stencilling (Q1280)

Method of creating multiple copies of a design by cutting it out of a thin yet durable piece of sheet material, such as thin cardboard, paper or parchment, and dabbing, pouncing, sprinkling, or rubbing a pigment through the openings (cut-out stencil). Stencilling and colouration can be repeated numerous times, with different colours and in addition to other decoration techniques like block-printing or metal-leaf embossing. Alternatively, small pieces of material such as grains of rice could be scattered over a piece of paper, usually already coloured, and sprinkling over them to create the decoration (scattered stencil).