Tattoo stencils are used to help a tattoo artist transfer a tattoo design onto the skin and continue tattooing without making mistakes. The stencils are super useful, especially if a tattoo artist is gaining experience and building their skills. When tattoo artists start working at a professional level, freehanding a tattoo is a no-go, that is why tattoo stencils help out a lot.

Many consider tattoo stencils to be a waste of time and not a real form of tattoo art. But, we do need to acknowledge that tattoo stencils make the artist’s work a lot easier. There is a smaller chance of a mistake, and the lining generally turns out excellent.

Now, it is important to mention that professional tattoo artists use pricey and special printers to print out their designs for the tattoo stencil. So, what we’re wondering here is; can you use a regular home or office printer to print out the design, or do you need to invest in a pricey tattoo printer?

If you’re wondering the same, you’re at the right place. So, without further ado, let’s find out whether you can utilize your regular printer to become a tattoo master.

Tattoo Stencils and Printers – Explained

What Is a Tattoo Stencil?

Tattoo stencils, as we mentioned before, are an outline of the tattoo design printed onto thermal paper or hectograph carbon paper. The stencils work as a template for transferring tattoo designs onto the skin. This helps the tattoo artist to create an outline, trace it and do the tattoo without complications or mistakes. Tattoo stencils can also be used to show the client how their tattoo might look on the skin or the place where the client decided to put the tattoo.

What Are Tattoo Stencil Printers?

Prior to stencil printers, tattoo artists only had paper and a pen at their disposal for creating tattoo stencils. This was a time-consuming process and it was truly complicated. But, with the development of technology, tattoo stencil printers became a thing and they took over the tattoo world pretty quickly.