My little stenciling project above the chair rail in the office has officially concluded. Woooo to the hooooo! It only took three 4.5 hour installments spread out over four days (so my hand-claws could turn back into hands between sessions). You can read all about my stenciling process here), but in short: it was well worth all that work and a bag of chips. Behold:
Of course since it’s a subtle tone-on-tone effect, the further away that you get the more – well, subtle – it gets. In person when you stand at the doorway to the office you see pretty feathery texture, but of course in photos it’s somehow MUCH harder to capture. Here’s a shot I snapped during the day (ignore the too-dark chairs, non-permanent lamps, bad leaning frames, too short rug, giant placeholder ottoman, random toy basket, lack of window treatments, etc):
And here’s one at night (again, avoid all the weird we’ll-change-that-later stuff going on). I wish the stencil were more obvious in photos, but in real life, yeah, it’s our favorite thing we’ve done so far. Maybe someday we’ll master the Nikon enough to truly do it justice on film.
Here’s the much requested shot from the dining room, where in person you can still see a soft & pretty tone-on-tone texture (you’d swear it was wallpaper from this distance). But again, in photos it’s nearly impossible to capture. It’s a nice amount of subtle interest beyond the bold teal built-ins and colorful textiles in the dining room. And hopefully when we hang some art and add window treatments in the office it’ll be a good balance between those two rooms.
But let’s get closer again. It’s more fun.
Even closer…
Oh yeah, that’s the stuff.
The writing on the mirrors is our weird to-do list madness. Ignore that too.
But don’t ignore this sweet faced chihuahua who just turned five (five days ago, actually). Burger is always my favorite accessory (tied with the bean of course).
But let’s go back to ignoring stuff. Like the just-for-now chair and too-big ottoman (borrowed from the living room) along with the too small rug. Just figured you guys might appreciate seeing the room from a few different angles (even though the only “finished” things in here are really the light, the desk, and the stencil):
As for the wall color under the chair rail (Moonshine by Benjamin Moore color matched to Olympic no-VOC paint in satin), we’re toying with the idea of going a smidge darker to ground the stenciled upper part and add a tiny tiny bit of dimension (don’t want too much contrast since that might look crazy from the dining room beyond the built-ins). Of course we’ll keep ya posted if we make any changes! The nice thing about stenciling is that any other regular painting project feels like a cake walk by comparison. Haha. I actually wish you guys could all come over and see it in person – it’s so much better than these photos! Who’s down for a quick visit?
Oh but before I go back to staring at the walls with the same expression that I reserve for Eric from True Blood, let’s get into the paint color details, how we did it, and the budget breakdown. As for those paint details, here you go:
- Gray paint for stencil: half tint of Moonshine by Benjamin Moore color matched to Olympic no-VOC paint in a satin finish
- Grellow paint for stencil: Sesame by Benjamin Moore color matched to Olympic no-VOC paint in a semi-gloss finish
Oh and how about a time breakdown? It took 13.5 hours over three evening sessions. Definitely not a quick project, but one that makes you especially proud/excited/relieved/amazed when it’s actually done. As for all of our stenciling tips and techniques, click here for a nice long post all about applying the stencil. Now here’s that budget breakdown for ya:
- Stencil (from here): $54
- Martha Stewart Stencil Adhesive (from Michael’s): $2.99 (with 50% off coupon)
- Foam brushes (from Michael’s): $2.50 (with 50% off coupon)
- Quart of gray paint* for stencil (half tint of Moonshine from Lowe’s): $11
- Grellow paint* for stencil: $0 (leftover from kitchen, but would be $3 for a test pot)
- TOTAL: $70.49
I’ll admit it, it’s definitely not a super cheap-o paint project (which normally run us about $15-30. But to wallpaper the entire room above the chair rail could easily have been five hundred beans or more. And the effect is so amazing that – dare I admit it? – I probably would have paid $150 to get ‘er done. But not a penny more. Haha.
And true to form, we we still have about ten million things on the ol’ to-do list in here (one project at a time = sanity, glorious sanity). So we’ll definitely be tackling these things over time:
- adding window treatments
- painting and reupholstering our desk chairs
- hanging art on the walls (no, the oddly small leaning frames aren’t for keeps)
- finding a more permanent armchair, ottoman, rug, etc (there are lots of placeholders goin’ on)
- replacing the lamps (or reupholstering the shades, not sure yet – but we’ll keep you posted)
Anyone else do any stenciling lately? Or make any home office updates in general? Do you have a special expression that you reserve for Eric (or some other celebrity)? Oh yeah, let’s talk about that. Who’s your famous man (or lady) crush? Any Jake Gyllenhaal ladies here? Matt Damon? Team Edward? Team Angie? When I met John he totally had a Britney Spears calendar… and she was wearing leather bodysuits with sneakers. Le yikes.
Psst – You can read all about my stenciling process & the paint colors that I used here (there’s even an application video).
Update – Wanna know where we got something in our house or what paint color we used? Just click on this button:
The stenciling looks amazing! Definitely worth the time and effort. I love it!!
Woo to the hoo, indeed! It doesn’t seem that long ago that stencils and wallpaper were all thrown out as “tacky” and 80s-ish, but I am super glad they’re coming back. You have done an excellent job! Looks amazing and super-chic!
That came out great. If you had that pattern available in a wall paper, would you have used that instead? Lisa and I would like to do a quatrofoil (sp?) pattern in the dining room, but she thinks it’d be easier to just throw up the paper. Stenciling seems like a big time investment, plus it can be prone to mistakes. Well done though!
I’m not sure actually! I think I’m scared of wallpaper since it’s harder to undo (the stencil is so thinly applied with one coat of paint that it can always be painted over in a few hours to undo it if we grow tired of it). Not that we’ll be doing that anytime soon! Haha.
xo,
s
It’s absolutely beautiful!!! It certainly looks like it was worth it to have a few days of claw hands.
It’s gorgeous! So jealous I can’t do this on my textured walls! I think a darker color below the chair rail would look great, too.
Definitely a Gerard Butler girl over here! That accent just kills me. The hubs is a Carrie Underwood kinda guy.
I love these celeb chats already. So interesting! Even, dare I say it, revealing!
xo,
s
Sherry! Well done!! It looks fantastic and I am so happy that you guys. The color choice is sooooooo….choice.
As for my celebrity crush. Ready? Jimmy Fallon. When I tell people that, they look at me weird. Except my husband. He knows I love a funny guy.
No way! I totally get it! I used to run into him on the streets of NY. Very cute indeed!
xo,
s
Oh. WOW. Be still my heart. I’m getting flustered just thinking about it.
YES to Jimmy Fallon!!! He has the best job in the world, so cute and funny and charming.
omg, YES! his “history of rap” performances did me in. so talented and funny and seems so down to earth.
I LOOOOOVE Jimmy! I think he’s so down to earth. I love that he’s always on Andy Cohen’s show on Bravo, loving all the reality shows (just as I do).
It looks awesome! I love it! Well worth the extra money for the fancy stencil I think. Can’t wait to hear what kitchen counter plans are in the works after seeing what you’ve been pinning over the weekend :)
i LOVE this. Like you, I think it’s my favorite thing you’ve done. :)
Wow, I love how subtle the stencil looks from far away. And, then the up close and personal view is amazing. Great work!
I tackled some painting this weekend. Actually, you helped a little. I saw the pink you used in Clara’s room and found a darker version. http://ourhumbleabowed.wordpress.com/2011/10/03/sonoma-clay-perfect/
As for celebrity crushes, I love me some Ryan Reynolds and Dermot Mulroney. Mmm, mmm.
Love it!! Looks great.
xo,
s
I finally convinced my husband to let me to do some stenciling above our trim in the dining room because of your post. Yours is amazing and im sure you are glad its over with now!
Sherry you did a GRRRRRRREAT job!
Your office is really starting to take shape.
My husband and I currently work from home too. When you spend all day in one room it’s important you love being in it!
Now that it’s over and you love the results, would you say “the prize is worth the process” or ” Bite the bullet” and fork out some $$ for wallpaper?
I’d definitely stick to stenciling over wallpaper since the difference would be more than a little money (the paper I love is always super expensive) and I think reversing a stencil is sooo much easier (it’s so thinly applied with one coat of paint it could be painted right over in an hour for a new look).
xo,
s
It’s gorgeous. I love the pop of yellow. I recently stenciled our powder room, but kind of cheated since I used a small roller. It was very easy and super quick. You can check it out here:
http://oakridgerevival.blogspot.com/2011/03/from-drab-to-fab.html
I LOVE IT!! So pretty! And I’m so jealous it went so fast for you. Haha.
xo,
s
Amazing!! I love the way the stenciling turned out!
Sure I’ll just swing by after work today to check it out. Sound good? Yeah I can just imagine how awesome it looks in person; this is truly an awesome project you’ve done!
Haha, sure! Come on over!
xo,
s
Looks great! I understand how darn tricky it is to capture things on film. I always think my house looks so much better in real life than on my blog, even with a fancy-pants camera and a zillion takes. Sigh.
The close-up shots look great and I can imagine how good it looks from a distance. Definitely worth the effort!!
This. Is. Fabulous. I applaud you on the time spent and perserverance. I just recently made a king sized headboard and stenciled it myself and I thought THAT was a beating. This definitely puts me to shame! Bravo!
Sooo pretty! Congratulations!! Sure it’s worth the grind :)
Fantastic as always! I have been waiting for this post and am just relieved that I can fully concentrate on work now…well at least until 2:30 or 3 ;-)
Gerard Butler, Donald Drapper (no John Hamm, Don Drapper is my jam) and Bradley Cooper!!
Love the stencil thing, you did a great job! I’m so happy you did it cause now I can see how you solve the hanging pictures in the wall problem. See, I always think that most posters or pictures or anything looks weird hanging in a wallpappered (or stenciled, in this case)room because of the pattern. Am I the only one that thinks this?
I think on more high contrast designs that’s probably true – but this is so subtle I think it can handle some understated art. Maybe something black and white like a large scale photo? We’ll have to see where we end up!
xo,
s
Lovely! What a tough job! How did you work around the light switch? Did you make a hole in the stencil adhesive?
I just took off the face plate of the light switch and pressed the stencil over the whole area (so it goes under the plate and looks seamless). I didn’t want to make a hole in my stencil since I have to reuse it over and over again around the room for the pattern!
xo,
s
Awesome! I did some stenciling in my dining room recently. I had a much smaller space to cover and I was so done with it by the end. I can only imagine how drawn out your office job must have felt. It looks great though. Well worth the effort.
Here is mine: http://stayathomewho.blogspot.com/2011/09/wall-stencil-finito.html?m=1
That came out so well! It must have taken a looong time too!
xo,
s
it looks great! stenciling is not one of my favorite tasks but the end result is always rewarding.
I love celeb chat! I’m a huuuuge Ryan Gosling fan. Followed by Jason Segel second.
Looks awesome! Kudos to you for sticking it through till the end. I love how the apple green in the dining room plays with the gray and yellow in the office. Maybe spray that library file thingy a bright pop of apple green?? Or maybe that pops up in the upholstery…
I’m crushing on Channing Tatum. Would you get a load of those lips. I mean, seriously!
That’s so funny- I was just telling John I might spray that thing someday!
xo,
s
Great minds think alike ;)
Oh, and I vote for painting below the chair rail a smidge darker. I think it would make the top half really shine!
So glad to see you’re happy with your stencil project, I had been on the fence about doing a gray-on-gray stencil in my bathroom and this just pushed me over the edge. It’s happening.
Dontcha think you should stencil below the chair rail, too? Kidding.
Bwahaha. So glad you’re kidding.
xo,
s
John Krasinski. I realize he’s off the market now, but he’s tall and has that quirky/goofy vibe which is so attractive. *sigh*
It looks amazing!! It was well worth the wait.
I agree with darker paint underneath the chair rail. Beadboard would look nice there, too!
I love that stencil! SO beautiful and sophisticated. Right on, Sherry! And I love Eric from True Blood too, be still my heart. Boyfriend is a Heidi Klum guy.
Love it! You should be very proud.
it looks perfect! but is it??? i would be afraid to start this project and fudge it up so much that i’d have to repaint an area. are there any faults in the pattern or paint work? any tips for covering small errors? thanks! xo
The stencil is extremely forgiving (since it’s not a rigid geometric like repeating circles or squares it’s really hard for your eye to pick up if a leaf isn’t completely filled in or if your stencil shifted a smidge as you went. So it’s definitely not perfect, but it might take someone twenty minutes to find an imperfection since it’s so organic and subtle!
xo,
s
I actually wish you guys could all come over and see it in person – it’s so much better than these photos! Who’s down for a quick visit? I’m packing my bags now!! ;)
WOW ~ I love it ~ it looks great. You did a great job Sherry. Love the pic of lil Burger.
Happy Belated Birthday Burger =)
This looks amazing! Kudos to you for doing it. I can’t wait to have a house to stencil. Stenciling an apartment just seems like a waste. Especially since we don’t know if we’ll be here for awhile.
Although, I could stencil a huge piece of wood then lean it against my wall …. hrm.
Do you guys have/use Adobe Lightroom?? It can be a lifesaver when it comes to manipulating white balance, exposure, colour balance, etc. in digital photos. I was just thinking it might help you achieve the “this is what it looks like in real life” look in your pics! (and if you do it right, it doesn’t leave your photos looking “photoshopped” either) Of course, I guess an image will always fall short of seeing the real deal! Great job on the stencil! =)
Thanks so much for the tip! I’m not sure that we have Lightroom, but we have Photoshop and have given a few things a try (to no avail). Maybe we’ll have to look into lightroom! Thanks for the tip!
xo,
s
I warn you – Lightroom is a bit addicting once you get into the swing of things!
Lightroom is AMAZING. I totally gave up on Photoshop when I found Lightroom!!
It looks freaking amazing – such patience you must have!
Wow, it looks so beautiful! You’ve made me want to stencil things!
It looks incredible! And I imagine that it makes you very proud to look at it, remember all the hard work, and see the result. Well worth it, IMHO.
Love love love! That might be one of my favorite projects you guys have done as well, though the teal bookshelves always make my heart skip a beat. Totally worth claw hands.
Still haven’t seen True Blood, but I read all of the books in about two weeks (nerd alert), and a huge part of the reason that I read them so quickly is due to dreamy (and terrifying) Eric. Swoon.
My other crush, besides my hot hubs? Ryan Gosling. Can’t help it. He just does something to me.
Oh wow, I want to do something like this now! It is WAY better than wallpaper… last year my mom bought a house with horrible (peeling AND ugly) wallpaper in each and every room. I have been helping her remove it, which has made me decide to NEVER wallpaper anything. Doesn’t mean I can’t have a cute wall pattern like this though!
hope you get to relax those fingers soon! where will the green sofa bed that used to be in the office go?
That’s sitting in the sunroom for now. No idea where he’ll end up for good though!
xo,
s
Love the stencil! That looks like so much work though, it makes me exhausted just thinking about it. I definitely think you should go a smidge darker on the bottom, the stencil looks like it’s floating/flying up there above all of that empty space. A shade or two darker paint underneath would look ah-mazing! Of course I know you two will do what’s right for you though, and of course it will look great, as it always does.
Love it!
This room looks AMAZING! I’m so impressed that you had the patience to work on it for so long. It was worth the effort.
Love the wall decor…great job on the stencil! Are you guys going to put some type of trim on the cabinets (above the doors) where John added the extra height? The blank space looks so needy with all that fancy wall decor….just sayin!
In person it really doesn’t bother us at all (you mainly focus on things on top of the desk and the rich dark wood instead of looking at the desk-head on), but we’re debating some sort of trim or something… perhaps down the line.
xo,
s
It looks fabulous!! One question…where did you get the framed pics behind your computers? I’ve been looking for something just like that for our house.
The frames are from Ikea and the neutral leafy art is something I made in Photoshop (just scanned in a burlap texture for the background and traced the shape of a leaf with the line tool and filled it in with white paint in Photoshop). Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Amazing!! I absolutely love it! But I have to admit, the thought of spending that much time does scare me a bit. I’m hoping to convince my husband to go for some wallpaper in our next house.
Enough of that – more about Eric from True Blood! Talk about amazing! When Melancholia comes to our town, I am definitely going – Alexander in a tux?! *swoon*
Aaaahhh, Eric. Sometimes when he asks permission to enter Sookie’s house I wish he would step right on through my tv…I whisper in my head, “yes, please do come in”.
Haha- oh yes. I have also invited him in. Just in case he couldn’t come visit otherwise…
xo,
s
Love love love it!! It’s looks great. You sure did put in a ton of work, but the fruits if your labor totally paid off.
I’ve been trying to get my living into shape. It was totally a man’s man type of place, but I’m trying to girly it up with taking away too much of the manliness. Baby steps…
http://hisshabbyherchic.com/2011/09/08/living-room-progress/
Those baby steps paid off! So much more inviting!
xo,
s
+1 on painting a darker color below the chair rail! I think that would look great.
My celeb crush will always be Taylor Hanson. Have you seen him lately? He is THE MOST gorgeous human being I have ever seen. (And even better in person!)
I just googled him. Me-ow. Like it.
xo,
s