Making a stencil?

[Tatakai]

I have a picture that I want to make a stencil of it. Problem is the picture is full of small pieces. Really don't know how to describe it any other way. Could someone help me out with this. I have searched the site and seen alot of things but nothing that helps me with what I am trying to do.

Thanks

Tatakai

[josie]

Maybe if you post your pic someone can help you more? Just a thought

[Tatakai]

http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f35/tatakai101/Calvins%20April%2007/img000004.jpg

The rail buggy is what I am trying to make a stencil of to put on a Shirt for a bday present. Just the frame and wheels not the people inside it.
Thanks very much for the help. This will be my first attempt at something other than practicing.

Tatakai

[ABD]

I don't know any easy ways to go about it...I convert the pic to black and white...Get rid of the background...Print it out and get cutting by hand...Best way I've found to do it without a Plotter...Good luck!

[redanner]

I would do the 4 wheeler like ABD has done or as a stencil! My definition of a stencil is something that sticks to the canvas! But the rest I would create as hand held shaped shields and place them were you need them as you paint!

[syklystt]

ok....this is a biggie to do...lots of details.....first off, good luck.
with that in mind.....

there are a few ways to tackle this picture....and I would use that converted to B&w/cropped pic that has been posted for the stencil/projection.

1) You can use a projector to project it onto your substrate, then use a pencil (appropriate for the substrate) to sketch it on.

2) you can use you pic to create a stencil....in a couple ways...
make several prints of your picture....

on one print you can make small cuts that define the shapes....lotsa small cuts.....then spray through the stencil and it will be transferred to your substrate.

another way to use a stencil is to use those copies....
first, use a copy to determine what areas to cutout....you cannot cutout adjacent areas or the pic/stencil will fall apart. So what I do is to use several colors of highlighter markers to determine my stencils. highlight a pic with like 3 colors and make sure no colors that are the same are near each other....once all the pic is colored in....use and exacto knife to cut out the areas on each stencil.
when making a multi stencil like this, you will need to register the stencils as you place them so that the pictures line up correctly.....when you make your copies, you should press the number you want and print, this willl keep them all the same....then when painting the first one, make a little spry mark next to three edges of the paper....use these edges to line up the next stencil....later, you willl erase/ cover these register marks to remove them.....you can also cutout a certan shape or dection of the stencil from each one and use that to register them...

andyhow, this is how I would do it, if you had the software and a plotter, you can get a real god version of this cut, but if you had that stuff, you prob wouldnt have asked......a plotteris a great tool, but you will need to know how to cut your own stencils still, cause there's lots of times the cutter wont work for the stencil needed.....or your working on reallly weird shaped surfaces.

I will add a how-to in the ..ummm....how-to section on my stencil method that I just described...it will be the Eddie from Iron maiden pic I did.
again, good luck and post those pics as you do it, lots of great help around here.

[Whit]

ouch,,, looked at Dell's,, there's a youngun in front as well,,,
I'll have to go take another look see at this,,, but,, in the
meantime,,, here's a cuttable/black-white line to help placements!!!
This might help if you've got a cutter !!!:drowning:

[Whit]

Another:party-smiley-052:

[Tatakai]

Thank you for the help, it is going to be painted as just the buggy and no people in it. The picture is my son and I several years ago, he loves to ride in it still.
One other thing that you helped me with is that I found out that I have Adobe Illustrator CS on this computer. Didn't know I had it.

Tatakai

[fontgeek]

Because the image has lots of floating pieces inside of other peices, you are going to have to either do this as a multi-piece stencil, or have it cut on a plotter and do a whole lot of weeding before you transfer the cut vinyl with transfer tape to your work surface.

Another option is to get the black and white image the way you like it, then do it as a heat transfer to the shirt, then color it in and paint the background like you would a coloring book.

If you had a lightbox, you could put it (with the print) inside the shirt, and then trace the design onto the shirt, much the same way you would if you were using a projector to transfer the image.

[Whit]

Wallyworld has T-shirt transfer paper,,,
print it off on your printer,, iron the
thing on your shirt,, color w/airbrush
along with anything else you want on there !!!
Just a thought !!!

[Tatakai]

I like the lightbox idea. What I was thinking was to delete a lot of the interior detail and just have the buggy itself and freehand the seats in. Since it is going on T-Shirt there isn't a need to have all that detail. I don't think that my skills at this point would do it justice if I tried it. I might try it on something else later as I learn more.
Thanks again, you have been most helpful.

Tatakai

[fontgeek]

Using the light box would let you sketch in as much detail as you wanted, but it means you have to have a lightbox big enough to show the print at the desired size.

The heat transfer lets you have all the detail of your artwork, and lets you do all or some of the coloring with your airbrush. Just keep in mind that if you go this route, that your image needs to be flipped horizontally before you print it out. The heat transfer method will flip it back to the desired direction. There is transfer material for dark shirts too, but it is a good bit more expensive, and you end up with a white background that you either need to cover or fill in with a texture.
You could use shields, templates, stencils, masks, etc., to help you get the desired look and shading.

[sharonsstudio]

I would use a projector.. then cut out the buggy without all the detail yet.. do
your basic shape of the bugy then start cutting away little by little like the tires first then the roll bar.. so don't cut it all at once, cut as your abing that way it's easier to use the stencil..

if that helps..

[voodoopaint]

I would use a projector and draw out the lines on the shirt with chalk or charcoal ,
then get some frisket and cut out all your lines with an exacto knife (make sure its sharp!!!!!)

Then you can just paint away and have nice clean lines , no overspray and , unlike with a stencil , the frisket sticks to the shirt and you dont have to worry about connecting lines and the stencil falling apart.

Thats the way that works best for me anyways.

Good luck and we'd all love to see it when its done

Voodoo