Asymmetry

The resulting stencil frame. I played with the placement of Lara on the wood until I realized that if it were off-center I would be able to a) get a bigger version of the stencil on there and b) juxtapose her incredibly symmetrical face.

To make the stencil, I used to just print it out on regular printer paper and cut it out slowly and painstakingly with an exacto knife. Recently, though, I saw a great suggestion to first cover the stencil on the paper with clear tape - a brilliant idea which makes the paper not nearly as fragile and the tiny bridges to any islands far more preservable.

I wish I could say I also figured out some equally effective way to not spend forty-five minutes cutting out the nooks and crannies, but, alas, that remains for the OCD set.