Using Your Stencil for T-Shirts
Up to 1 hour
Pre-K – 12+
What Will You Learn?
Learn how to apply a homemade stencil to your shirt and decorate it using either permanent markers or acrylic paint.
Video Overview
Watch this video for an overview on how to apply your stencil to a T-Shirt!
Attach your Stencil
Step 1
It is best to wash and iron your shirt before stenciling. If you don’t have time to do so, it’s ok. Just do your best to remove any stray hairs and wrinkles.
You will want to decide how you plan to hold your stencil in place. If you are using craft vinyl or contact paper, the adhesive on the back will do the work for you. If you are using paper, cardstock or cardboard, you may want to use spray adhesive or stick glue to help hold the stencil in place. If you have no way to adhere the stencil, just use masking tape or pins to hold the design in place. You don’t want the stencil to shift while you care painting or coloring.
Step 2
For an adult shirt, the top of your design should sit between 2.5″ and 3″ (6-8 cm) from the bottom of the collar. If you don’t have a ruler, that’s about the width of an adult hand, fingers together, no thumb. However, different sized shirts may need adjustment.
The best way to determine the placement of your design is to simply pull out your favorite t-shirt and use it as a guide. Measure the distance from the bottom of the collar to the top of the design and use that measurement for your Maker Camp t-shirt. You may want to mark that spot with a pencil or piece of chalk.
Step 3
To center your design, grab your stencil on the left and right sides. Gently, fold the stencil without creasing it. Align the fold with the tag of the shirt and lower the stencil into place. Press the stencil down and, if needed, use tape or pins to secure it.
Permanent Marker Tie Dye
Step 4
Place a piece of cardboard or a manilla folder in between the front and back of the shirt. This will ensure that the dye from the front doesn’t stain the back of the shirt.
Step 5
Use permanent markers to trace the outline of your stencil. Then fill in the shapes. If you add a lot of color, you will get more spread and less definition in the final design. If you just less marker, you will have less spread and more definition. Try using geometric shapes, crazy squiggles, and other elements rather than large blocks of solid color.
Think about what colors you place next to one another. They may bleed into one another, resulting in new colors. Have fun experimenting! You may also find that some marker colors, especially darker ones, seperate and create multiple colors when alcohol is sprayed on.
Step 6
Once you are done coloring, fill a small spray bottle with isopropyl alcohol (rubbing alcohol). Take your design outside if possible. If working indoors, place the design in a large box or protect your surfaces with newspaper or plastic.
Step 7
Gently spray the design with alcohol. Add a little at a time. The more alcohol you add the more the color will spread. If you accidentally add too much, try using a blow dryer or the sun to dry the area quickly.
Step 8
When you’ve finished, leave the design to dry completely.
If desired, use a black marker to retrace the outline of the stencil to add definition.
Step 9
Remove the stencil. Heat set the ink to the shirt by pressing it with a hot iron or placing it into the dryer on high for 20 minutes.
Acrylic Paint T-shirt
Acrylic paints can dry quickly and be very inflexible when they harden and “cure.” As a result, many people like to use a prepared fabric paint or mix in a fabric medium to acrylic paint before using paint on a t-shirt. However, even if you don’t have these available, you can make your own!
Step 10
In a bowl or cup, combine 1 part white vinegar, 1 part vegetable glycerin and 1 part water. (I used 1 tablespoon of each, which is more than enough for a t-shirt.) Mix well.
Step 11
Place your desired color of paint into a bowl or cup and add a small amount of the mixture Mix well. Take care not to thin the paint too much as it will bleed under your stencil if it is too loose. For craft acrylics, a 1:5 ratio of medium to paint is enough. For thicker art acrylics you may need to go as high as a 1:2 ratio.
Step 12
To apply the paint to the shirt us a foam craft brush or other paintbrush. Use a “pouncing” motion, dabbing the paint onto the fabric rather than using paint strokes. This will reduce the chance of damaging your stencil and keep the paint from going under the stencil. Add a little at a time. You can always let it dry a bit and add more.
Step 13
When you’ve achieved your desired result, carefully remove the stencil, taking care not to transfer paint from the stencil onto the shirt. Don’t let the stencil sit on the shirt for too long, It will become hard to remove as the paint dries and hardens.
Step 14
Allow your shirt to cure — letting the paint bond to the fabric — for several days before washing. When you wash it, wash it inside-out to reduce the chance of transferring paint onto other clothes.
What's Next?
Continue on to the next project, Using Your Stencil for T-Shirts for ways to use your stencil. Or check out The Big Book of Maker Camp Projects by Sandy Roberts, to create color-changing, spin art, bleached, or soil-painted Maker Camp t-shirts.
Materials:
- A washed t-shirt with a large empty area
- Temporary spray adhesive (optional)
- Old newspapers or cardboard to protect surfaces
- Small spray bottles (reuse old ones from around the house)
- Permanent markers
- Isopropyl alcohol (rubbing alcohol, 70%)
- Acrylic paint
- Paintbrushes
- Vinegar (optional)
- Glycerin (optional)
Maker Camp Project Standards
Based on NGSS (Next Generation Science Standards)
National Core Arts Standards
The National Core Arts Standards are a process that guides educators in providing a unified quality arts education for students in Pre-K through high school. These standards provide goals for Dance, Media Arts, Music, Theatre, and Visual Arts with cross-cutting anchors in Creating, Performing, Responding, and Connecting through art. The Anchor Standards include:- Generate and conceptualize artistic ideas and work.
- Organize and develop artistic ideas and work.
- Refine and complete artistic work.
- Select, analyze, and interpret artistic work for presentation.
- Develop and refine artistic techniques and work for presentation.
- Convey meaning through the presentation of artistic work.
- Perceive and analyze artistic work.
- Interpret intent and meaning in artistic work.
- Apply criteria to evaluate artistic work.
- Synthesize and relate knowledge and personal experiences to make art.
- Relate artistic ideas and works with societal, cultural, and historical context to deepen understanding.
National Core Arts Standards
The National Core Arts Standards are a process that guides educators in providing a unified quality arts education for students in Pre-K through high school. Also see Standards with cross-cutting anchors in Creating, Performing, Responding, and Connecting through art for Visual Arts.NGSS MS.Engineering Design
The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) are K–12 science content standards.- MS-ETS1-1. Define the criteria and constraints of a design problem with sufficient precision to ensure a successful solution, taking into account relevant scientific principles and potential impacts on people and the natural environment that may limit possible solutions.
- MS-ETS1-2. Evaluate competing design solutions using a systematic process to determine how well they meet the criteria and constraints of the problem.
- MS-ETS1-3. Analyze data from tests to determine similarities and differences among several design solutions to identify the best characteristics of each that can be combined into a new solution to better meet the criteria for success.
- MS-ETS1-4. Develop a model to generate data for iterative testing and modification of a proposed object, tool, or process such that an optimal design can be achieved.
NGSS HS.Engineering Design
The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) are K–12 science content standards.- HS-ETS1-1. Analyze a major global challenge to specify qualitative and quantitative criteria and constraints for solutions that account for societal needs and wants.
- HS-ETS1-2. Design a solution to a complex real-world problem by breaking it down into smaller, more manageable problems that can be solved through engineering.
- HS-ETS1-3. Evaluate a solution to a complex real-world problem based on prioritized criteria and trade-offs that account for a range of constraints, including cost, safety, reliability, and aesthetics as well as possible social, cultural, and environmental impacts.
- HS-ETS1-4. Use a computer simulation to model the impact of proposed solutions to a complex real-world problem with numerous criteria and constraints on interactions within and between systems relevant to the problem.
NGSS K-2 Engineering Design
The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) are K–12 science content standards.- K-2-ETS1-1. Ask questions, make observations, and gather information about a situation people want to change to define a simple problem that can be solved through the development of a new or improved object or tool.
- K-2-ETS1-2. Develop a simple sketch, drawing, or physical model to illustrate how the shape of an object helps it function as needed to solve a given problem.
- K-2-ETS1-3. Analyze data from tests of two objects designed to solve the same problem to compare the strengths and weaknesses of how each performs.
NGSS 3-5.Engineering Design
The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) are K–12 science content standards.- 3-5-ETS1-1. Define a simple design problem reflecting a need or a want that includes specified criteria for success and constraints on materials, time, or cost.
- 3-5-ETS1-2. Generate and compare multiple possible solutions to a problem based on how well each is likely to meet the criteria and constraints of the problem.
- 3-5-ETS1-3. Plan and carry out fair tests in which variables are controlled and failure points are considered to identify aspects of a model or prototype that can be improved.
