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How to Make Multi-Page Stencils

If you're making a banner or other large-scale decoration and you want to stencil a design on it, you may have to create a stencil that is much bigger than a single page. What makes this more complicated is when you want to use a material like card stock or cardboard that can't go through a printer. Most graphics programs can print images over many pages, but if you're uncomfortable with the technology or prefer the control and artistry of creating your stencil by hand, you can blow up a small image by hand into a huge stencil.

Things You'll Need

  • Card stock
  • Pencil
  • Ruler
  • Original image
  • Craft knife
  • Masking tape
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Instructions

    • 1

      Lay out sheets of card stock to form a rectangle the size you want the final stencil to be. Count how many rows and columns you need to form that size. Gather the card stock back up.

    • 2

      Draw straight pencil lines on the original image to divide it into a grid containing the right number of rows and columns. Make sure the proportion of the rows' height to the columns' width matches the proportions of the card stock you are using. Label the columns with letters and the rows with numbers.

    • 3

      Draw the image fragment in the upper left section of the grid onto a full sheet of card stock. Label the card stock with the number and letter of the grid section. Repeat to create one sheet of card stock corresponding to every grid section.

    • 4

      Assemble the large stencil by arranging the card stock sheets into rows and columns according to the numbers and letters they are labeled with. Tape the card stock grid together into one large rectangle using masking tape.

    • 5

      Cut along the lines with a craft knife to cut out the stencil.

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