Airbrushing can create great effects in artwork, but knowing just create the designs can take quite a bit of practice. Luckily, a number of step-by-step airbrush designs are available. They let even beginners create amazing works. These designs use several stencils employed in a specific order.
Purpose
Step-by-step airbrush designs allow inexperienced people to create intricate airbrush designs quickly. Even experienced airbrush artists can make use of airbrush design kits, allowing them to exactly recreate the design and then add their own touches to the finished product if desired. These designs can also be used as a means of building experience using airbrush stencils, letting new artists get a feel for how the stencils work together so that they may later begin designing their own stencils for original works.
Function
Each of the stencils in a step-by-step airbrush design represents the entire area that will need to be painted for a particular step. The stencils are secured with tape or by other means, paint is applied (generally a single color), and then the stencil is removed so that the paint can dry. Once the paint from the previous step has dried, the next stencil will be secured in place so that the next step can be completed. The stencils are applied in a specific order so that the various pieces overlap properly in order to create the desired design.
Types
A number of different designs are available in a step-by-step format. Depending on the intended surface that the design will be applied to, different materials can be used to create airbrush stencils for these designs. The most common stencil material is thin sheet plastic, which is rigid enough to hold its shape but light enough to be secured easily. If the design is being applied to a curved surface such as an automobile's contours, a preferred stencil material is silicone rubber. Another lightweight material, silicone is able to match the contours of the surface that it is placed on so that paint doesn't become sprayed on the areas that the stencil is trying to cover.
Considerations
When choosing a step-by-step airbrush design, make sure that the design that you choose will fit well on the surface that you intend to airbrush. You should also consider the material that your surface is made of, as this will determine how easy it will be to hold your stencil in place. Choose a plastic stencil for flat surfaces only unless it is made of soft plastic that is designed to curve or bend; silicone stencils can be used for most surfaces regardless of contour but may be heavier than the flat versions.
Potential
Even though many people see step-by-step airbrush designs as a means to get around the years of practice that it can take to become extremely proficient in airbrushing, the end result of these designs can still be magnificent. Most experienced airbrush artists still use stencils to some extent, so these stencil kits are merely a step beyond what is a common airbrushing technique. With freehand additions or the use of more than one design kit, even the basic designs created by these stencil kits can become amazing and unique works of art.
