The latest from the Stencil Maker

How Much Detail Should I Include in my Stencils?
You’ve got the portrait about right, but you can’t really see that dimple in the shadow of his face. How much detail does a stencil need to include? In the end it comes down to taste. But there are some aesthetic and some practical considerations. I like the graphic look of a stencil. I like…
Removing Extra Bridges from a Stencil
You paint a stencil with bridges in it, and everything is cool until you get to the darkest layer, and WOW—those bridges really stand out. They stand out because the surface under the bridge is white, and when you paint black next to white, the contrast is really distracting. Take this example of an image…
How to Paint any Stencil on Any Surface Using Just Black and White Paint
Today’s Bay Stencil Challenge was to paint any stencil on any surface using just black and white paint. So we chose some color stencils like Wonder Woman and the Police Call Box, and we put them up on light- and dark-colored surfaces, as well as a bright red surface. We practiced with these stencils, learned…
Filling In Gaps Left by Bridges
Most stencils need to have at least a few bridges. Without bridges, the islands in the stencil just fall out when you cut them. And when you paint a stencil with bridges, there are going to be gaps in the paint where the bridges were. You can address this by eliminating the bridges in the…
Sure Cuts a Lot : Import SVGs from Bay Stencil for Perfect Multi-layer Stencils
With dozens of capable craft cutters on the market, we’re fortunate that one application can support so many of them. Whether you have a Brother ScanNCut or a discontinued KNK Zing or one of the oh-so-capable Silver Bullet line, you can use Sure Cuts a Lot to cut your perfect stencil. If you start with…
Use Lightburn to cut Bridged SVG Stencils from Bay Stencil
Just a few years ago, it was impossible to imagine that laser cutters would be so fast, so accurate and so inexpensive that you can have one in your garage or craft room. And yet, here they are. You may have opted for an industry-leading Epilog Laser. Or you may have bought in at a…
Making Stencils with Silhouette Cameo or Silhouette Portrait
The Cameo and Portrait from Silhouette are familiar fixtures on the craft cutting scene. The lightweight, portable Portrait is controlled by the same software as the larger and more capable Cameo: Silhouette Studio. But Silhouette Studio is licensed software, and both cutters can also be drive by Silhouette Go on an iPad or the same…
Make a Stencil for Cricut using Bay Stencil and Cricut Design Space
The Cricut line of machines is amazing. For a few hundred bucks, you can put an iPad-controlled industrial-grade CNC cutter in your craft room or garage. The Cricut Explore series, and the Cricut Maker are simply excellent tools for cutting stencils out of any suitable stencil material, including vinyl, mylar, or card stock. Bay Stencil…
Vector Files for Stencil Cutting
If you’re cutting a stencil by hand, it doesn’t matter whether you have a vector or a raster file. But when you cut with a machine (like a Cricut or a Silhouette Cameo), you definitely want a vector file. For many of these machines, it’s possible to upload a raster file to their design program,…
Spray Paint Caps and Can Pressure for Stencils
So much of what’s known and the standard applications for spray paint materials is obscured by jargon. Here’s a breakdown on caps and can pressures for the rest of us. If you’re in a hurry and just want to know what kind of can and cap to buy to use with your stencil, it’s easy:…