How to Make a Stencil For a Painting

Stencils are widely used in embroidery, wall décor, and in various other arts and crafts. With a single design stencil, you can form a number of patterns, and that too on either a large or small area.

There may be numerous types of stencils available, but did you know it just as easy to make one? Yes, if you like a specific design, a cartoon character, a symbol, or just anything that you fancy, and if you want to have a stencil of that design, you can make it.

Stencils may be made in simple or complicated design patterns. Of course, the latter are difficult to make and you will need some practice with those. For now, let's learn how to make a stencil for a painting.

• Card Stock
• A picture (for stencil design)
• A scrap board
• Craft knife
• Fine-point permanent marker (black)
• Colored markers

Start the procedure with the picture of the design you want the stencil to be made in. If you don't have one, draw a picture of your choice. You will be using this for the design.

If you are confused, just take a design pattern from one of your dresses, pillow covers, or the bed sheets. Do not go for complex patterns or the ones with a lot of detailing. Any design with disconnected parts is a great choice.

Now the picture is ready to be traced. Take the fine-point permanent marker and trace the picture onto a card stock. Be slow and trace it neatly.

Now, color the card stock with the colors of your choice. This way you will get a fair idea of how your stencil will turn out to be.

Place a scrap board underneath the stencil to prevent the surface from getting damaged. Take a craft knife and cut the stencil, i.e., the card stock. Be very slow and careful while cutting, or else you might get hurt or get an unwanted cut on the stencil.

If that does happen, just tape the spot. Remember, that you have to cut along the outline of the design. Cut it in such a way that the areas which are to be painted are cut out, leaving the rest of the area intact. A little imperfection is just okay while cutting.

Now, just start tracing the pattern on the desired surface with lovely colors. In case of a picture that is very detailed, you can first trace the picture body using the stencil and later do the detailing using a thin brush.

For a bigger picture, you can have multiple stencils covering various parts of the picture. Line up the stencils to create the entire picture.

You can design as many stencils as you want by following the steps mentioned. So, if you are wondering how to make a graffiti stencil, or a stencil of a brand logo for your new bag, or a quote for your t-shirt, or flower wall stencils, you know what to do.

Follow the aforementioned steps and just replace the picture used with the one you want to trace. Making stencils is a popular kids' craft loved and enjoyed by all. You could even teach your kid to make one using the guidelines mentioned here.