In this post: Stenciling is the perfect way to create the high-end look of wallpaper on a budget! I’m sharing how to stencil a wall, including my best tips, tricks, & pics to help you get it done!
When a lot of people think about stenciling, visions of dated floral borders stenciled around your grandma’s kitchen come to mind. But there are SO many gorgeous stencil patterns out there now that can give you a high-end look! It’s been several years since I stenciled the walls in our powder room and I still love how it turned out:
I had never stenciled before I did this project and figured out a lot of things midway through that I wish I had known from the get-go. So of course I’d love to share all that info with you guys in case you’re thinking about giving stenciling a try (post includes affiliate links – full disclosure statement available {here}).
1. Choose a Stencil
There are a lot of great sources for wall stencils – some favorites include Cutting Edge Stencils {here} and Stencil Revolution {here}. For our power room, I went with {this Annapakshi Indian Damask Stencil} (11.25″w x 15.5″h size) from Royal Design Studio.
2. Gather Your Supplies
The next step is to gather your supplies. If you’re stenciling a large area, I’d highly recommend using a 4″ foam roller with handle like {this} and a 4″ paint roller tray like {this}. You’ll also need something for stenciling the corners and edges where the roller can’t reach. What I actually had the most success with was {this 1″ angled Purdy paint brush}. You can also use stenciling brushes like {these} that have great reviews – I tried some similar brushes and my paint brush worked better for me but you might want to experiment with both to see what you do best with.
3. Practice!
Once you have your paint and supplies, you need to practice! I used a piece of foam board to fine tune my stenciling technique and also to try out some different paint combinations to decide on the best one for my bathroom. And let me tell you, my first stenciling attempts weren’t pretty (see that bottom corner? yikes!).
Luckily, it doesn’t take long to get good at it. My biggest tip is to use very little paint! I followed the instructions from Royal Design Studio to offload as much paint as possible in the roller tray and to then roll it a few times over a folded stack of paper towels.
Then use light pressure to roller over your entire stencil – you’ll need to go back and forth over it quite a few times to get a good, even distribution of paint.
4. Figure Out the Best Spot to Start
Once you have your technique down, you’re ready to try it out on your walls. My tip here is to give some thought to where you want to start (you may want to center your pattern on the wall) rather than just jumping into it without thinking. Also, start on the wall where mistakes will be the least noticeable because even though you’ve practiced, your technique will improve as you get further into the project.
5. Level, Tape, & Roller Over Your Stencil
Once you’ve decided where to place your stencil, use painter’s tape to tape all four corners down and hold a level up to the side of the stencil to ensure that it’s straight. I didn’t use the level every time I placed the stencil but I did use it from time to time throughout the project to make sure I was staying on track.
As far as placement of the stencil, the stencil that I used had a built-in guide – there were cut-outs in the corners that lined up with areas that I had previously stenciled, ensuring that I was distributing my stencil evenly. So helpful!
Now you’ll roller over the stencil just like you did when you practiced – remember, use only a little paint, light pressure, and multiple rolls back and forth.
What about the corners? They’re tricky suckers! The key is to stencil just one side of the corner at a time. Jam the stencil as tightly into the corner and against the wall as you can (don’t worry about keeping the whole stencil flat – just worry about the area you’re stenciling) and use a brush with very little paint in a straight up and down dabbing motion. Once I stenciled one side of the corner, I would usually move on to stenciling another area of the wall to give that corner a few minutes to dry and then come back to do the other side of the corner using the same technique. It really helps to have two people doing corners (one person holding the stenciling into the corner with both hands and the other person stenciling) but it’s doable with one person too (I did all but one corner by myself).
I did something a little different where my stencil hit the ceiling and the tile on my wall. I actually waited to do these areas until I was done doing all of my other stenciling and then I cut my stencil (I used a yardstick to draw a straight line on it and then just cut it with scissors). I put a line of painters tape at the ceiling, taped the stencil down as usual and used a combination of my stenciling roller and brush. Sooo much easier than trying to work with a full stencil! Just be aware that even if you stencil evenly, often the walls aren’t even so some of the areas near the ceiling that you have left to stencil might be bigger than others – start with the biggest areas first and work your way down to the smallest. This way, you can continue cutting your stencil smaller and smaller to fit the space.
One other tip as you’re stenciling your room – I realized that the most common reason for my stenciling to be uneven was build-up of paint on my stencil. To combat this, every time I rollered or brushed over my stencil, I laid the stencil on an old cutting board and used a damp paper towel to wipe off as much paint as I could before continuing with my stenciling. Even doing this, eventually enough paint would build up that I’d have to clean my stencil fully to get nice clean lines and an even distribution of paint. Initially I tried just cleaning it with soap and water but the paint is HARD to get off and it took forever! I finally tried using a spray latex paint remover (sold at home improvement stores) and it worked beautifully! I simply put the stencil on my old cutting board, sprayed it, let it sit for a few minutes, and then washed the paint off.
My last tip is not to worry about making it perfect! Every single person who has seen our bathroom (and doesn’t read my blog :)) thinks that it’s wallpaper because when the whole space is done, you don’t notice all of those little imperfections:
But trust me, they’re there! My corners are far from perfect:
and there are several spots where my paint bled through the stencil (by the way, if you catch these as they’re happening, you can use a damp toothpick to swipe them away!).
As I was stenciling, I was thinking I would go back and touch up all of these spots at the end but truly you just don’t notice them so I’ve let them be!
I hope you all find this helpful! If you want to see more pics of my powder room (including the heinous “before” pics) and a complete source list for everything in the bathroom, you can check out my bathroom makeover post {here}.
I love the fact that stenciling is not a perfect art. The imperfections make each stencil you place on your wall unique I think! With this tutorial, your making me want to try! Thanks Kris!
Thanks Vel – I am admittedly a bit of a perfectionist at heart so at first I cringed over every little mistake but have come around to thinking the same as you!
Which paper stencils you do it
It came out so beautifully – you did an amazing project with this Kris!! I love the colors you chose and the stencil too, but your technique makes it – I have stenciled walls and fabric and it’s not easy to get it all lined up perfectly every time. Great tips to make it go smoothly!
Thanks girl! Does this qualify for the most long overdue tutorial ever? 🙂
Thanks for this, when I first saw the room it inspired me to get some stencils for my bedroom wall – needless to say they are still in the packet and the wall is still beige!
I hear ya Alexis! I had been meaning to try stenciling that room for months but it wasn’t until the One Room Challenge came up that it kicked my butt in gear to get it done. While it wasn’t hard, it definitely took a lot of time!!
I vowed to never wallpaper again, ever. But I never thought of stenciling as an alternative–and it looks great! Thanks for the inspiration.
After having taken off several rooms of wallpaper that came off in one inch strips I couldn’t agree more Doreen!
Kris,
This is great. I think your bathroom is a favorite of mine and I was definitely intimidated at the thought of ever attempting to stencil a room, but your instructions have me thinking maybe I’ll give it a try sometime.
xo,
Karen
Thanks so much Karen!
This brings back stencil memories for me. Your bathroom looks like a million bucks.
I think it’s kinda like having a baby – it took so many hours that when I was doing it I was saying to myself that I’ll never do it again but once it’s done and so pretty, you realize it’s all worthwhile and are ready to jump back in and do it all over again! 🙂
Thank you so much for your detailed tutorial. I have been investigating stenciling for a long time but I’ve been hung up on minor things like not knowing how the stencil will look repeated, what size stencil to get, etc. I am so surprised the size of your stencil is a small! I was under the impression the smalls were much smaller. I’m grateful your post clarified that for me. It was also nice to get your thoughts on accuracy and what you used to get the paint off the stencil.
Can I ask what type of paint you used? Was your paint also from Royal Design Studio or was it a wall paint from a paint shop?
I was actually surprised too when I looked at the measurements of the three sizes and realized that the one that would work best in my room was a small. I can’t imagine what you would use the large size for!! As far as the paint goes – I just used regular wall paint (Benjamin Moore for the base coat and Behr Premium Plus for the stenciling).
Yay! Thank you so much for taking the time to do this post!! You know I absolutely LOVE your bathroom and I’ve been wanting to stencil the back wall of my bedroom for years! Now I have so many great tips if I ever decide to go for it!
Kris this is such a helpful post. Thanks for sharing all these great close-ups, I know it takes a lot of time to stop and take photos. I love this bathroom. The bold graphic with that paint color is wonderful and I’ve already been scouring the web for stencil possibilities for my dining room. Your project has motivated me. My problem is that I have this one wallpaper stuck in my head and trying to find a stencil to replicate it, is complicating things.. Isn’t it funny how we get a certain vision in our head?
oh well, to be continued….:)
hugs,
Leslie
Love these tips! Stenciling can be tricky and this came out amazing!
Hi! What tips do you have for stenciling over a dark base with a lighter accent?
Thanks!
Veronica that’s exactly what I did in this space! It worked great!
Hi there.. i am trying to do something similar in my bathroom. But the problem is i do not have sunlight in the bathroom. So thats why i was thinking of lighter color scheme. Do u have any suggestions?
Kris! Thank you for this post. You have inspired me to do this for an accent wall in our very small powder room on our main floor. Can you tell me please, if you can remember, what paint colours you used ?
Thanks!
Sure! The Source List at the bottom of this post has all of the details on the paint colors and finishes: https://www.drivenbydecor.com/budget-bathroom-makeover/
Excellent workmanship. Keep going. I wish I could do it , my old age shaking hand restricts my urge. Thank you very much for sharing your idea.
Thank you so much! XOXO
Do you have any suggestions for stenciling a ceramic shower wall ? I would like to stencil the unobstructed walls using the stencil 2/1 deep for decorative effect. Perhaps gluing the stencil after raking the grout to account for the slight curve of the tile ends would work. What do you think?
Unfortunately I’m not sure if it would hold up in a shower. I’ve never tried it!
Hello! Your stenciling is beautiful! Did you remove your old wallpaper, before painting the walls, or did you paint right over the wallpaper?
Hello, your basic tips are helpful.
I’m in my upper 70’s so I can relate to kitchen and bathroom stenciling.
I’m embarking on stenciling 2 interior cement walls.
You say to begin by centering your stencil. That was different for me.
It was 40 years since my last attempt and the design was a border only.
I’m trying to conceal flaws in cement and chunks out if one edge where wall juts out.
Any helpful tips before I bite off more then I can chew. Hahaha.
Thanx you much.
Absolutely beautiful! THANK YOU for those great tips! I’m starting a stencil project and they will be very helpful!
I just love it. Where did you get the stencil?
There’s a direct link to the stencil I used in the third paragraph of the blog post 🙂
Hi. Your bathroom turned out so beautifully. Could you please share your two paint colors you used on your stenciled walls? I’m interested in stenciling my kitchen floor and those are the colors I would love. Thank you
Beautiful! Thank you so much for sharing this! I am intrigued by stenciling, there are some gorgeous stencils out there but a little intimidated by it all. You’ve made me realize that it doesn’t have to be “picture perfect” and will still look beautiful! Your bathroom is gorgeous by the way. I am going to give it a shot and will definitely use your tips.
Great info. I just ordered my first stencil and can’t wait to start.
Did you paint over the wallpaper? I have never been able to remove paper successfully. I’d love any tips you could share! Beautiful job; so inspiring!
No I removed the wallpaper – this post has some tips that might help: https://www.drivenbydecor.com/how-remove-wallpaper/
Just purchased a small beach cottage. You inspire me!! So glad I came upon your posts.