How to paint stencils on wood the easy way

I love everything custom made and I try to create my own style in my house. And stencils are the easiest way to make plain looking walls, floors or even furniture look fabulous.

But of course, before you start using stencils, you need to know the best way to paint them. And this is why I tried out different brushes and rollers.

I like to share my best results ‘How to paint stencils on wood’ with you and I am curious to see what you have been doing with stencils in your house.

 

How to paint a stencil on wood

If you are deciding you want to add a little glam on your wood deck, here is what I did:

 

First of all you need to gather all the material to get started. Check if you have some leftover paint in your house before you buy some.

But make sure the paint is for exterior use if you want to paint the stencil outside.

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Material List:

• Stencil (I bought mine at Michael’s for 10 $)
• Paint, buy a sample paint, flat, exterior
• Foam Roller, the small size
• Painters tape, level

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Where to buy stencils

I bought my stencil at Michaels for 10 Dollars. You can also get stencils at Joann or Hobby Lobby.  Maybe you can get something at Walmart, but I am not sure about that.

Or you buy them at Amazon, here are some links:

 

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I love this Mandala Stencil but still trying to find out where it could fit.

 

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Try it out first

Use a poster board or a cardboard and try it out. It is important that you get the feeling for the amount of paint you need to use on the roller.

 

First step:

Tape the stencil onto your test cardboard and get the foam roller and the paint you want to use. Try it out first for best results.

Second step:

Roll the roller a little bit in your tray of paint and load paint onto your roller.

Do NOT use a lot of paint on your roller, start with less paint rather than with a lot of paint because it will smear underneath the stencil.

Third step:

Paint onto your cardboard and try out different techniques. Roll only in one direction or roll up and down.

See what looks better, just lift up the stencil. No need to wait until the paint is dry.

Also try it out with different amount of paint on your roller to get comfortable.

Fourth step:

After you feel comfortable and you like the result on your cardboard, start taping the stencil down on your wood floor and paint.

 

 

Watch the video here to see how I do it and also see how it looks when you use the wrong roller:

 

 

 

 

 

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Here are some pictures of all of my test runs. For best result use the same foam roller I used.

First test was with a brush, did not like the result.

Second test was with a foam brush, did not like the result.

Third test was with a larger foam roller, did not like the result.

 

This is my absolute favorite result. The tiny little foam roller is the best version to choose when it comes to painting on wood. It allows you to only apply a little pressure and also just a little paint.

Rather go over the stencil a couple of times. If you add too much paint it bleeds underneath the pencil and the paint smears.

 

 

You can see the difference here. I painted this with a brush and it didn’t come out good.

 

 

 

There is more to come, so check back next week

If you love to add a little glam to your deck or porch, use a stencil and make it pretty. Make sure to try it out first and then just go for it. I love the result and I am not stopping here.

This stencil will also be used inside my house, so hold on because this post will be updated in a couple of days. I will share with you where I used this stencil on my walls and furniture. Now you know how to paint a stencil on wood but next week I will show you how to paint a stencil on a wall or make wall art with it.

I see you next week,

Conny

 

Update:

I used the same stencil to make my barn door look nicer. There was just too much blue and I was thinking about what to do.

And then I thought I am going to try the stencil and it came out so good.

• So I taped the stencil in the middle of the barn door,
• get a tape measure and define the middle of the door.
• Next step tape the stencil with frog tape on the door so it holds up well
• cover the floor underneath in case you drip paint
• Use the small foam roller and slowly start painting
• start with less paint on the roller and go over the stencil a couple of times
• let it dry
• remove the stencil

 

 

You might also want to read How to make wood signs the easy way

 

 

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