Designing a set of custom tshirts with a custom stencil from Stencilease.com is the easiest way to create your own shirts for your next event! In this tutorial we show you how to stencil a clever design onto a set of matching t shirts for your upcoming family reunion!
For this tutorial you will need:
Custom Stencil Design – https://bit.ly/2PmFuMC
Stencil Brush – https://bit.ly/2Bx8V6a
Americana Fabric Medium – https://bit.ly/2DKkc4p
Americana Acrylic Paint – https://bit.ly/2POD1GS
Stencilease Repositionable Spray Adhesive – https://bit.ly/2OTuV3g
Start off by designing your stencils in the Stencil Ease “Design Your Own Custom Stencil” App right here. If your stencil will use a variety of fonts and font sizes you will need to make separate stencils using this application. Our design features the words “Country Road, Take Me Home” on the back and “Smith Family Reunion 2018″ on the front. The font on the back of the t shirt is 1.5″ height and 1” height on the front, both using the rustic font. The alignment is centered and we selected the 10 mil mylar material to make repeating the design easier with an easier to move stencil. Place your order then go pick up your t shirts while your custom stencils are cut and shipped.
When your stencils arrive you will be ready to stencil your shirts. The first step is to cut out a piece of cardboard to stick in your shirt to keep the fabric flat and in place as you stencil. Use Repositionable Spray Adhesive on the surface of your cardboard before putting it in your shirt. The Repositionable Spray Adhesive will keep the shirt from shift on the surface of the cardboard. With your t shirt in place, spray the back of your first stencil. We’re going to start by stenciling the front of our t shirts with the “Smith Family Reunion 2018” stencil. Give the Spray Repositionable Spray Adhesive 30 seconds to become tacky before putting it in the shirt and pressing it flat. Measure to place.
Once you have prepared your stencil surface you are ready to start painting. Mix your Acrylic Paint with Americana Fabric Painting Medium 2:1 on a paper plate. Once the Fabric Painting Medium is thoroughly mixed into your paint, begin swirling your flat tipped stencil brush into the paint until your brush bristles are loaded. Take your loaded stencil brush over to a piece of paper towel and swirl out the excess paint until the bristles feel dry to the touch. This dry brush technique is the key to stenciling a crisp design without paint bleeding beneath the stencil design.
With your stencil brush properly loaded with paint, start swirling the color through the stencil design. Make sure you stencil onto the edges of the design to ensure there are crisp details on each letter. After stenciling one light coat of color, pass through a second time for full coverage. This assists you in using the proper amount of amount of paint rather than using too much from the start and getting paint bleed through your design. After stenciling the back of the t shirt, gently lift your stencil, remove the cardboard, and set the shirt aside to dry while you put the cardboard in your next shirt to stencil. Center your stencil on the front of the next t shirt, press to the surface, and repeat the process. You can continue repeating this stencil on the backs of your t shirts until they have all been stenciled.
Once you have stenciled the front of all your shirts it’s time to stencil the back of the t shirts with the larger “Country Roads, Take Me Home” stencil design. Start with the first t shirt you stenciled so that the front is dry. Stick your piece of cardboard into the shirt and flatten out the back against the tacky surface. Spray the back of the next stencil with Repositionable Spray Adhesive and give it 30 seconds to become tacky before pressing it to the center of the shirt. Just like before, stencil 1-3 coats of paint through the stencil using the dry brush technique. Anytime you reload paint onto your brush, be sure to swirl the excess of until the bristles are dry to the touch before swirling into your design. Once you get full coverage, repeat the step for the rest of your t shirts.
After a little work you will have a custom family reunion t shirt for the whole family. It is the perfect way to commemorate family gatherings both big and small. If you have any extra helpers you can employee them to stencil the fronts of t shirts as you stencil the back! Just have another stencil brush on hand so you can stencil your shirts in double time!
If you have any more questions or wish to browse our products, please visit https://www.stencilease.com/ and check out the video below!
