How to Make Custom Stencils on Wood.

I had seen an instructable made a couple years ago by abillionalphacentaurians on how to use glue as a stencil Here and I wanted to try it, After trying it a couple different ways I came up with a new method (new to me at least).

Lets begin shall we!

Step 1: Supplies and Equipment.

- Drawn or printed stencil of your choosing

- X-acto hobby knife

- Masking tape

- Microfiber cloth

- Cabot stain + sealer wood finish of chosen color

- Aleene's Original Tacky Glue (I used Wacky tac liquid sticky note glue but it's discontinued now)

- Wilton gel food coloring

- Cotton swabs ( Q-Tips)

- And of course your canvas

Step 2: Laying the Stencil Out.

I started with a 4x6x10 piece of reclaimed pine, sanded smoothie and wiped clean of dust. Then laid down a layer of masking tape, and used a thin layer of Aleene's Glue on the back of my stencil and centered it on top of the masking tape, then using the x-acto knife to cut the stencil out and pealed the tape off from around the stencil. (You need to cut completely through the stencil and the masking tape.)

Step 3: Coloring It In.

I forgot to get a picture of the staining process, so I'll explain it!

Warning: The Cabot stain is thick and it won't run under the tape, if you use another type of stain you may not have the same outcome.

Just wipe the stain on over the tape and let it soak in for a couple of minutes wipe it off with the microfiber cloth be careful not to peel the tape up, I let the piece dry over night. The next morning I peeled the tape off of the areas I wanted to color in first, I used a Q-tip to "paint" the food coloring on. After the food coloring has dried completely, I finished up with a couple coats of clear acrylic coating.

If you have any questions or comments please feel free to leave them in
the comments section below, I enjoy hearing from you guys so don't be afraid to post!