Stencil on Wood without Bleeding

You all know that I’ve been obsessed with making custom wood signs, right?!  Today I want to give you a quick rundown on how to Stencil on Wood without Bleeding – it’s what everyone wants to know!

Stencil on Wood without Bleeding

It really does make a different to have the right supplies on hand.  This post is in collaboration with Expressions Vinyl and may contain affiliate links.

Things you’ll need:

—Stencil Vinyl Starter Kit – it comes with 10 sheets and 4 sheets of transfer tape

-OR-

—Stencil Vinyl 

—Transfer Tape (my favorite is the clear grid!!)

Why use Stencil Vinyl?

Stencil Vinyl is vinyl that is made specifically to be used as a stencil.  It’s edges are supposed to seal to your project better than regular vinyl.  When the edges seal better, there is less likeliness of paint seeping under the edge and more likeliness of crisp lines.  IT MAKES A DIFFERENCE!!!  THAT’S why you should use it!

Stencil Vinyl is one-time use, it sticks to your project.  Stencil Material is thicker, like a firm plastic sheet, that you use over and over.  They are two different things.  You’ll cut it like you cut regular vinyl, maybe with just a little bit more pressure.  DO NOT use the preset “stencil” material cut settings (if you’re on a Silhouette Machine) – those are for Stencil Material, not Stencil Vinyl

Normally my method is to use regular vinyl, then seal the edges with mod podge, then paint.  (You can read about that vinyl stencil method HERE).  That gives crisp edges.  But I wanted to see if Stencil Vinyl could get crisp edges without the step of sealing the stencil.  So I tested it!  I used stencil vinyl and I DID NOT use mod podge.  Results: it definitely sealed better than just regular vinyl.
BEST OPTION: stencil vinyl WITH the mod podge layer to seal it, it’s the ultimate choice.  Overall I was impressed with Stencil Vinyl plain compared to using regular vinyl plain. (Stencil Vinyl is the same cost as regular adhesive vinyl, about $1 per sheet.)

How to Stencil on a Wood Pallet Rough Board VIDEO TUTORIAL

This was a project during LIVE craft club??  Want to watch the step-by-step video? you can do that here:

How to Stencil on a Wood Pallet Rough Board PHOTO TUTORIAL

BOARD PREP: To prep the board, I didn’t clean it, but I DID give it a quick coat of Clear Spray Paint to help prep the surface.

First up cut your design, using the same settings as you would for cutting vinyl.  Next, peel away (weed out) the areas where you want to paint.  Here I wanted to paint the numbers, so I weeded those out.  Then you use transfer tape to move your design to your project.

The Stencil Vinyl sticks SO GOOD to the rough surface of the board – it’s a game changer! At this point you can use a thin coat of mod podge to seal your stencil, if desired.

 

Paint your design.  Use several thin coats of paint instead of one thick coat.  It’s more of a “dab” and less of a “paint”.

The best part!!!  When mostly dry, you can peel off your stencil vinyl to reveal your project!

 

You can see how there’s no bleeding – nice, crisp lines!!  You can leave it as it (top board), or sand it to give it a more “distressed” look (bottom board)

I went with sanding because I like the distressed look:

 

 

How to Paint Signs with a Stencil

If you are looking for more tips on vinyl and stencils, I have several other posts and project examples:

Grateful Sign

Create Painted Canvas

Wood Cut-Out Stencil 

Starter Pack of Stencil Vinyl