Comparisons

Click here for a comparison to alphabet and mylar stencils.

Are SayWhat? self adhesive masking stencils better than stick on vinyl letters?

Another option for quality looking text is to have the letters themselves cut out of self adhesive colored vinyl, which you then stick on to your surface. This works quite well for certain situations- in fact, many commercial signs are made this way- and the application is fairly quick since you skip the painting step. We can make, and even suggest using vinyl stick on letters, but only where appropriate (feel free to ask). However we don't generally recommend it to our customers for home and craft use. Here's a quick comparison ***
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*VINYL LETTERS*
COLOR: Limited choice of colors, most commonly bright primary tones. Most vinyl letters also have a plastic look which can clash with nicely finished furniture and walls.	You can use any color you can produce with paint, plus the ability to do shading, half tones, embossing, antique or faux glazes, gold or other metal leaf, distressing, glass etching, automotive finishes,even make each letter a different color... an almost infinite number of possibilities.
SURFACES/LONGEVITY: The vinyl will only adhere to certain surfaces. It is designed to work best on very smooth or specially prepared finishes, such as glass, enameled masonite, foam or gatorboard, finished metals (aluminum, steel etc.) vinyl banner material, and the like. It sticks OK to regular wall paint and smooth or finished wood for interior use, however it would not hold up for outdoor use on these surfaces.. *Letters won't* stick on fabric, rough or unfinished wood, stucco, or most other porous or highly textured surfaces**.	Will work well on almost any clean, dry, surface, using suitable paints. Ask if you have any doubt about your particular applications, we'll be glad to give you advice, and even send a free sample to try out if you'd like.
*Most vinyl offered to consumers (usually calendered* type ) is rated 5-7 years indoors and 3-5 yrs outdoors**. Better quality cast vinyl can last about 50% longer, but is much more expensive and is usually not offered on consumer sites. Ask about it. .	Painted letters will last indefinitely indoors, and 10+ years outdoors on clean, sound sufaces, using quality paint.
REMOVAL: The vinyl letters will likely leave a difficult to remove sticky residue when you eventually want to take them off, and may even pull up the underlying finish. And you can't just refinish over them like you can a painted motif, they have to be peeled or buffed off.	Our low tack adhesive will remove easily, and because it's applied for only a short time, problems are extremely rare. In most cases you can just paint over your work when you're ready for something else.
APPLICATION: The big plus of stick on vinyl is speed of applcation. Smaller vinyl letters can be applied very quickly in many cases, especially on surfaces designed for their use (see surfaces above). However, larger letters can be difficult to position and apply, particularly over 3 inches or so. The vinyl is very thin and buckles easily; creases and bubbles can be noticeable, though may settle out over time.	Very easy to apply on almost any surface, placing the stencil mask takes no longer than applying letters. From there it can require just a few minutes to paint a solid color, to a couple of hours if you are doing more complex color schemes, it's pretty much up to you. Bleeding (paint seeping under the stencil) is minimal if you follow our easy directions. We also have a NO FAULT replacement warranty if you have any problems.
COST: Cost is typically much higher, and is commonly charged per letter, with larger letters costing more. X Close Window	Just compare us to other companies that offer vinyl letters, we're up to 1/2 the cost. We price per foot for any font and size we offer.