Video Tutorial for DIY Personalized Monogram Beverage Coaster Stencil Project

Personalize your plain beverage coasters with a stencil in this week's DIY stenciling project. All you need are some stencils, acrylic paint, and a set of drinking coasters from your favorite home decor site or store! This project works well for wood, marble, or cork coasters. You will need the following:

3" Simple Script Letter Set
Nador Designer Craft Stencil
Repositionable Spray Adhesive
Americana Acrylic Craft Paints
Craft Stencil Brush for every color
Americana Gloss Finish Acrylic Sealer
Low Grit 220 Sandpaper

Begin by lightly sanding the surface of each coaster. This will remove and protective top coat from the coaster and roughen the surface so that paint sticks to the surface easier. Wipe away any dust with a damp rag before continuing. Once the coasters are prepared, use a coat of Repositionable Spray Adhesive on the back of the stencil and set aside for 30-60 seconds before placing on the coaster.

Prepare the brush before stenciling. To stencil you want to use a dry brush painting technique. Do this by swirling the flat tipped stencil brush into the paint on a paper plate. Once the bristles are nice and loaded with paint, swirl the excess paint off of the brush onto a paper towel so that only the lightest amount comes off of the brush. It is important to use the dry brush technique each time you load paint onto your brush because it prevents paint bleed beneath the edges of the stencil so that you always get a crisp design.

Once the Repositionable Spray Adhesive has become tacky after 30-60 seconds, press the stencil to the surface of the coaster. Use the Nador stencil design as the background. When the stencil is in place use Frog Tape Painters Tape to mark off any close edges of the coaster to prevent paint from getting on the sides. After 2-4 light coats of paint you should get an even build of color on your pattern.

Once you have stenciled the background onto each stencil it's time to stencil the monogram letters.The font used in this tutorial is 3" Simple Script. Make sure you have a new brush or thoroughly cleaned and dried the brush from the background before you begin. Center the monogram stencil, mask the edges using painter's tape, and begin swirling in black paint using the dry brush techniques. After 2-4 coats of paint you should have full coverage.

After stenciling each coaster use a coat or two of Americana Gloss Finish Acrylic Sealer to protect the paint design on the coaster surface. The gloss will give the coasters a nice shine to them.