Stickers are more than just something cute and cool on your water bottle or notebook. They can be a way for you to creatively express your beliefs, feelings, and goals.
Share your ideas and passions with the whole world using stickers!
Or create a private message to remind yourself just how awesome you are.
Here’s what you’ll need:
Paper
Drawing supplies like pens, crayons, or markers
Scissors
Clear packing tape
Wax paper
First, let’s brainstorm a design.
Here are some questions that will help you come up with something that inspires you:
What words of encouragement would you most like to hear right now?
Who are your heroes? Do they play sports, sing, or are they someone from history? What is something they have said or done that you admire?
You’ve done hard things before. Did you have a motto or saying that helped you along the way and gave you strength?
Is there something you believe in that you want to remind yourself of every day, or share with others?
If you come up with a quote or motto that’s too long for a sticker, you can create a drawing or symbol that captures your idea.
An example of this is a peace sign, or the Yin and Yang symbol (see picture), which is a reminder that life is about balance—knowing when to chill and when to spice things up.
When you’re ready, draw your idea on a piece of paper.
I chose a saying by the world’s greatest martial artist, Bruce Lee. He said, “Be like water.” Lee explained that because water has no shape, it becomes whatever it is poured into, whether it be a cup, a bottle, or a teapot. Water can be gentle like a misty morning or a pounding ocean wave. Lee suggests that you can change shape to match your surroundings. You can be calm and powerful all at once.
In my drawing, the water fits into a small bottle, but it also holds the ship afloat.
When you’re finished drawing, cut out your design.
Many stickers have a white border around the edge of the shape. You can choose to include a border or not. As an artist, the choice is yours!
To turn your design into a sticker, you will need wax paper and clear packing tape.
First, put a layer of clear packing tape onto the waxy side of your wax paper, making sure you cover an area that is bigger than your design.
If your design is bigger than your tape, you can lay down a second or third strip of tape onto your wax paper until you have a big enough piece. It’s okay for your tape strips to overlap.
Next, set your design on top of your tape. Make sure there is tape extending beyond the edge of your sticker. If there isn’t, add more tape to your wax paper.
Now it’s time to put a layer of tape on top of your design. Be sure to cover all of the edges completely.
It’s time to cut out your sticker!
Make sure you have a tape border of about 1/8 inch or more outside the edge of your design (the width of your pinky is a good estimate).
Hurray, your sticker is done! When you’re ready to stick it onto something, just peel off the wax paper on the back.
Keep in mind that your sticker will come off in the dishwasher and make a big mess, so if you want to put it on a water bottle, you’ll need to rinse out the inside of your bottle by hand to avoid getting the outside wet.
Stickers don’t have to be hand-drawn. You can download and print designs from the internet or even cut things out of magazines.
Just remember your project layers: wax paper on the bottom, then a layer of tape, then your design and a second layer of tape on top. Easy peasy!
Do you want to see this cool project in action? These artists will show you how!
It can be super fun to swap stickers with friends, or even mail your stickers to someone far away.
You can also share your stickers with the rest of the OK community by adding pictures of them to our gallery.
