A Fun, Easy Trick to Update Nearly Anything

There are some things in your home that are just hard to use for decorating. They're not colorful, they clash with your décor, they're a weird shape, they don't look natural—some of those items should be packed up and donated or sold, but some of them you have to have for your home office, kitchen, or house cleaning.

Jen at I Heart Organizing ran into exactly this conundrum: a plain gray file cabinet she needed in her office but definitely didn't look interesting compared to the rest of the room. Her trick is one you can use for a lot of different items, and the result is fantastic!

Even if you last saw a stencil in grade school, you can do this project. It's easy and straightforward. A simple project with great results? Sounds like a winner!

Here's a quick guide to updating your furniture with stenciling:

1. Tape the stencil down with painter's tape. The object is to keep it from sliding, which would make your stencil overlap in odd ways and ruin the paint job.
2. Paint over the stencil. The fastest way is a roller, but you could certainly sponge or brush, as well. Don't overload your tool with paint, though—paint globs are not a good look!
3. Remove the stencil slowly. Too fast and any wet paint will get messed up, possibly beyond repair.

Jen recommends letting the stenciled furniture dry and cure for a while before you add anything to it to encourage the paint to last longer. The result is beautiful and a big improvement!