Step by Step

1. Prepare Work Surface

You will need a work surface of approximately 3' x 3' for cutting your stencil, and a well-ventilated area covered with newspaper or a drop cloth to paint your dresser.

2. Cut Stencils

Photocopy the artwork you intend to use onto several sheets of 8 1/2" x 11" or 11" x 17" white paper. Cut out all the shapes in the design with scissors. (Note: When cutting the design out of paper, do not cut out the eyes in animal shapes, or the holes in the flowers.)

Roll out approximately 12" of contact paper, plastic-side down, taping the edges of the contact paper to your work surface if it starts to roll up. Set several paper cut-out shapes on the contact paper, design-side down, and trace around the shapes with pencil. Cut the shapes from the contact

paper with scissors. To cut out a hole in the center of a flower or the eye in an animal, fold the contact paper where the hole will be and cut a half-moon shape. Repeat until you have traced and cut all the shapes from the contact paper.

3. Prepare Dresser

Remove the knobs from your dresser and, in an outdoor, ventilated area, spray paint the dresser knobs white. With the drawers out of the dresser, paint a coat of white latex primer on the drawers with the paint roller. Let the paint dry, and wash out the paint roller and tray. Paint a coat of white semigloss latex paint on the drawers. Let the paint dry. Paint a second coat, if needed, and wash out the paint roller and tray. Let the paint dry overnight. (Note: It’s important to let the dresser dry overnight; if you don't, the contact-paper stencils might peel off the paint when you remove them later.)

4. Assemble Stencils and Print

Keeping the drawers out of the dresser, tape the sides, tops, and bottoms of each drawer with painter’s tape. Put the drawers back in the dresser, but leave them all open about 1". Tape the sides of the drawers together with painter's tape to stabilize them – otherwise they may shift while applying stencils and painting.

Loosely tape the stencils in place with transparent tape to make sure that they all fit together nicely. When you are happy with the placement of the stencils, start to peel the backing off the largest pieces, and press them to the front of the drawers. (Note: It is important to peel the transparent tape off of the stencil before peeling off the paper backing. Any tape hanging off the edge of a stencil will become part of the stencil design.) Once all the large stencils have been placed on the drawers, fill the spaces in between with the smaller pieces. When a portion of a stencil runs off the edge of a drawer, fold the excess over the edge, and press it into place. Avoid putting a delicate part of the stencil (such as a leg or an antler) across a break between two drawers – this will increase the chance of the paint bleeding under the stencil in that area. You may have extra pieces left over, or you may need to cut out more shapes to fill in spaces. When all the stencils are assembled, make sure they are fully adhered to the surface of the drawers by pressing over them again with your hands.

Scoop several tablespoons of yellow latex paint onto an artist’s palette or into the paint tray. Push the roller through the paint to coat it evenly. With the paint roller, paint over and between the stencils. Let the paint dry, and paint a second coat. If the paint is still translucent, add a third coat. Allow the paint to dry to the touch, and peel off the stencils and painter’s tape. (Note: If the yellow paint bleeds under the stencil,

it may be necessary to touch up the white areas with a small (1/8") paintbrush and the white semigloss paint.)

5. Clean Up

Discard the used stencils. Wash the brush, roller, and paint tray thoroughly with water, and let them dry completely before using again.