Introduction: Stickers From Your Doodles and Sketches
Make stickers quickly from your sketches. I love to sketch a lot. These days, I like to do a lot of sketch and doodle "jams". I start with a pen or pencil, put on my favourite music and then just let my ideas flow. I often record these live on Periscope so check it out! By turning them into stickers, you can really decorate your objects and interiors. The stickers really give a strong edge and also bright colors such as this lemon yellow sticker really "pops" out!
Magic :)
Step 1: Materials and Tools Needed...
Materials Needed -
- Vinyl sticker sheet (color of your choice) - One sided sticky sheet - Drawing materials
Tools Needed - - paper/pen Vinyl cutter, ie Roland etc. Perspex to stick your design onto Camera or scanner Software- Inkscape or Illustrator etc / gimp.
Step 2: Do Your Sketch!
So whatever you like to draw, just go for it. Here is a doodle I made a few evenings ago. I make sure that the contrast is high.
I only needed to take a photo of it using my Smartphone.
It does the job no problem from what we need to do next...
Step 3: Set Up the Image for the Vinyl Cutter
There are some things you need to to do "tell" the vinyl cutter where to cut.
You can see in this first image, I simplified the sketch using the GIMP software,
Sometimes simplification is good, if we look at an image with too much going on, it will lose its power. By simplifying the elements in this scene, it gives more graphic impact.
I then use the free application Inkscape (you can also use Illustrator to do this).
You import the jpeg image into Inkscape and you need to use the "trace bitmap" tool.
Path>Trace Bitmap. Using brightness cutoff and update, this usually works fine.
This will then turn the image into a vector image so that that vinyl cutter will read it.
Depending on how your Vinyl cutter is set up, you will need to make sure that it will "know" where to cut.
In this case using the Roland Camm-1 Servo, you can see that I had to take out the FILL and just have an outline of 0,02mm. You need to check how your Vinyl cutter is setup. If you are using one at a local FabLab and Makerspace, ask one of the people there....
Step 4: Set Up the Vinyl Cutter Itself and Cut
Feed your Vinyl sticker into the cutter. Then set it up.
Again, depending on the machine and how it has been setup, you should ask someone at the location that you are using it at, for example at your local FabLab or Makerspace.
It is fairly easy once you start. You usually just need to tell the Vinyl cutter is set as "piece!" if you are using a cutoff sheet and also that the rollers are placed over your sheet.
Furthermore, make sure that the size of your sheet, matches the size of the graphic you are going to print! If not, the final result will be too large or too small!
Step 5: Push and Peel
Take your cut sheet,
Get the single sided sticky paper.
Put this paper over your vinyl cut, press down all areas. I often use a ruler to make sure it really pushed down.
Then carefully peel the single sided sticky sheet off the Vinyl cut. The cut part of the Vinyl with the graphic, should peel off the with single sided sticky paper. If parts will not peel off, you can induce them to by pressing that area down again and peeling in a different direction.
Once you have peeled it off, you now must press the single sided sticky paper with the Vinyl cut onto the surface that you want to put the graphic onto. Again, you can induce it sticking onto the surface if if is not peeling, by redoing the area and peeling back in a slightly different direction.
You should now have your sticker on the surface of your choice. Any pieces that came off with the peel that were parts of the "negative space" you can take this off with an exacto knife.
When it is all complete, make sure that the sticker is fully stuck onto the surface by pressing down on it firmly.
Then, you have your nice design.
Step 6: Go Further
It is really exciting now!
Kepp making more drawings and doodles, decorate your laptop, your smartphones, your life! :)
Check this one, I made for the back of my laptop!
Check out more stuff on my art process at and the blog post and video that accompanies this Instructable -