An apparatus and method for making a panel with superimposed
layers of marking material in substantially exact registration is provided. An
assembly includes a stencil layer sandwiched between a substrate and a transparent
coating. The stencil includes a release surface. The
coating tends to secure the stencil layer to the substrate, e.g., for storage and / or transport, and may protect the stencil layer from marking materials that might otherwise penetrate the stencil layer. A design and background
layers are then printed onto the
coating. A force is then applied to remove the background layer, design layer, and coating that are disposed on the stencil layer, leaving the remainder of the background layer, design layer, and coating adhered to the substrate in substantially exact registration within portions of the substrate that are devoid of the stencil layer. The design layer is right-reading visible through the substrates.