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How to Doily Stencil a Cushion / Pillow

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Doily Stencil a Cushion / Pillow

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. I loved this craft. It was so easy to do. My favourite kind of craft, cheap, fun and little effort for great results. I warn you it is very addictive as the cushions are so lovely. I know I’m going to end up with too many cushions outside now.
 
You might remember 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 left over from the traditional English garden party we held for the Queen’s diamond jubilee in 2012. 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.
 
Transform some plain pillows & cushions with doilies. Use a paper doily as a stencil to add interest and colour. Full step by step tutorial.
 
 
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What you need to stencil a cushion / pillow

  • Assortment of paper doilies
    Repositionable spray mount
    Acrylic Paint
    Foam paint brush
    Plain canvas cushion/pillow covers

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    How to doily stencil a cushion / pillow
     

    How to Doily Stencil a Cushion / Pillow

    1. Remove the cover from the cushion / pillow. Using the repositionable spray mount, spray one side of your doily. Place the doily on the cushion where you want to stencil.
     
    Doily Stencilling a cushion / pillow
     
    2. With your foam brush, dab acrylic paint into the holes of the doily.
     
    Stencilling a cushion / pillow with a doily
     
    3. When finished quickly and carefully remove the doily. Don’t leave the doily too long on the cushion as it will get stickier and be harder to remove.
     
    Stenciling with doilies
     
    4. Repeat until you have the pattern you want. You will have to use a fresh doily each time.

     
    5. Next you can seal and soften your stencilled cushion. Once the paint is thoroughly dry, spritz the paint with a 50/50 mixture of clear vinegar and water. Using a cloth in between the paint and the iron, iron with a hot iron.
     
    _DSC0427 sm
     
    Doily stencilled cushion, really easy to do for great results.
     
    Stenciled doily cushion / pillow.
     
    Brighten up your cushions by painting them using a doily as a stencil
     
    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 than use a light paint. For example I used a navy blue cushion and white paint. If you have a light cushion cover use a dark paint. I had a light turquoise cushion and stenciled with a dark blue paint. I’m tempted to go and by some more colourful cushion covers and try out lots of different colour combinations.
     
    Doily Stenciled Cushions - Fun easy craft full tutorial
     
    Brighten up your cushions by painting them using a doily as a stencil
     
    Brighten up your cushions by painting them using a doily as a stencil
     
    Doily Stencilled Cushion - fun addictive craft
     

    Brighten up your cushions by painting them using a doily as a stencil
     
     


     

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    3. 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!

      Reply

    4. 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!

      Reply

    9. 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.

      Reply

    13. 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! 🙂

      Reply

    14. 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

      Reply

      • 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.

        Reply

    22. 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!

      Reply

      • 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.

        Reply

    23. 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.

      Reply

    24. 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

      Reply

    27. 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.

      Reply

    31. 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…. 🙂

      Reply

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