Okay, I still have Cicada design love in me! ....and I want to share some cool ways to create more with one, favorite stencil design.
Surface design is very personal...and stenciling can be a signature technique where sharing images and the way you print them elevates your design experience. For more printing ideas & printing technique: My Stenciling on Fabric Video is streaming online.
3 more directions the Cicada Stencil has inspired: a collage pin, a bag and a cool evening wrap.
The Pin-
Here is an easy way to build a shaped fabric piece with structure. Using recycle plastic has become more important...so this is a small way to do your part.. 
Starting with my Cicada image printed in metallics on black linen, I cut a curved piece of plastic (from a yogurt container), the shape I want the pin. and added a layer of batting in between. The black linen is wrapped around to the back with curved edges clipped and sometimes afew stitches taken to hold it in place, then fastened with some dabs of craft glue around the edges.
Adding Decorative Elements- I love finishing with bits of this and that....in this case, the Cicada called out for legs ( from knotted rolled elastic), and some found metal pieces from my stash. As you can see, there is a little bit of 'everything metal' to choose from. Mostly I sew (yup, through the plastic where needed) the extras on. You might be adding beads -consider seed beads along your edges. A pin back or stick pin finding can be added to the back: make sure it is glued to the plastic-OR sewn to the fabric. I usually finish with a piece of ultra-suede or leather-cut slightly smaller than my original pattern used to cut the plastic). Playing with some of the variations with printing first can inspire the direction your finishing takes you....Below is the Cicada printed twice, creating a more complex image to start with.
The Bag-
LOVE this BAG!! Here, the Cicada image is integrated into the overall design of the a Raven Bag. After printing the Picket Fence Stencil lightly in the background, the Cicada was printed on top. Dragging a dry brush of white paint over the image was the perfect way to soften it. It is always about the fabric combo...so spending time bringing your favorite pieces can really make this bag personal. The bag can have a longer cross the body strap shoulder strap, multiple pockets and several options for creating a second look in the pattern.
The Evening Wrap-
This synthetic black feels like raincoat fabric and took the painted images beautifully. A partial printing of the Cicada created a beautiful border design here. Fabrics with a smooth surface will yield such different results than textured one...so printing on lots of different types of fabric will build your confidence and mental design file. The Jacquard Lumiere Paints (metallics) are so beautiful to work with...I never tire of the magic that appears when I print.
This piece...which went in the fire...along with the bug pin- were such fun to make and are still with me as I envision what the next variations will look like.
Trust & Love the Make!! Diane
