Create the design. The punk rock movement used very simple designs meant to capture people's attention. Remember, the design has to be cut into a sheet of thin plastic. Greater detail requires more cutting. Use the silhouette of common objects such as a question mark or a dollar sign. Slogans were also common in punk rock stencil art. Create short slogans that make people pay attention to the image such as "fight the power" or "hard core."
Determine the stencil's size. Stencils can be created in any size. However, the larger the stencil, the more difficult it is to handle. Ideally a stenciled image should be large enough to see from a distance. If using the stencil on cardboard, the size should not exceed 24 by 36 inches. The stencil's cutout should have at a 3-inch border around the image to prevent over-spray.
Purchase the stencil blank. The strongest material used for stencils is plastic. The strongest plastic available is polycarbonate. Purchase a piece of 1/32-inch-thick clear polycarbonate sheet cut to the predetermined stencil size. Do not exceed this thickness. Otherwise, cutting will be difficult.
Remove the protective cover from the sheet plastic. Polycarbonate comes with a peel-off protective backing on both sides of the sheet. Peel the backing from both sides.
Draw the image onto the stencil. Use a grease pencil. The grease pencil will not permanently adhere to sheet plastic and can be easily wiped off if a mistake is made. Use a steel ruler to create straight lines. Curved lines can be drawn by hand.
Cut out the stencil. Place the blade tip of a utility knife on one of the lines being cut out. Pull the blade's tip along the line, applying pressure to the knife. The polycarbonate sheet is thin enough to cut through easily. However, it will require at least two passes with the blade tip to cut completely through the sheet. After cutting out each area, remove the cutout section from the stencil. Repeat this process for each cutout until the stencil is complete.
Test the stencil. Place the stencil over a piece of paper. Use a can of automotive spray paint to create the image. Hold the can's nozzle 6 inches above the stencil. Quickly move the nozzle left to right, across the stencil's surface, applying a thin coat of paint. After the paint has been applied, remove the stencil. Lay the stencil down on its unpainted side. Check the image.