N.S.P operation process

hansen

2026-02-25

Pochoir (Stencil) Printing Technique

Cut out the required hollow areas on the stencil film, then use a pattern stencil brush to apply color on the hollow parts. After that, print it through the printing paper.
This is an advanced method of stencil printing.

Origin of the Name “Pochoir Printing”

“Capa” means raincoat in Japanese.

Please use Hansen development-type stencil film.

Traditional printing paper is mostly made of cotton, rice paper, or other materials with good water absorption.

Step 1. Prepare Tools

Stencil paper, printing paper, tracing paper, carbon paper
Knife or pen knife, triangle plate, iron ruler
White glue, paper tape, cutting mat

Stencil brush, watercolor or pressed powder watercolor
Color palette, water container, rag

Step 2. Composition, Draft, and Tracing

Make a sketch of the same size as the printed work, and use colored pencils to plan the color separation.
Making an L-shaped Registration Board

Cut a piece of cardboard and divide it into two sections.

In the lower left corner of the layout, paste it into an L-shaped registration area.

The alignment angle must be strictly 90 degrees. When pasting onto the cardboard, please use a right-angled triangular plate for positioning.

Step 3. Cut-Type Dyed Paper and Printing Paper

Center the pattern, and determine the size of the outer margin according to the creator's preference.
Cut the stencil film. After cutting, check the registration board to confirm accuracy.
The bottom and left sides must be completely aligned with the registration board, and a mark should be placed on the bottom left of the stencil film.
The size of the printing paper should be approximately the same as that of the stencil film.

Step 4. Stencil Printing Plate Making and Printing

1. Fix the Draft Paper

Place the printing paper on the registration board.
Center the draft paper and fix it with paper tape on the right side.

2. Transfer the Draft

Fix the right side of the tracing paper to the draft paper, and transfer the final draft to the tracing paper.

This stencil is used for direct printing, so the tracing paper does not need to be reversed left and right. (Picture 6)

3. Transfer the Image to the Stencil Film

Place the stencil film under the tracing paper and align it with the registration board.
Cover it with carbon paper, then place the tracing paper on top.

Use a pen to trace over the artwork so that the image transfers onto the stencil film. (Picture 7)

4. Engraving the Stencil Film

Place a cutting mat under the stencil film.

Cut out the hollow areas with a pen knife.
The knife should be held at about 45 degrees.

When turning while cutting, turn the plate instead of turning the knife.

Try not to exceed the points where two cutting lines meet. The more accurate the cutting, the better the result. (Picture 8)

5. Print the First Plate

a. Test Printing

Place the test printing paper in position, cover it with the stencil film, and print the first plate to check whether the engraving is accurate.

b. Coloring

Use a watercolor brush to mix the color, then use a stencil brush for staining.

The staining must be even and uniform.
A rag can be used to absorb excess water.

Stencil printing uses very little water, and relies on repeated brushing to achieve clean results.

The brush movement should be left–right or 45° back and forth, applied lightly.
Do not rotate the brush.

6. Make the Second Stencil Film

Before copying the second plate, print the image of the previous plate onto the new stencil film.

This helps clearly adjust and distinguish the image registration and allows whitening if needed.
It is better to partially overlap with the previous color area.

After engraving the second plate:

Use test paper to print the second plate first.
Check whether the hollow areas are accurate.
Then print the second color over the paper that already has the first color.

For each additional plate, one extra test paper is required.

7. Make the Third Stencil Film

Before copying the third plate, overlap the images of the first and second stencil films onto the third sheet.

At this stage, the first and second images become the reference for copying the third plate.

Repeat the production process:

Copy → Engrave → Single-sheet test printing → Registration test printing → Registration

8. Repeat the Process

Continue repeating the following process:

Copy → Engrave → Test Print → Register → Copy → Engrave → Test Print → Register

Until the image and colors are fully completed.

This process is the key reason why color stencil printing can achieve very accurate results. (Picture 12)

9. Remove the Tracing Paper

After all plates have been test printed, the tracing paper can be removed.
Then proceed to formal printing.

10. Formal Printing

Formal printing is usually done one color at a time.

For example, if printing 10 sheets:

Print the first plate on all 10 sheets.
Switch to the second plate and print the second color on the same 10 sheets.
Continue with the third plate, and so on.

Repeat until the entire set of works is completed. (Picture 13)

Step 5. Features of Stencil Printing

Stencil printing mainly focuses on the expression of color blocks, allowing large areas of color and accurate printing.
It is recommended to use translucent colors with high saturation.
It performs well in color gradients.
The stencil plate can be printed repeatedly and is not easily damaged.