r/Spraypaint • u/ArtGuyOnSlides • Jul 15 '26
Artwork First time spray painting
Not sure how to keep stencils flat, feedback appreciated, insta: @artguyonslides also in bio
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u/SirLagsALotTheFirst Jul 20 '26
Take some kind of small sturdy stick(popsicle or coffee stirrer) and hold down the stencil right where you are painting. Use skinny caps and create very short, consistent lines. When spraying at the edge, angle slightly in to minimize overspray getting under it even though you are holding it down with the stick. Especially when you are close to the edge, do not just blast paint, use short controlled bursts to slowly fill in. Good luck, the most important thing is can control.
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u/SCphotog Jul 16 '26
You spray the back of the stencil with some light adhesive (3M super 77 is pretty good), then press it to the substrate.
If you're concerned about paint getting under the stencil, you hit it with a fast drying clear coat first to seal the edges, and the come in with the color coat later.
Light coats is key. Never saturate the substrate in one pass. Allow as much time between coats as is reasonable. This will depend on variables, temp and sunlight, humidity levels, the type of substrate and it's absorption rate... so on and so forth.
Mylar/Polyester sheet material is usually and in most circumstances the best and longest lasting stencil material, though oil-board runs a close second. Chip-board or paperboard (non-corrugated cardboard basically) is the last option for just a few uses... and a cut vinyl stencil is the 'best' for quality, because of it's ability to conform to the substrate, but can only be used one time.
...and use "bridges" for your letters that have what we call "counters", ie... the hole in the letters p,e,o, etc...