How to make spray paint stencils

Making spray paint stencils can allow the artist to reproduce images, be they photo-realistic or cartoonish, onto almost any solid surface. It is an ideal art form for designing custom T-shirts, for painting wall murals, for decorating furniture or other objects, and so on. Using any number of colors you can create anything from a simple, one layer design to a complex, multi-layer image. Only requiring a few inexpensive supplies, even a beginner can produce impressive work right away.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• And X-acto knife with replacement blades
• Heavy stock, matte finish photo paper
• A computer program that allows you to put an image in high-contrast (even Microsoft Word is capable of doing this)
• Coins, fishing weights, or other small, heavy objects.
• Scotch tape
• Spray paint
• Scissors

1. Choosing the image you want to work with is an important decision because certain images do not translate well to stencil making. These include images that rely on extensive shading to make them look convincing. For example, you would have a hard time making a stencil of ocean waves because there is very little concrete form to such an image, and when put into high contrast it would no longer look like the original image. Silhouettes of objects are the easiest, although most other images can be successfully reproduced by an experienced stencil artist.
2. Using a photo editing program, or even just the photo toolbar in Word or other word processing programs, put the image into high contrast. This means that if the image is in black and white, every pixel of the the image will either be black and white - no grays or intermediate tones. This creates the ideal stencil situation because it takes away all the guesswork when it comes to actually cutting the stencil - you simply trace along the lines and cut out the black pieces. If you want to create a more realistic looking stencil, put a color image in high contrast. This will give you anywhere from 2 to 10 or so layers. The number of copies of the image you print out corresponds to the number of layers of color you want in the final product. For a simple black and white stencil, you will only need to print out one copy. For a 4 layer stencil print out 4 copies, and so on. Print them onto heavy stock, matte finish photo paper. It's thin enough to cut easily, but sturdy enough to stand up over time.
3. Start cutting. Using an X-acto knife, carefully cut out the areas on the printed image where you will late want the spray paint to penetrate. For example, if you are making a one color stencil of a traditional "smiley face", you would cut out the circles of the eyes, the crescent of the mouth, and the circle which define the head. When cutting out outlines, such as the circle around the head, you will have to make one cut on the outside of the line, and one cut on the inside, so that a thin strip of paper representing the line is removed. MAKE SURE to leave little connectors between the inside of the face and the outside of the face so that the face will remain attached to the piece of paper. This will not be a problem when you are cutting out simple silhouettes, but, especially when you cut more complex or multi-layer images, you will encounter "islands" of color which, if not attached to the rest of the stencil with little bridges of paper, will be completely cut off and fall out of the paper. If you accidentally cut an island out of the paper, you can reattach it with tiny strips of tape.
   If you are making a multi-layer stencil, you should only cut one color out of each piece of paper. For example, if you are making a stencil of a red rose with a green stem in a blue vase, then on one piece of paper you would only cut out the red, which will serve as the rose flower. On another piece of paper you would only cut out the green of the stem, and so one. You will align these multiple layers later, producing one cohesive image.
4. Once you have cut all of your stencils, it's time to paint. For a one-layer stencil, simply lay the stencil directly onto the desired surface, placing coins or other small weights on the edges of the parts you cut out, to prevent the stencil from lifting up while you spray it. If this happens, the edges of the image can get misted by paint, making the image look "dirty". Once you've set up your weights, lay down paper around the stencil so you don't get any paint where you don't want it, and spray the stencil with paint from directly above and about a foot away. Do this slowly and carefully, making sure not to use too much paint. Excessive paint use can cause the paint to run or bleed, and will blur the lines you carefully cut. Remember, if you accidentally use too little paint, you can always add more once it dries.
   If you are using a multi-layer stencil, set up your first layer in the same way, but make sure to draw registration marks at the corners of the piece of paper. Using a pen you can simply trace lines around the four corners of the paper. These will act as guides that tell you exactly where to lay the subsequent layers of the stencil, so that they all superimpose on top of each other and eventually create one cohesive image. When using multiple layers, make sure that the paint used for one layer is dry before setting up the stencil of the next layer on top of it.

Tips & Warnings

• Start with simple images, preferably consisting of only one layer. Once you're confident with the process, try making a multi-layer stencil. You will be making astoundingly realistic looking stencils before you know it.
• MAKE SURE to use spray paint in a well ventilated area, preferably outside. If this is not possible, buy a mask with a NIOSH filter in it. This is available at most hardware stores, and will protect you from harmful fumes.
• When working inside or on/around surfaces that you want to keep paint away from, it helps to lay newspaper around the area in which you will be painting. I often lay paper all around the surface I will be painting to ensure a clean, professional look. This may seem like a nuisance, but its much better than getting spray paint mist on the carpet or a smudge of paint on the collar of the shirt you're trying to decorate.
• If you're painting on a non-horizontal surface, such as a wall, metal weights will obviously be of no use in holding down the edges of the stencil. In this case, use tiny pieces of tape to hold the edges against the wall.
• When painting on textiles, avoid using metallic or neon spray paint. These tend to come off or fade significantly in the wash. For that matter, always wash your stenciled shirts inside-out, or preferably hand wash them. This decreases fading.
• When choosing your paint colors, make sure that their brightness relative to one another corresponds to the brightness relationships of the original high-contrast image. For example, if you're stenciling an image of a face with pale skin and dark eyes, make sure that the paint you use to color the eyes is darker than that which you use to color the face. The individual colors you use don't matter - even if you give the face green skin and black eyes it will look convincing. But if the color of the eyes is darker than that of the face, you will have reversed the brightness relationship of the two colors, and your final image will look like a photo negative. This is especially important when choosing which color to paint on the surface you wish to decorate. If the original image is of a dark tree against a light background, make sure that the color you use to paint the tree is darker than that of the surface you're painting on.
• Spray paint fumes are extremely toxic. Make sure to work in a very well ventilated area or to wear a mask with a NIOSH filter.