Claire Armstrong
Thank you ! Yes I keep on looking at things now and thinking would they look good with a doily stencil on them.
Nadia
Oh how lovely….! I’m definitely going to do this as I’ve already got some doilies…..just need to pick up some acrylic paint when I go to the shops later on…. 🙂
Claire Armstrong
Thank you ! Acrylic or fabric paint will do !
Jemma
This is such a fun and cute project-turned out wonderful too!
Thank you for sharing this with us at TOHOT!
Jemma
Claire Armstrong
Thank you.
Carol
Just my style, sweet and simple.
Claire Armstrong
Thank you ! Yes so simple.
Ilka
I really love this craft idea for your pillows! The doily stencils makes these pillows so pretty! Pinning!
Claire Armstrong
Thank you ! & so simple to do as well.
Sarah @ Sarah's Heart Writes
What a great little project – and so effective. I’m definitely going to give this one a try xx
Claire Armstrong
Thank you ! It is great fun, 8 keep eyeing up other things round the house to see what else I can stencil.