How to Cut Your Own Stencil
Posted by JIM RANDOLPH
Have you ever needed a unique stencil in short notice? Instead of ordering a custom cut stencil from us you could go the DIY route with our heated cutting tool and a sheet of blank mylar. All the tools used in this tutorial are listed below.
10 mil Blank Mylar Stencil Sheets
Start with a printout of your design. Spray the paper with your repositionable spray adhesive then wait 30-60 seconds before pressing a sheet of 10 mil mylar to the surface.
With a permanent marker trace the outside of the printed design. Be sure not to smudge the marker as you stencil. Once you have traced the entire design peel the mylar off your paper printout.
Take your mylar with the traced design and put it on a piece of glass. An aluminum cookie sheet would work too. This will protect the surface that you are working on from the tip of the heated cutting tool. When you plug the heated cutting tool in it will begin to reach a hot temperature capable of cutting through the mylar very quickly so make sure that you don’t leave any heated components resting on any delicate surfaces. Once it reaches the proper temperature, start cutting along your traced lines.
As you cut along you should be completing full rotations around the outside of each shape and letter. This will ensure that each letter & object of the design is fully cut out of the sheet of mylar. Once you’re done cutting, carefully remove any stubborn pieces of mylar that are hanging in there using your hands and the cutting tool if you missed any spots.
Once your stencil is complete you are ready to transfer the design to any surface you desire. Your stencil can be used with stencil brushes, paint rollers, permanent markers, ink rollers, dry erase markers and so much more. Use more repositionable spray adhesive on the back of your stencil, wait 30-60 seconds, and press it to your surface. For this tutorial we’re using a whiteboard chalk pen.
Thanks for checking out this tutorial! For more information or to browse our products please visit https://www.stencilease.com/ and check out the video below.
