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Today I’m going to show you how to make DIY reusable stencils with your Cricut cutting machine. If you want to know how to make vinyl stencils with your Cricut be sure to see my post here.
Reusable stencils are great for stenciling furniture, floors, walls, and anywhere you want to paint the same design multiple times.
But instead of being limited to stencils that are available for sale, you can make your very own. Which means the possibilities are endless!
Plus I have four designs you’re more than welcome to use. See the bottom of this post for all the details on swiping them.
Let’s get to it.
DON’T FORGET TO PIN IT
Supplies Needed To Make Reusable Stencils
- Stencil Sheets OR
- Laminator and Laminating Sheets
- A way to cut your stencils (I Use a Cricut Explore)
- Elmers Adhesive Spray
- Sponge for Painting (I Love These)
- A design to stencil. I have four you can use available in my Resource Library -details are at the bottom of this post
Best Material For Reusable Stencils
So you can buy handy dandy reusable stencil sheets made out of mylar. They come in 6 mil thickness and worked very well with the Cricut and with painting.
Or you can try laminate sheets. I was on Pinterest one day and saw a Silhouette blogger made stencils with laminate sheets. I thought this was genius so I dug out my laminator and gave it a try for myself.
After I figured out the correct settings for Cricut it worked like a charm.
Using Laminate Sheets
If you have a laminator just load an empty laminate pocket into your machine and let it do its thing. I started with the 3 mil laminating sheets, they also come in 5 mil.
For the 3 mil size set your Cricut to cut cardstock. For the 5 mil you’ll want to set the dial to custom and choose posterboard from the menu.
Use the strong grip mat to cut the stencil.
Need help with Design Space and using your Cricut? If you’re feeling overwhelmed with it all check out Conquer your Cricut -The Ultimate Guide to using your Cricut Cutting Machine here. You’ll find step by step tutorials for both PC and iPhone/iPad including troubleshooting tips.
Using Mylar Stencil Sheets
If you don’t have a laminator no worries, you can order the blank stencil sheets on Amazon. They are 6 mil sheets so they will be more durable than laminating sheets anyway.
Set your Cricut cut dial to custom and choose poster board from the custom menu. Be sure to use the strong grip cutting map or a standard grip that is still really sticky.
How to Make a Reusable Stencil Video
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Using Your DIY Reusable Stencils
So after the stencils are cut, be sure to pull the mat off of the stencil so it doesn’t curl up. And now we’re ready to paint!
I used Elmers spray adhesive with my stencil. This really helps keep the stencil in place while you’re painting. And you can easily remove it when you are done. Plus you can reposition it to the next spot and stick it down again a few times before it needs re-sprayed.
So this is my mess up picture. I don’t recommend spraying with one hand while trying to take a picture with the other hand lol. I sprayed waaay too much adhesive here. The result was the adhesive glue stuck to my project and I had to scrape it off.
It all worked out, but I don’t want you to do that. It really does just take a very thin coat of the spray adhesive and it will stay put.
After the adhesive dries (it only takes a minute) position your stencil on your project and smooth it down. You want to make sure there aren’t any areas popped up where you are going to paint. I just went over once or twice with my hand and it was good to go.
Painting Reusable Stencils
So now we’re ready to paint! Painting is my favorite =)
The best way to paint with reusable stencils is to use a sponge. You don’t want a lot of paint on it either, so it’s probably going to take two coats.
Even though we have an adhesive on the back, reusable stencils will bleed easier than vinyl stencils. My favorite way to do this is with a makeup sponge. They don’t absorb too much paint and they are super easy to use. Just dab in the paint and dab onto your stencil.
After you paint the entire stencil, where you started should be dry so you can do the second coat right away. When you’re happy with the paint coverage simply pull the stencil up and place it in the next position.
You should be able to reposition about 5 times before needing to respray the back.
The project I am working on is a small table top. Here it is after I finished stenciling it.
Finding an Image to Make a Stencil
You can turn any SVG file into a stencil. Keep in mind when cutting a reusable stencil, the design is going to cut like it would on paper. And that’s a bit different than using vinyl.
That means centers of letters, windows, or anything that’s inside something else will not be there after its cut. That’s just something to think about when you are picking your design.
The easiest fastest way to make a reusable stencil with words is to use a font that’s made for it….. like this one.
If you are not sure how to change an image into a stencil in design space see my post here. All you really need to do is add the box around your image. I list all of the steps in that post if you need help with it.
And I have four designs you can totally use for your stencils! I used the yellow one for my table top.
I did not include the box around the images in these designs in case someone wants to use them for other purposes besides stenciling. But you can easily add it in your design software, see the post I linked above for instructions.
Swipe My Reusable Stencil Designs SVG File
I keep all of my SVG designs plus printables and plans in a resource library that I created exclusively for subscribers to my weekly newsletter. When you sign up for the newsletter you will be given the password and the link, plus it will be immediately emailed to you.
To join the tribe and grab your stencil designs plus all my other files simply fill out the form below.
Chris Butler has helped thousands of crafters learn how to use their Cricut machine without feeling overwhelmed. She is a best selling author and an up and coming designer. For fun Chris enjoys designing SVG Files, hanging out with her family (preferably at the lake), traveling, and volunteering at her church. She is a wife and mom of two crazy fun kids.
Very easy to follow directions/tips and great SVG files to use. So glad I happened on the this site!
Thanks Debby!
Glad I found this because I waste so much of the cricut vinyl stencil. I love your directions. They are very easy to understand. Thank you.
Awe Thanks Dana!
Thanks, that was super informative. I appreciate the tute.
Thanks so much for all the info, I’m waiting on my stencil sheets!
Do you need a special blade to cut the stencils? or will the one that comes with the machine work?
No special blade, the one that comes with the machine will cut it.
It depends on the thickness. I bought the only blanks I could find at Michael’s and needed the deep cut blade and housing on magnetic sheet 0.6mm setting to cut through nicely. Once I did that, my stencils turned out great!
Did you use the knife blade for this or just the regular blades that come with the matching?
Just the regular blade that came with the machine.
What setting should I use for the cut? Can you share the customized setting, if it’s needed?
Yep it’s listed. The thicker ones, around 6 mil use the custom setting and select posterboard. And on the thinner sheets like 3 mil the cardstck setting worked fine.
Can you use 10 mil mylar with the cricut maker
I was just wondering about this as well…does anyone know what setting you would use for the 10 mil
This is helpful thank you – excited to try. Can you get larger stencil sheets – or is this the only size?
Yes, you can even buy it in rolls. here are some of the options https://amzn.to/2RDzUWn
Do you clean them and how to keep reusing them?
Yes. You can clean them with warm water and soap and save them until you need to use them again.
If I make a stencil with words, how do I keep the insides of some of the letters, so that they look correct?
Hi Debbie! The easiest way is to use a stencil font like I mentioned in the post.
Hey there. Do you laminate the sheets first?
If you are buying the mylar stencil sheets, you don’t need to laminate them.
Do you laminate your sheet before or after cutting?
Hi Jenny! I don’t actually laminate the stencil sheet. But you can use laminate sheets in place of stencil sheets. In that case you would run plain laminate sheets through your laminator and then cut them.
Thank you for the information. I have a question that is somewhat related. I purchased a stencil that I used for my kitchen backslash. I have to go around several different corners and don’t want to cut the stencil since the areas are all different. Is there a way to duplicate this stencil using a cricuit and then print it on something that is thinner like mylar so that it is easier to bend and I can also cut without destroying the original.
You would have to have a way to get the design of your stencil into design space. You can try taking a picture with a plain high contrasting background and see if it’s workable with design space when you upload it. You could also try converting the photograph to an SVG
i would love the free files. thank you!
Can you use these stencils and the adhesive spray to paint on fabric? Would it work just as well?
Yes they will work on fabric. I don’t think I would use the adhesive spray, it could leave a residue on fabric, Painters tape around the edges should hold it in place or you can try a freezer paper stencil which also works really well for fabric. https://dailydoseofdiy.com/freezer-paper-stencils-diy/
I want to try using a reusable template on a coir doormat, could I use spray paint.? It very time consuming and difficult to cover the mat using a sponge / brush.
I would think spray paint would work. Light strokes, probably at least 2-3 layers. If you get a lot of paint on it, that’s when it will bleed.
Great tutorial! Thank you! I am still a Cricut newbie and have a basic question. I bought a variety pack of specialty vinyl by Cricut. It includes a stencil sheet. Is it reusable?
Hi. I love all ur blog/posts about the cricut tips. Im looking to buy one, havent yet so alot of what im reading is foreign to me at this point. I do have a question i hope u can help me with. Im looking to print regular stencil words for making signs. Sure i want to explore more for that price of a machine i want to use all its capabilities but my main goal is the word stencils. So would u suggust i get the explorer air by itself or with a beginners bundle? I just dont wanna spend the xtra for stuff i may not use or do u suggest for the extra price its worth it to get all that stuff with it? Also would u say the explorer air is the machine i should buy for what i want to do vs the maker? I would really appreciate ur unput. I dont know who else to ask and i dont want to just trust a clerk in a store. For the price of this machine.
Thanks.. Tracy
Hi Tracy! So going by the bundles on Amazon I would say it’s not worth it for what you want. To get started you need the machine a weeding kit, stencil vinyl and transfer tape. Or just mylar if you are doing reusable stencils. You can get that cheaper than the bundle and have exactly what you need. And the same if you start doing vinyl or paper crafts, you can probably find what you need on sale cheaper.
The explore will do everything you need it to do. That said once people get used to using a Cricut and start making more and more things they usually want to get the Cricut Maker because it can cut more materials and do more things.
Are you in a rush? If you can wait until black friday we usually see some awesome sales and maybe the Maker will drop enough or at least you’ll save some extra cash on the explore.
Also you can download Design Space now and start playing around so the tutorials make more sense to you.
Good luck and if you have any more questions don’t hesitate to ask!
Instructions look clear and easy to follow
Hello, thank you, this is great information. I have a question tho, after you cut the laminating sheet, you pass it through the laminator?
Thank you!
Yes, If you are using a laminating sheet you’ll put it through the laminator by itself
Good Afternoon
Can you tell me if the Cricut Explore Air 2 can cut through 190 micron mylar sheet.
Kind Regards
John
How do you cut such a thick material? My maker says it doesn’t cut material thicker than 2.4mm, I’m not sure if that’s the same as mil which I associate as milliliter, so I’m a little confused.
I stopped cutting chipboard bc it cut through 2 of my mats.
Thank you in advance for clarification.
It’s thinner than 2.4 mm. I believe mil refers to weight?, it’s not any thicker than posterboard.