Klutz - Stencil Art product reviews

I was so excited to get this to review and have a go at it, it looks so neat and fun to do. At a first glance its such a lovely cover and you can see the dabbers you use with the colours matching the paints. There are 72 stencil shapes which is a-lot to use. Once opening up the cover there is a lovely colourful book on the right with Stencil Art on it, the book looks like the stencils have been used all over it, which makes you think of the possible things you can actually do with this lovely set. On the left hand side there is a What you get page, and you open up that and what do you know all that stuff is right there.

You get 4 8*8 stencils which makes 72 all up as each stencil has a good amount of patterns on each. With those stencils you get a card that matches then and gives you colour options but of course you can change the colours and do a mix and match. Under the stencils are all the dabbers, paints and a black pen for all your crafty needs. Opening up the book you need to read the first pages before doing anything else so I learnt the hard way, about taking care of your dabbers etc not having to wash them. The first lot of pages just explain about the book, things you get, a getting started page and tips and tricks these are important to read. The book is then made up of lots of different pages giving you tasks to do while you learn about your set. Now I didn't do this in the book cause I wanted to put it away for my daughter for xmas so I did this on paper instead. The instructions are easy to understand and young children will need a parent to help them read it.

I love that the dabbers match the paint colours, and putting them back into their space I turned the paint around so when you open it all up the paint and dabbers match above each other, which I like. I do like the idea of dabbers and paint matching then you can't really mix them up. The only thing I can think of that could improve it is the ink pad been longer or fatter to make them bigger for the dabbers cause as hard as you try its easy for the dabber to slip into another mixing the colours up, so this could be interesting for my 5 year old, but I reckon she will love it anyway. There are so many ways you can work with the ink, dabbing it over the stencils or wiping it about, not using stencils at all so making your own pattern. I have found using baby wipes are great for cleaning the stencils up.

This would make a great gift for a child or adult that loves crafts and making their own patterns, the price isnt really in my price range but I would pay it for a awesome gift. My daughter is going to love this. Its worth it, will be interesting to see how long the inks actually last though with a 28 page book and then free styling on your own paper aswell. The dabbers will be useful once its all over with actual paint or getting more ink. The stencils can be used with another craft idea too like a roller and paint. Lots of fun to be had

If you are stuck for Christmas ideas for your artistic children then this is a must. Its such a versatile package. Its great for children who are just learning how to express themselves in pictures and shows them how to expand and grow there figures. Also would be fantastic for the older artist as it is one of those items that if your willing to go that extra mile it will deliver.

My two year old and four year old love it. I was so impressed that my baby could use and thought right this is only for little kids but then my husband had a play with it and its amazing what you can accomplish with a little fore thought. He thinks its fantastic.

So simple to use, choose a stencil and then a colour and 'dab dab dab'. Then if you wish add highlights to it or expand on your creation. To get a darker even colour instead of dabbing just draw on the stencil. Actually turns out really well and looks great. Both my girls created some fantastic pictures from it and fingers crossed they win the colouring competition they are entering.

Only issue with it is the colours are very close together and it is easy to miss your target and cross contaminate and get some other colour on your stick. The book does inform you of remedies of how to rectify it but would of been nicer if the ink pads where bigger and maybe had something in between them. I am also a little worried how well the pads will last after continuous use especially if you decide to rub instead of dab. Don't think that it will be a issue for a while though.

Love the variety of stencils you receive and the book shows some great examples and what the stencils can lead to. So simple to use even a baby can do it. A really great idea.