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I'd like to make my own stickers like the ones produced for LEGO sets using a design I've made in Photoshop.

  • What do I need to make stickers for LEGO, what kind of printer do I need?
  • Will the stickers be able to come of my LEGO bricks cleanly?
  • Can I also get sticker paper on a transparent sheet?
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  • Related: A good way to print images onto minifig body parts?
    – aedia λ
    Commented Nov 23, 2011 at 17:17
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    @aedia: I was under the impression that question was about printing directly onto LEGO. It seems a little different to my question.
    – Ambo100 ♦
    Commented Nov 23, 2011 at 17:21
  • @Ambo100 the water decals are 'stickers' . It's not a way to print directly (like a printer would). It's a form of stickers. Like sticker sheets you can buy it in plain sheet (white or clear), print your design on it and stick it on your subject. The advantage of the water stickers is that they will conform to the surface (it will look like it's painted on, but it's a sticker)
    – pcantin
    Commented Nov 23, 2011 at 17:39
  • I think this question is sufficiently different enough for me to undelete this question. I'm also desperate for an answer.
    – Ambo100 ♦
    Commented Dec 5, 2011 at 14:22
  • Some printing shops and specialized sellers like we are can also let you print stickers with them. We use LEGO stickers like materials that are also computer cut.
    – Johan
    Commented Aug 26, 2012 at 12:20

2 Answers 2

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At office/stationary stores such as Office Max or Staples you can get printer friendly sticker paper. The 'AVERY STICKER PROJECT PAPER' comes in clear or white. You can shop around for different finishes. Some are more paper like and other are more like plastic.

From experience this is only good for flat surfaces. To ensure maximum adherence, I recommend to clean the surface with a soft soap. After the surface is dry, rinse it with 99% alcohol and let it air dry. this will remove any remaining oil or dust. You can then apply the sticker to the surface.

You can print you design directly to it and cut it to size using scissors or a craft knife. For complex shapes, you can use a swivel craft knife: enter image description here

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  • The closest thing I could buy was an A4 Avery sticker sheet with four compartments per sheet. How can I cut out complex shaped stickers?
    – Ambo100 ♦
    Commented Feb 9, 2012 at 16:46
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    For complex shape I use a Swivel Craft Knife (see the picture in the edit). It's really good for details and curves.
    – pcantin
    Commented Feb 9, 2012 at 17:01
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    The hard part was finding the right template. Avery seem to have thousands of templates. I would have preferred to have printed from Photoshop but I ended up using Avery's online service to design my sticker. I was forced to use up all four stickers.
    – Ambo100 ♦
    Commented Feb 9, 2012 at 17:44
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    Here's the final result
    – Ambo100 ♦
    Commented Feb 9, 2012 at 18:06
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One important point that the previous answer omits: With the typical "water slide" decal paper, after printing your pattern, generally with an ink-jet printer to get the colors you want, you must waterproof the pattern by spraying several coats of Krylon clear enamel or equivalent and allow it to thoroughly dry before cutting out and trimming the decal and putting it in water to remove the backing paper.

Also, except in unusual applications, you will want to apply the decal to a WHITE brick, not one of the other colors. This is because of the subtractive nature of printing: white is assumed to be the starting color.

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  • Varnish/Finish is mentioned in the 'previous answer' regarding Water Decals.
    – pcantin
    Commented Dec 19, 2011 at 20:17
  • @Bill, This would be a good answer for this question.
    – Ambo100 ♦
    Commented Jan 10, 2012 at 9:20

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