Best Paint Brush For Stencils



  1. Stencil Brush Sizes
  2. How To Use Stencil Brushes
  3. Best Paint Brush For Stencils Free
  1. Check out our stencil brushes selection for the very best in unique or custom, handmade pieces from our shops. Craft supplies, stencil brushes, paint brushes, 4pk brushes, stipple brush, shader, liner, fine tip brush, 1/2' brush,brushes for stenciling WallCutz.
  2. Showing you how to paint your stencil using a stencil brush using the stippling technique.
  3. Lightly dip the tip of the stencil brush or sponge into the paint (do not saturate - you want just a little). Work the paint into the bristles by dabbing/swirling the paint in a fresh/dry area of your plate, then blot off any excess paint on a paper towel.
  4. Try to soften the paint. For water base paint best practice is to soak the stencils. For larger stencils you can roll them up and put in a drum. After 15 minutes most latex will soften and often it will peel off in sheets. You can help it with a soft nylon bristle brush.

Choosing the Right Brush for the Job

How many times have you heard that it’s important to use the right tools for the job? As a novice stenciler, I just grabbed up a variety of brushes at the local crafts store and went at it. It wasn’t until much later — once I had actually used a quality stencil brush — that I realized how much difference the proper brush can truly make. Since those early days, I’ve had the opportunity to experiment with a variety of brands, shapes, and sizes of stencil brushes. Here are the results of that research…

The dreamy, cream formula glides off your stencil brushes for excellent coverage and flow with less brush reloading! Stencil Creme paints dry quickly to a hard, durable surface and work on all the surfaces you want to stencil on - smooth to textured. These paints feature a velvety, gel-based formula to resist stencil run-unders.

General Tips

For
  • Choose good quality brushes with NATURAL bristles. Many stencil companies carry stencil brushes. If you prefer to shop locally, I also like the blue-handled Plaid Stencil Decor brushes.
  • When possible, feel the brush. Grab it around the bristles to see that they are densely packed. Swirl and pounce it on your hand and the store shelf to get a feel for the way it handles and how flexible the bristles are. Even within a brush line, there can be slight variations.

Stencil Brushes – Top Picks

Overall Favorites

For general use, here are my favorite brush lines:

  • Heart of the Home Stencils

These are all good quality private label brushes. There are probably many more brands of similar quality available from other stencil designers. These happen to be the brushes I’ve used the most and have had good results with.

For Fabric

Best Paint Brush For Stencils

Whimsical Walls Stencil Brushes: The split bristles on these brushes are specially designed to hold a LOT of paint, and the domed shaped helps get in between the fibers of your fabric when you need solid, even, coverage. They are perfect for painting those canvas tote bags, aprons, etc. — I used them to stencil a multitude of black checks on a canvas room screen for a project in Debbie Mumm’s Creative Stenciling.

Shading & Shadowing

Delta Stencil Magic® Super Shader Brush: This brush has curved edges and wide flat shape that make it ideal for adding shading and creating shadows.

Brush Care

Once you have the tools you need, try to take better care of them than I do mine, and clean them after use! When I do remember to clean my brushes, I use Murphy’s Oil Soap and a brush scrubber. Trainz railroad simulator 2019 download. This combination can even remove dried paint.

Brush scrubbers are usually available from the same Stencil Companies who offer quality brushes. Or you can just borrow one of your kids’ fuse bead pegboards, which are, as near as I can tell, simply more colorful versions of what the stencil companies sell as brush scrubbers.

How To Stencil On Wood Without Bleeding

Have you ever noticed that there is a learning curve to most DIY skills? I have a feeling I am not the only one who considers my first try on a new skill or project to be a practice try! The first try teaches me what to do or not to do on the 2nd try, generally.

How to paint with stencils without bleeding can be quite a challenge! My first attempts were disasters and I almost gave up until a friend showed me how to keep the paint in the stencil to create clean, crisp lines. You will need to practice a bit before you get the “feel” of it, but once you get it you are set!

In the past, I have tossed many a project due to paint bleeding under the stencil and wrecking the look of the piece I was making.

I most recently used my new technique on a beautiful table that someone gave to me. You could also use it on wood signs or on reclaimed barn wood. This technique is quite simple and doable and it only takes some painter’s tape to make it successful. You are going to need a bit of patience with this one as well, simply because adding the paint slowly and in layers will keep your stenciled lines crisp and clean.

***This post contains affiliate links for your convenience. Click here to read my full disclosures.


How To Use Letter Stencils

For my tabletop, I chose a French Poem Stencil. I thought it looked perfect with the style of the table as it has a Shabby Chic look to it.

I have used a lot of text and quote stencils in the past but this was my first attempt using such a small and delicate cursive text. Making sure that the text had a clean and crisp look was important to me because of the font’s delicate look.

In general, you can use letter stencils the same way as all other stencils and this technique works across the board too.

My Best Stenciling Technique

The technique that I like to use for stenciling on wood is called a DRY BRUSH TECHNIQUE. It is rather self-explanatory in that you are using a fairly dry brush to get the paint onto your surface. This will take some patience as it takes longer than just using brush strokes to apply your paint. However, you will eliminate a lot of the bleeding underneath the stencil that occurs with brush strokes.

A dry brush technique requires a prepped surface meaning that you have already sanded, primed, painted, or stained your surface so that it accepts the paint.

In my case, I have sanded my tabletop and painted it with Rustoleum Chalked Paint in Charcoal. You can see a few of my favorite colors below:

I am going to walk you through this simple technique and you can either watch the video below or you can scroll down to follow the step-by-step tutorial.

How To Stencil On Wood Using A Dry Brush Technique

Gather Your Materials: A Paintable Surface, Chalk Paint, Foam Brush, Stencil Of Your Choice, Painter’s Tape

  1. Figure out where you want to place your stencil on your prepared surface. In my case, I needed to move my stencil, but yours might be small enough to stay stationary. Either way, you will want to place it where it best works for your project.
  2. Tape your stencil to the project so that it is secure and will not move.
  3. When adding paint to your brush you will LOAD it and then UNLOAD it. This means that you will add your paint and then dab it off enough so that your brush is fairly dry but still covered with paint. This will prevent the paint from running or bleeding under your stencil.
  4. Now you will “bounce” the brush without pressing or pushing the paint onto the surface. You will probably need to “bounce” several times in one spot before you have the desired amount of paint on your project.
  5. Move slowly over your project bouncing in one spot at a time. You will find that the paint tends to stick to the stencil more than it sticks to your work surface, but that is normal. I found that a 2-3″ area was great to work on before moving to another area.
  6. Cover your entire stencil in this fashion.
  7. It is OK to remove the tape and remove your stencil from your work surface while the paint is still dry.
  8. If you are using a stencil that needs to be moved around (like my French Love Letter Stencil), let the paint dry before re-taping the stencil to a new part of the project. This will keep you from smudging your paint on accident.

Stencil Brush Sizes

Stencils For Wood Signs Or Furniture

I use a number of different brands of stencils and I have found that you really can’t go wrong unless you buy super cheap flimsy stencils. One of my favorite brands, however, is Cutting Edge Stencils simply because of their beautiful, decorative designs. I used their French Poem Craft Stencil on my table and I love the finished look!


There are so many ways you can go with stencils and paint. Honestly, the ideas are endless!

The best thing for you to do it just dive in and start practicing. Purchase an inexpensive piece of furniture from a yard sale or thrift store and clean it and paint it. Then get to work with your stencil and chalk paint!

Just remember to stay patient and wait until you get the “feel” of the dry brush technique before working on your desired piece. You can practice on a piece of scrap wood first.

Happy DIYing!

Check out these links for more DIY inspiration:

How To Use Stencil Brushes

If you like this post please be sure to PIN IT or share it on Facebook!

Best Paint Brush For Stencils Free

Related