How to Make a Graffiti Stencil

Supplies:

• Paper
• Art board
• Yard stick
• Permanent pen
• Craft knife with snap-off blades
• Adhesive spray
• Hard squeegee
• Pizza box or cardboard box
• Tape
• Matte black spray paint

1. Draw or photocopy your subject matter on to paper whether it be text or image or both.(Hint: if your going to photocopy an image first, open it in an image editor turn it black and white and turn the contrast way up.)
2. Get a piece of art board that it would be a few inches larger than the subject matter on each side.
3. Spray the back of the subject paper with adhesive and place it glue side down. Wait for it to dry.
4. Cut out the black outlines and portions with a craft be sure cut through both the paper and the art board. When cutting be careful to leave ligaments of paper to connect separated shapes, this is VERY important otherwise the stencil will not stay together and will be useless. A trick graffiti artists use when the stencil is complex or fragile is to use undone paper clips or wire to reinforce these paper ligaments.   
5. Find a folder to carry your stencil in because after it has been used it will be covered in wet paint, a pizza box works great for smaller stencil or for stencils with pieces that would fit inside.
6. Finally find a place to apply your stencil and tape it to the surface. Then shake the spray paint can for 10 seconds.
7. Hold the spray can eight inches away from the stencil and spray back-and-forth across the cut-out areas in sweeping motions. Try not to spray any paint outside the edges of the stencil. Use as little paint as possible to avoid causing drips. Remove the stencil from the wall and place it into its cardboard folder.