How To Stencil with Freezer Paper

I love freezer paper. It is dirt cheap and practically magic! My apologies to non-American readers, I have heard it is impossible/difficult to find outside the states. You can iron the paper down on fabric and it adheres quite nicely, and then peels away without leaving a trace. This makes it useful for a number of things – but I most commonly use it to stencil!

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You can find the graphic for the ‘MILK’ carton in this post, and I have rounded up a ton of bunch of free silhouettes and appliques in this Pinterest board. A lot of the refashions I see are using Silhouette or Cricut machines to cut out their design but you don’t need to go to all that trouble! A craft knife works just fine.

I’ve used this technique to stencil my own shirt and shirts for my son – it is so versatile.

Supplies

• x-Acto or craft knife*
• Fabric paint* – I really like Tulip soft matte!
• Freezer paper* (the regular roll is cheaper at your grocery store BUT Amazon has these fancy printable sheets, too* OR my brilliant friend Amy remarked in the comments that she cuts the roll to printer size and uses them!)
• Pen
• Foam brush
• Thin cardboard
• Ruler (optional)
• Iron

Steps

1 – Draw or print out the design you’ll be cutting and then layer the freezer paper over top, shiny side down. Trace.

2 – Use your craft knife and cut out the outline, carefully preserving the corners.

3 -Lay all your pieces shiny side down on the shirt – iron with a  high heat setting, making sure to catch all the edges.

4 -Apply a light coat of fabric with your foam brush, painting with the grain of the fabric and watching out for bumps or lumps. Let dry, apply a second coat if necessary.

5 -Gently tease up one edge and pull all the freezer paper away!

6. After the paint is dry, use an iron to ‘heat set’ the paint. Mine wasn’t 100% dry so I used a pressing cloth in between them, but this is optional.

Done! It took longer to photograph and write this tutorial than to actually do it – freezer paper stenciling is so satisfying. Have you ever tried it?

If you have never gone thrift shopping for t-shirts to upcycle, check out this post with tips on picking the best stuff! Then, freezer paper stencil it!

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