Successful tattoo artists are adept at transferring designs, be it a picture from a studio wall or a custom design that a client brings in, from drawing to the skin. However, so many people often wonder how they do it exactly.
That’s where tattoo stencils come in.
There is no disputing that tracing is a time-honored artistic technique. The Renaissance masters of old, before painting their priceless portraits and frescos in museums throughout the world, would trace and transfer designs to a canvas first. The best tattoo artists employ this same process as a guide to accurately create intricate artwork on the skin.
Tracing paper and dip pens are some of the valuable tools used to create what is called a “tattoo stencil”. This helps ensure that clients get exactly what they want from their ink. After applying a traced design, the artist can then use their skills to follow the lines and fill in the blanks for the perfect tattoo.
What are Tattoo Stencils?
A tattoo stencil is an instrument used to accurately transfer a design from paper to skin.
When a client selects the design they want for their tattoo, the artist will trace the image onto transfer paper (thin paper with an additional carbon sheet attached) or use a pen with stencil fluid to draw it on tracing paper. The special ink, with the help of lotion or another stencil application product, allows a carbon copy of the design to be imprinted on the skin.
This piece of paper is now a “stencil”. It can be used multiple times to replicate the same image on different parts of the body.
How To Use Tattoo Stencils
Tattoo lines can’t be made as fine as lines drawn by pencils or other art tools all the time. If a client brings in a photograph or intricate design for inking, the artist may have to simplify the image on the tattoo stencil by reducing the details to make it more compatible with tattooing techniques.
The image on the stencil is like a selfie; a mirrored version of the client’s chosen design. Therefore, the artist has to remember to reverse the image when tracing, as the ink will transfer backward when imprinting on the skin. Clients also confirm that the artwork is in the direction they want it to face before the artist starts to use the needle.
Also, the artist has to make sure the surface is optimal by shaving the area with a disposable razor and cleaning the skin with antibacterial soap before the design goes from stencil to skin. Once there is nothing but a fresh canvas to apply the stencil, the artist will add a layer to the skin to make sure all of the ink sticks.
After preparing the area, the artist carefully applies the stencil with the fluid side facing the skin. The stencil is patted onto the skin (not rubbed, as that can create smudging) and left to sit for a few minutes. The artist then slowly peels the paper off in a smooth motion from one side to the other.
Both the artist and the client should check the clarity and placement of the design. If it needs a correction, this requires a full removal of the design with alcohol and another application of the stencil, as it is better to make the mistakes with the stencil ink than the tattoo ink. Once an exact replica of the design is placed in the right place on the skin, the artist and client are ready for the needle.
How to Make Tattoo Stencils
Making a tattoo stencil is easy to do at home but will take some practice to refine your accuracy. Creating your own stencil is a good idea if you are looking to test out designs before involving a tattoo artist.
The steps below illustrate how to professionally prepare a tattoo stencil and apply it in a tattoo parlor. If you are planning on just experimenting with the design at home, you will not need to take the extra steps to prep the skin. The artist will clean your skin (and shave, if necessary), so the design can transfer better when an artist applies the stencil.
Materials
Before starting, make sure you have all the needed materials and equipment. You can easily find specialized inks and pens online.
However, note that this will not work unless you use the correct equipment listed below.
You will need the following to make a tattoo stencil:
- Tracing or wax paper
- Stencil fluid
- An ink pen with a fine tip
- Dip Pen
- Masking tape
- Razor
- Antibacterial soap
- Stencil lotion or stick deodorant
You can also buy special fluid pens made for stenciling if you do not want to continually dip the pen into the fluid.
Create and Practice Your Design
Once you have all the necessary tools, spend as much time as possible practicing the design you want on paper. You can skip this step if you are not drawing the design from scratch and you have not printed your tattoo design out.
However, make sure that your design has bold outlines that you can easily see through the tracing or wax paper.
Transfer to Tracing Paper
Once you have your preferred design, transfer it to the tracing paper. Place the tracing paper over your design and tape both down on a solid and smooth work surface so they don’t move. If you’re using masking tape or easy-remove tape, be careful so that you do not damage the tracing paper when removing the tape.
Once you have carefully traced your design onto the tracing paper, remove the tape and turn the drawing over. Place a blank piece of tracing paper on top of your completed tracing, and tape both down for security. Then trace the design again, using stencil fluid or a stencil pen.
Do not panic about the flipped design; this is necessary to ensure that the tracing is facing the right way when you eventually print it on your skin. If you do not flip it, the design will be in reverse when you transfer it, leaving you with a back-to-front design.
Transfer to Skin
You need to prepare the target area on your skin properly before printing the tracing on your skin, to ensure it sticks properly. First, shave any hair in the area, then clean and dry the area of skin with antibacterial soap. Finally, rub stencil lotion or stick deodorant onto the same area, so the tracing stick can stick.
Once the area is ready, carefully apply the stencil with the fluid side facing the skin. Pat the stencil carefully onto the skin and leave it to set for a minute or two. Do not rub the stencil, as this may cause the design to blur or smudge.
When you are ready, peel the tracing paper away carefully. Your design should be on the skin, ready for the needle!
Pro Tip: When stenciling portraits (or with realism in general), don’t outline the image. The stencil is just there as a guide to show you where to put your shading, not where to put your lines. Typically, dotted lines on a stencil mark where your shading goes, and a solid line shows where you will tattoo a hard line.
To keep the portrait from getting too dark on the skin, you can use dots or “stippling” where the shading or darker lines would be. This keeps the image softer so it doesn’t look like a cartoon outline.
Digitally Created Stencils
While some artists choose to draw their stencil out by hand, because it builds muscle memory of the design before you attempt to tattoo it on skin, others prefer to create their designs digitally. The latter is faster and more efficient than drawing by hand.
Procreate on the iPad is one of the top tools for this process. It allows you to “draw” lines without using multiple layers of tracing paper and physically drawing the image over and over. This ensures that your stencil lines are perfect and without wobbles.
What You Will Need:
- iPad
- Procreate app
- Tattoo transfer paper
Asides from an iPad, you can also use a thermal printer to create your stencil. Thermal printing uses heat to perfectly transfer a drawn or printed image onto a stencil. After running your transfer paper and image through a thermal printer, you will have an exact replica of your image.
The only difference is that its lines are made of carbon printer ink instead of computer ink.
Hand-Drawn Stencils vs Thermal-Printed Stencils
| Stroke | Pros | Cons |
|---|---|---|
| Hand-Drawn Stencils | The benefit of having drawn the design multiple times before using the tattoo machine. Complete control over the design in a way that can’t be gotten digitally. | If the stencil is somehow ruined, it is difficult to make a backup. Also, if the client wants it resized, you have to redraw the entire design. |
| Thermal Printer Stencils | Go into the design “cold” without much practice beforehand. | Go into the design “cold” without much practice beforehand. |
Pro Tip: Almost all tattoo shops have a thermal printer that you can use. If you are learning at home and don’t have a thermal printer, you can use freehand transfer paper, as illustrated in the hand-drawn method above. However, it is harder to make perfect lines if you use freehand transfer paper, even if you have perfect lines on your original design.
Conclusion on How To Make Tattoo Stencils
Some freehand tattoo artists prefer to draw a rough draft with a marker and then use a spray to seal the design on the body before getting to work. Other freehand artists use a combination of colored markers to gradually build a detailed design. You can easily erase these markers with special soap or rubbing alcohol.
And then, there are some tattoo artists who don’t use tattoo stencils and are still quite good at drawing designs directly onto the skin. In fact, they don’t use any guides or markers and still create spectacular and unique works. This doesn’t mean that a client will not get the exact design they want. They just won’t have the same visibility of seeing the image and exact positioning of the work that tattoo stencils provide before the artist inks it on the skin.
In the end, clients should always do their research and only go with whatever method they are most comfortable with.
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