I tried a new stencil technique that adds gorgeous detail to furniture. You may have seen furniture with this technique online and like me, itching to give it a try. I decided to start with a smaller piece to get some practice and I can't believe how easy it is. So I thought I'd share a tutorial in case you want to try it too and did it on Mom's favorite chair makeover with a raised stencil design.

Chair Makeover With Raised Stencil Tutorial

This chair belonged to my Mother and she was so proud of her thrifty find during a shopping trip with her sister. It was one of her first purchases after Dad passed away and she moved into an apartment. I think she paid something like $4 for it. She paired it with a sofa table and used it every night to put rollers in her hair and every morning to do her hair and makeup.

Sadly, seven years later we moved that chair into her room in a secured dementia unit at a designated assisted living facility. It was such a depressing place and in an attempt to inject some personality and charm into that dreary room, I gave her chair a makeover.


When we moved her again a few years later to a long-term care facility I noticed the chair had suffered some damage and was no longer safe to sit in. I brought it home to repair and there it sat.


After she passed I put the chair aside with the intention of giving it a makeover one day to use as a prop for my furniture makeover photos. That day has finally arrived and it feels like a piece of Mom is and will always be hanging out with me on the blog.


Before I get into the how-to, today is one of my favorite days of the month. It's Furniture Fixer Upper Day where myself and five talented furniture painting friends come together to breath new life into six pieces of furniture. Links to all the makeovers are included at the bottom of this post.

For last months challenge, I transformed a plain wood dresser that had been in my family for over 30-years with a Geometric Stencil Makeover.

I've included affiliate links in this post so you can see what products I used or recommend for this project. See my disclosure policy.

How to add a raised stencil to furniture

I used the same floral stencil that I used on the pretty Mint Green Nesting Tables and Antique Wash Stand makeovers.

Apply the stencil

1. Spray stencil adhesive onto the back of the stencil and wait about a minute before setting it onto the furniture.
2. Depending on the pattern, stencil from the center outward. I didn't because I placed the floral pattern randomly.
3. Apply embossing plaster with a putty knife and spread it across the stencil evenly. I used a light creamed honey embossing plaster but it comes in multiple colors.
4. Remove the stencil and wait until it hardens a bit before applying the next stencil.
5. Wipe the back of the stencil with a wet rag or baby wipes to remove excess embossing plaster.
6. Once the stencil is finished, let it cure overnight to completely harden.
7. Sand the embossed stencil smooth with a sanding sponge to remove any clumps (like the ones along the top rail in the photo below). 

Paint the raised stencil

The goal with a raised stencil is to enhance the raised details. To do that you want to paint the piece in two colors; a dark base coat and a light top coat that will be distressed to show the dark color underneath. This is how I painted mine...

1. Because my chair had already been painted, I chose a dark charcoal Trigger Metallic Accent Cream (not an affiliate link) by Country Chic Paint. It dries fast and rock hard, making it the perfect base for distressing. With the accent cream, you must have a painted base that has dried at least 12 hours.
2. You could use dark chalk paint for the base color but you'll need to let it dry thoroughly for good adhesion when distressing.
3. For the top coat, I used Simplicity White chalk paint also by Country Chic Paint. 

Wet distress technique

The wet distress technique is perfect for distressing furniture indoors because there is no dust, unlike using sandpaper. It's also a great option for distressing pieces with a dark painted base because it will not sand down to the bare wood. Here's how you do it...