When To Use Masking

There are times that masking is very helpful and there are times it can be kind of a pain to use. So when should you use masking? What masking should you use?

What is the purpose?

First, let’s talk about the purpose of masking. Masking protects your material by minimizing burn marks. When you want a nice clean cut, masking can be amazing. It’s especially helpful for material that has already been painted prior to printing, to keep that nice clean appearance.

Second, let’s talk about the complications of masking. If your masking comes loose during a print, it can cause issues. If enough masking comes loose, it could potentially start a fire. I haven’t ever personally had an issue with this, but I’ve heard others talk about it happening.

My recommendations are:

1. Use a quality masking material that has the appropriate amount of tackiness for your material.
2. Use a tool such as a plastic razor blade or brayer or something else similar to press the masking down firmly to the material. If the masking is not applied properly, it is more likely to come loose. This doesn’t have to be any special tool – you could use a credit card or ID if you have to.
3. Find a method of applying the masking that works best for you. Many people will do this different ways, and there is no right or wrong method, in my opinion.

Choose when to use masking in a way that makes the most sense to you.

Choose when to use masking in a way that makes the most sense to you.

If I’m going to paint an item after cutting, then there’s really no need for me to use masking.

If I painted my material before cutting, then my personal best practice is to paint, seal and mask. Do I always follow this process? No. But when I don’t, I sometimes have to repaint the item. This just happened to me recently. First, I painted my material with white spray paint. I let it dry fully. Then I cut my items. They had a dingy look to them from the laser and the smoke from cutting them. I ended up repainting them. (I might not have needed to mask if I had sealed after painting, sometimes things are easier to clean if they are sealed first).

It will take trial and error on your part to decide what works best for you. There are some materials that I usually don’t mask, unless I’m painting inside letters or something like that. I don’t always mask acrylic, for example. But if I’m cutting dominoes or a keychain and want to paint inside a score line, then I mask the material, remove the masking inside the parts I want to paint.

Another tip about masking:

My favorite method for using masking with items I am painting:

1. Mask the item before cutting.
2. After cutting, remove the masking from the areas I am painting.
3. Paint with your choice of paint. (Spray paint is a favorite of mine because it’s easy and often looks smoother than painting with a paintbrush. For complicated designs or intricate details, I love paint markers.) Let the paint dry for about 10 minutes.
4. Remove the remaining masking. Letting it sit for 10 minutes allows the paint to dry a little but not enough to damage the paint when you remove the masking.

What works best for you? I’d love to hear about your experience.

-Ally