I have used similar paint sticks before. The ones I used were oil paint sticks. You have to peel a little of the tip off,as it forms a skin, then rub on a paper pallette. They worked really great and did not bleed under the stencil. I felt like I had more control with what I wanted it to look like, less or more paint on my stencil brush, if this makes sense. They last a long time. I had a great experience using them....