All About Stencil Vinyl with Transfer Tape

Are you wanting to learn how to use stencil vinyl with transfer tape? Or are you confused on how to use each of these materials and the types of projects you can make?

I'm going to share with you some of my favorite beginner projects, an overview of each of these materials, and the best places you can buy them in this blog post.

If you are someone who is not aware of what transfer tape is or you need some assistance with understanding how to transfer a stencil with vinyl, then you are at the right place!

Transfer Tape vs Stencil Vinyl

Transfer tape is a sticker material that allows you to take your vinyl off its backing paper in the proper alignment and you can use it to place the design on the surface that you are decorating. Transfer tape is used for permanent vinyl, not heat transfer vinyl (which is used to make shirts).

Stencil vinyl is a material that you can use as a stencil and then fill in with color to create designs. It is a one-time-use material that sticks to your work and helps in creating a design. 

When using stencil vinyl, you have to fill up the cut-out stencil with some form of color or glitter to make your design. It may require a significant amount of effort if your design has intricate elements.

With transfer tape, the deal is much simpler. You can peel off your vinyl decal promptly with a transfer tape and paste it onto any surface you like.

 

For clarity, I wanted to explain various names that you'll hear mentioned so you know what types of materials there are:

• Vinyl - This is a generic umbrella term for all different types of things that are "vinyl" material, which includes vinyls for decals, heat transfer vinyl for shirts, and stencil vinyl.
• Stencil Material - This is often referred to as stencil film, stencil vinyl, or stencil paper to represent the material that you want to be placed on product, which you can then craft over (generally brushing or spraying).
• Transfer Tape - This is also interchangeable as transfer vinyl, transfer tape, or transfer paper. This material is used to transfer the stencil material onto your product.

Why Use Transfer Tape with Stencil Vinyl?

Transfer tape is a must-have for any crafter who works with stencil vinyl designs. It will make your work much simpler and faster. 

When you try to transfer your vinyl design from the backing paper to your design surface, placing each piece of the design in its correct place can be quite a challenge. However, if you use transfer tape, the entire process will become completely hassle-free.

A transfer tape essentially clings onto the adhesive vinyl design and allows it to make it easier for you to transfer it onto your design surface where you want to place the design. 

What is Stencil Film?

Stencil film is the actual stencil material itself. Think of it as a temporary sticker that you place on top of the product you want to stencil.

For stencil vinyl, there are a ton of brands that you can use. By far, this is my favorite (and the reviews are evidence of it too): stencil vinyl.

Best Transfer Tape for Stencil Vinyl

There are two types of transfer tapes available in the market - a regular transfer tape and strong grip transfer tape. The difference between these two lies in the strength with which the tape grips onto your stencil.

Regular transfer tape works well with most vinyl materials. However, if you are using more coarse material, like glitter vinyl, then you must use a strong grip transfer tape. You will need the extra strength to transfer the glitter design.

For stencil vinyl, you can go with regular transfer tape.

Best Place to Buy Transfer Tape

With transfer tape, everyone has their favorites. It is truly about which brand you can work best with.

Cricut is a pretty decent brand for stencil vinyl and transfer tape. Their products are easy to use and they come in cute packaging. 

You can try out Cricut and you would surely not be disappointed. You can also shift through different brands to land on your favorite! 

Here are my favorite products for transfer tape:

Placement Tips for Transfer Tape on Stencil

Here are a few placement tips for positioning and using your transfer tape on a vinyl stencil:

1. Cut the transfer tape according to the size of your design. If it is too big, maneuvering the design might be difficult. 
2. After placing the transfer tape on your stencil, make sure to press down firmly a couple of times. If the vinyl does not stick, then you might end up damaging your design. 
3. Once the stencil sticks to your transfer tape, place it properly on your design surface. Make sure to check that the alignment of your design is right. Press on it firmly again to transfer the entire design onto your surface of choice. 

What side goes down on Cricut stencil vinyl?

If you are using transfer tape for the first time, you might not know which side of the tape goes down on the stencil vinyl. No worries, it is all quite simple!

As you might have figured out, the adhesive side goes on to the surface of your stencil vinyl. Place the transfer tape properly over your stencil and press firmly to make sure it sticks.

Now, peel the transfer tape off and make sure your stencil design comes off from the backing paper. Once done, you can stick it onto any surface with ease. 

How to Transfer Stencil Vinyl with Transfer Tape

Learn how to use both transfer tape and stencil vinyl together to move your design from the stencil film to your product of choice!

Project Ideas Using Transfer Tape as Stencil Vinyl

There are several beautiful DIY craft projects that you can take on with the help of transfer tape. Here are some cool ideas for you to try out.

Label Kids Water Bottles

Kids love a good design on their water bottles. Labeling them with a custom-made design and quote is a pretty successful project idea. These labels look good especially on glass bottles and Mason jars.

Label Toy Boxes

Your kids’ toy boxes can get an upgrade with a pretty design and label added onto them. You can also engage your children in this activity and it could turn out to be a great bonding experience!

Label Laptop Case

You can make aesthetic-looking designs to amp up the look of your laptop case. People often go for symbols from pop culture to give an artistic look to their laptop cases.

Car Decals

Using a vinyl decal on your car’s front or back window is also a pretty popular idea. Go with something that flaunts your vibe and you can turn heads on the streets with your simple DIY home project!

Home Decor Projects

You can personalize a DIY wall clock or make a wood box crate around topiaries or trees! (See below for the other tutorials you might like.)

Summary of Stencil Film and Transfer Tape Vinyl

Using transfer tape for your Cricut or Silhouette stencil vinyl projects can be a literal lifesaver. If you are new to the concept of transfer tapes, you should try them out!

If you are someone who was not sure how to transfer vinyl with stencil or which ones you should buy, then this blog was the one for you. You can go ahead and make your stencil vinyl project ideas come to life.

Other Stencil Vinyl Tutorials You Might Like

• DIY Wall Clock
• How to Make a Stencil with Cricut