For anyone with any Cosplay or Painting experience
By
ChristopherRobin,
Posted on: 2012-06-26 13:19 in Multi-Media Fan Creations
Make use of contact paper instead of masking tape. Spray your primer coat, mask the center area where the blue circle and white star are as well as a concentric circle for the white stripe, then spray red. When THAT is completely dry (Make sure it is COMPLETELY dry!) peel off the center circle and apply a new mask in a star shape, and mask over the red stripes as well, so everything that isn't meant to be blue is covered. Spray blue, wait for complete dryness, remove mask. Afterwards it may be a good idea to add a transparent topcoat as a finish.
That's all probably redundant info, but as tips for dealing with the domed surface: Use a pencil to mark the edges of where every piece of your contact paper mask will go. That should help line things up when applying things, and if you leave like 1/8 inch between the edge of your contact paper and your pencil mark and draw lightly, the colored paint will cover it.
For making the mask for the white stripe, if you cut out the contact paper in a circle to begin with it should lie pretty close to the domed shield's surface without wrinkling.
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Ummm... what she said. 
Thanks, FlashToo! That makes sense. Though I've never heard of contact paper, I will look into it as soon as I can. (At this point, it is going to be in the mid 90s all week here in Chicago, so I won't be doing any of this work until it cools down anyway.) I appreciate the advice!
@Winter. Because I'm Winter. Period.
I am a blaster first, and an alt-oholic second.
You're welcome 
You know that sticky-backed plastic that you see covering tabletops in kindergarten rooms and at church bake sales and stuff? My school cafeteria used it on some surfaces and I loved poking at the bubbles to make them move around when I was a kid - that's contact paper. Basically, you can trace your stencil/mask designs onto that and cut it out because it's one great big sheet, so you don't have to deal with making smooth curves out of tape.
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I am NOT a cosplayer. For the below project, I had no idea where on the internet to look for info about this, so I figured I would see if anyone in the community I do know had any input before exponentially expanding my search.
However, I happen to be in possession of a 21-inch-diameter, 16 gauge steel stage combat shield that I intend on painting a la Captain America's shield for use in a Halloween costume and then mounted on my wall as a blatant admission that I am a superhero geek. (Shield viewable here)
What I need from you all is advice.
I intend on using spray paint (white primer base coat, design in glossy top coat), as that will offer the most even coverage in the design without having to invest in expensive air-brushing equipment. I have worked out the measurements of each part of the design, but the one variable I have not been able to figure out how to measure, nor work around, is the dome shape.
I am wondering if anyone has any past experience with a similar project, specifically painting a design on a curved surface, and if so, got any advice for how best to go about it to yield the best results? I appreciate any and all feedback.
@Winter. Because I'm Winter. Period.
I am a blaster first, and an alt-oholic second.