What Do You Need to Make Stickers at Home? Here are Fun and Creative Ways!

Stickers are so easy and fun to make. Professional-looking stickers are achievable with simple materials that you can easily purchase from office supply stores or craft stores. Printing stickers at home is easy with inkjet printers.

You can also make stickers using adhesive vinyl, vinyl sticker paper, and a Cricut cutting machine. You can also make stickers using homemade glue and packing tape. If you are intrigued and interested, keep reading to know the step-by-step procedure on how you can create custom stickers.

Different Ways of Making Your Own Stickers

There are different ways of making stickers. You can make stickers by using glue, packing tape, sticker paper, and more. One method may be more time-consuming than the others. But, experimenting with these different sticker-making techniques will definitely add up to your belt of expertise.

Here are the different ways of making stickers:

Using Glue

Glue is easily accessible to purchase and is conveniently available at home. The first step in sticker making is creating the design. Design ideas are limitless and you can create any design that you can fancy. Designing stickers can be done using basic drawing materials that you may have at home.

You don’t have to worry about learning how to use a design software. With crayons, coloring pencils, markers, and any drawing materials as long as it is not washable, you can make your design. You can begin drawing your design on a clean thin paper.

What are your design options? You can draw a self-portrait, pets, or images cut out from magazines or newspapers, or you may even print out designs online which you can print on computer paper or a sticker sheet for best results. You have the option of how big or small your sticker designs will be.

In cutting your design, scrapbook scissors are recommended for this can easily cut around the edges of your sticker design. You can make die-cut stickers that perfectly conform to the shape of the sticker.

When your design is ready, you may now prepare the glue you need. The glue is going to be kid-safe and will not include harsh chemicals. Here are the ingredients and steps on how to make the glue which is similar to envelope glue:

Ingredients

1. Plain gelatin
2. Boiling water (4 tablespoons)
3. Sugar or corn syrup (1 tablespoon)
4. Vanilla or peppermint extract

Steps

1. Mix the ingredients together.
2. Store the glue in an airtight container. Overnight, the glue will transform into a gel. Before using it, place the container in a bowl full of hot water so it can return to its liquid state.
3. Turn the sticker backward, the design side facing down on the wax paper or aluminum foil. Using a regular paintbrush, brush over a light coating of glue. It is not necessary to drench the sticker with so much glue.
4. Wait for the sticker to dry before keeping them inside a plastic bag or box. Keep them until you are ready to use them.
5. You can only use the sticker when they are completely dry.

The sticker’s adhesive can be activated by licking or wetting it. This adhesive or glue is similar to that of a self-sealing envelope. Once you have licked the sticker, you can stick it onto various surfaces. This homemade glue has a strong adhesive so don’t just randomly stick your sticker anywhere.

Image by Martyav from Wikimedia Commons

Packing Tape Stickers

In this step, you may print or cut stickers from a magazine. For this technique, designs from magazines or printed from your inkjet printer should have water-resistant ink. If you are planning to make printable stickers, it is advisable to do a test copy if the ink will smudge or not.

Aside from the printed image, you can also cut out word stickers as printing labels. In choosing the image, you first need to consider the width of your packing tape. The printable image should be of the same size as the packing tape or better if it is smaller for easy adjustment.

If you badly need a large sticker and your packing tape is smaller than your sticker design, you would need to stack up packing tape one over the other. This can be risky because you may end up ruining your image. You need to overlap the packing tapes to ensure that all parts of the paper image are covered with tape.

When applying packing tape over the image, you have to check if there are bubbles or wrinkles. You may need to do this very carefully for you may end up tearing the picture. For packing tape application, you can burnish using TeckWrap Craft’s squeegee.

You may want to consider using washi tape. A washi tape is ideal for stickers because it is easy to apply and easy to remove as well. You can easily peel off a washi tape from the image if you want to. Washi tapes come in different colors and patterns which can give your sticker design a better aesthetic appeal.

The next step will require exposure to warm running water. Expose the paper side to the water and slowly peel off the paper while it dissolves.

For this technique, it is really important that the ink is water-resistant. The ink needs to remain on the packing tape for this to serve as your sticker.

If you are having a hard time removing the paper, you may want to submerge the sticker in a bowl of warm water. Let it soak for a few minutes until you can scratch off the paper backing. Once you have successfully removed the paper, you need to let the sticker dry completely.

The tape will regain its stickiness once it is dry again. You can trim off the excess tape around the image. You now have a custom sticker that you can proudly stick to any surface.

Sticker Paper

The best sticker paper or sticker sheets are available for purchase in most office supply and craft stores. A sticker paper or printable sticker paper is specially made for stickers. You can print any design on it and peel off its paper backing and your sticker is ready.

Most printable sticker paper can fit in your inkjet printer. You can easily print out designs you have made on your computer or an image you got online. You may even print your favorite family picture onto the sticker paper. If you don't have access to an inkjet printer, you can simply draw over the sticker paper and cut it out.

As an alternative, you may opt for a tacky sticker sheet. You can glue an image over the sticker sheet and you have a sticker ready on hand. This is a good idea if you have saved tons of cut-out images from your favorite magazine which you can use to decorate your personal belongings.

Avoid exposing your sticker paper to water for this may smudge the image or reduce the sticker paper’s adhesiveness. When positioning images, it is recommended to leave enough room for you to easily cut out the image. You may space them out at least ⅛”  apart.

You may cut your sticker using regular scissors or use scrapbook scissors for fun and creative edges. You can leave space for the design to have a white border around it or you can totally trace out the image.

Once your design is ready and you want to use your sticker, you can peel off the paper backing or protective liner and stick it to any surface.

Reusable Stickers

If you want to make reusable stickers, you may want to use repositionable glue. Repositionable glue is available in most craft stores or you can purchase them online. Stickers that use this type of glue will allow you to stick your sticker anywhere and you can remove and re-stick it anywhere.

You may apply repositioning glue at the back of your sticker design. Let it dry and you may stick it to any surface you like. This is a good idea for your own labels which you can transfer to the next notebook or the next pen that you may be using once the previous one is used up.

Mailing Label Stickers

There are printable mailing labels available for purchase in most office supply stores. You can draw over it or print your sticker design on it. You can simply cut your design and peel off the backing, and your sticker is ready. You may cover the back of your sticker with wax paper if you don't intend to use it yet.

Image by @craftita.creates from TeckWrap Craft Instagram Page

Double-Back Tape

If you want an easy DIY sticker, you may want to go for double-back tape. Using an image from a magazine or an image you’ve drawn, position the double-back tape on the back of the sticker image. Cut or trim the tape according to the design’s shape and layout. Voila! You have an instant sticker! You can stick the sticker to wax paper if you won’t use it yet.

Contact Paper as Stickers

Contact paper is translucent and looks amazing when placed on colored construction paper. You would need to draw your designs on the shiny side of the contact paper. Sharpies would be a good pen choice for contact paper stickers. Once you are done with your design, you may cut it out and peel off the backing.

Using a Sticker Maker

If you have an extra budget and you want to do away with messy glue or tape, you may find the sticker machine the best deal for sticker making. The sticker maker is so easy to use. Whatever image you may have, insert it through the sticker maker and wait for the image to come out from the other side of the machine with an adhesive already attached to it.

You can buy sticker makers in a craft store. This has cranks that you can turn to make the image move through the machine. Since the machine does the adhesive application for you, it is very convenient to use. You don't need to plug it in or use batteries to make it work.

Cup Vinyl Decal Using Reflective Vinyl

Image from TeckWrap Craft Instagram Page

How to make very sticky stickers?

Making a super sticky sticker is possible with a mixture of glue and water. Fevicol is advisable to use in making sticky stickers. Apply this mixture to any picture or drawing that you want to make into a sticker.

Even if the mixture is dry, it is still very sticky. Apply the mixture to a picture only if you are planning to stick it right away. A wax paper or any protective lining will not work because the image may stick to it permanently.

Making Vinyl Stickers Using Cricut Machine

A Cricut cutting machine is not only used for vinyl or printable vinyl. It can also be used for printed sheets or printed sticker paper. You can easily cut your stickers printed on paper or sticker paper using a Cricut cutting machine.

You can make any design you want to make with Cricut Design Space. You can also choose from the preset designs available. The concept of Cricut print-then-cut is possible when you print a cut sensor marking on printed images. This marking helps the Cricut machine determine where to cut.

Most Cricut machines like Explore Air 2, Cricut Maker, and Explore 3 can do print-then-cut. However, Cricut Joy can only provide you with the draw and cut features and not print and cut.

How to use Cricut Design Space?

Using Cricut Design Space is basically the same regardless of what cutting machine you are using. Preparing your template in the Design Space canvas is where you get to edit it and have access to its library of images. You can easily make Cricut stickers using Cricut Design Space.

You can read about how to attach colors using the Cricut machine and how to load your cutting mat for the cut process. For the cut settings of Cricut Joy, Cricut Explore, and Silhouette Cameo, you may refer to this guide.

TeckWrap Craft Cutting Mats

Available in Medium Tack, High Tack, Low Tack, Joy 6.5” and 12” Medium Tack Mats

You have to check that you are using the appropriate cut setting to avoid cutting the backing sheet of your sticker paper. You may decrease the cutting pressure so that cut will be through the sticker layer and not go through the backing layer.

The Cricut machine will detect the sensor marks you have included in the printed sheet. The machine will cut your design, and you may offload it once it is done.

Vinyl Sticker Paper vs Printable Vinyl

There are so many fun and creative ways of making stickers using Cricut printable vinyl and Cricut printable sticker paper. Printable sticker paper is not waterproof. You need to do extra work like applying a coat of aerosol acrylic to make it water-resistant.

If you are looking for an alternative, you may want to consider using Cricut printable vinyl as a vinyl sticker paper. With printable vinyl, you can make all sorts of vinyl decals, bumper stickers, and other decorative pieces.

Teckwrap Craft’s Adhesive Vinyl for Making Stickers

TeckWrap Craft has tons of amazing adhesive vinyl that you can use to make sticker designs. Vinyl is versatile in that it can stick to most smooth and flat surfaces. There are a lot of vinyl designs and patterns that you can choose from to make stickers.

With TeckWrap Craft, it is easy to make stickers using adhesive vinyl. It is just the question of what particular vinyl to use for your sticker. If you want to know more about how to make multi-color vinyl stickers, then you must read this blog article. You can make colorful stickers with vinyl.

You can make special stickers using TeckWrap Craft’s specialty adhesive vinyl like color-changing vinyl and glow-in-the-dark vinyl. Below are some sticker designs made from vinyl that can inspire you:

Image from TeckWrap Craft Instagram Page 

Are you feeling inspired? You can make your own sticker sheet using TeckWrap Craft vinyl and earn from it. You can start your own craft and sticker business with the help of TeckWrap Craft. You can read more about tips on sticker making and how to manage a sticker business on TeckWrap Craft’s blog page.

FAQs

1. Can you print stickers?

Yes, you can definitely print stickers. With printable sheets, you can begin making your design. You can make vinyl stickers or stickers using sticker paper.

2. How do you print your own labels with an inkjet printer?

You may print labels on standard letter-size sticker paper measuring 8.5” x 11”. You can use any graphic design program that your computer has. Most programs have preset label layouts that are ready for use and printing. You just need to input the description or labels that you want to include.

3. What printer can I use to make stickers with Cricut?

You can use a regular printer which can be compact that allows you to print, scan, and copy. You don't have to purchase an expensive printer to start crafting. The printer should be able to print on regular printer paper, Cricut brand sticker paper, matte sticker paper, glossy paper, photo paper, and other specialty paper.

4. What are stickers made of?

The adhesive backing is what makes most stickers what they are. Vinyl and stickers both have an adhesive component. The colors or designs on the sticker are made from ink as well as other forms of fabric, glitter, or other design components.

5. How long will stickers completely dry?

Stickers can dry up in a couple of minutes to an hour. To be safe, you can let your sticker dry out completely overnight.

6. How do you reglue an old sticker?

You can reglue old stickers by exposing them to high temperatures like a hairdryer. Heat will make the adhesive melt which allows you to remove it. Let the adhesive dry completely before sticking it again to another surface. If it won’t stick well, you may add a little glue and stick it again.

Image from TeckWrap Craft Instagram Page

Print, Cut, and Stick!

There are so many fun and creative ways of making stickers! You can make custom stickers that are colored or even black and white stickers! Whatever it is that you may fancy. Try the different steps above and make stickers for your family and friends for holidays and special days.

You can make your own print-then-cut sticker sheets using adhesive vinyl. TeckWrap Craft has tons of adhesive vinyl that you can choose from to make custom stickers. You can join TeckWrap Craft’s wholesale program to avail yourself of discounts and exclusive perks to start or maintain your sticker and crafting business.