To Cut or Not to Cut -- That is the Question!

Artist Lissa Goldsmith commented on an earlier post of mine, and, having read it, I decided to do a post about the subject of altering your stencils.  

The first time I cut into a stencil, it felt almost like cutting my arm ... but, I got over it!  Stencils are made to be used as tools.  You can customize your tools -- personalize them and make them uniquely yours.

And, when I first went into heavy use of stencils -- this was, not by coincidence, when I joined the talented group of designers at StencilGirlProducts.com -- I tried to keep my stencils clean.  I can remember posting, long ago, about different ways to clean them:  alcohol on paper towels or Wet Wipes; Windex; sponge brayer in a shallow basin of soak-water.  

I got over that, too!

My original Marbles 9 (9"X12") stencil looked like this:

Now it looks like this:

These aren't all the pieces -- only what would fit on my scanner at one time; but enough for you to get the picture.

Of course, in many cases, you can simply mask off the areas of the stencil that you don't want to print, as I've done here:

 
Above:  Modeling paste has been spread thru Carolyn Dube's 9"X12" stencil Use Your Words.

But at other times, depending on the individual project, cutting to customize is the way to go.

As for cleaning acrylic paint off my stencils -- when the stencil is covered with paint, it makes great sun-prints!  The three posts below give all the details:

Art...: A Happy Accident -- the First of Many Sun-Prints

Apr 29, 2014

Art...: More Sun-Prints made with my Stencils

May 08, 2014

Art...: 3 New Stencils Released!

May 09, 2014

Often, too, stencils will become really pretty, due to multiple paint applications -- and at those times, I cut them up to use as collage elements.