February 28, 2024

Brushing vs Rolling vs Spraying: What's Best for Me?

Key FAQ Points:

• Brushes and rollers are more affordable, whereas a sprayer is a bigger outlay and uses more paint.
• Spraying can be quicker as long as you can mask off everything that shouldn’t be painted.
• Spraying eliminates brushmarks, but this can result in a finish that’s a little too flat for some projects like furniture painting.

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Whichever method of application you choose, practice makes perfect! A combination of good surface prep, good technique and honing your personal technique will be key. Below, we’ll look at the key differences between the different methods…

Brushes and rollers are more affordable

The clear advantage of brushes and rollers is that there are plenty of options available quickly and easily at relatively low cost. On the other hand, a sprayer is a much bigger outlay. It also uses up a lot more paint – another reason it’s not a budget option, compared to brushes and rollers.

It’s worth noting that not all brushes are the same. Frenchic brushes use a careful ratio of natural bristles and synthetic fibres, constructed for optimal chalk paint pickup.

Spraying can be much quicker

Spraying can make painting some projects quick and simple – providing you have the space and are able to mask off everything in the area that you don’t want sprayed.

But it’s not always suitable

There are some things that are hard to mask off, including any silicone or rubber seals on projects like front doors or windows – painting over these is not advisable.

Spraying eliminates brushmarks

Brush marks are a concern to some. Certainly, using a sprayer can provide a super-smooth finish but there are times when this can look a little flat and devoid of character and a hand-painted look is more desirable. This is covered in our FAQ on brushmarks.

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