Stippling or Swirling ~ Which technique should I use?
Stippling or Swirling
After you have loaded your brush, there are two primary techniques for stenciling. It will be personal preference as to which technique works best for you. It is also fine to combine the two.
Swirling will often result in a soft almost airbrushed effect while stippling generally results in more texture.
Stippling is more forgiving, especially if you have a tendency to have too much paint on your brush, or are stenciling on a heavily textured surface. It is also an effective technique to use when stenciling elements that you might prefer to have an appearance of, more texture, for example pots, bricks or animals.
Swirling
Begin your stenciling by positioning your brush half way on, half way off the cut-out area. Using a light pressure, rub the brush in a circular motion around the edges of the cut-out area and then spiral in towards the center. To deepen the color, go back around again. Do not necessarily reload brush. Hold down the stencil with your other hand making sure it stays flat to your surface. Leave a somewhat highlighted area in the center of the cut-out. This will help add dimension to your stenciling. Reload your brush when you feel you are working too hard and no paint is coming off your brush.
Stippling
To stipple, load your brush as you would for swirling. Positioning the brush half way on halfway off the cut-out area use a light tapping motion holding the brush perpendicular to the surface and following the edges. You will start to see a mottled dotty effect, keep tapping until it starts to appear more blended.