Tip Trick Here: How to Add a Paintbrush Effect to Images in Microsoft PowerPoint

26 July 2018

How to Add a Paintbrush Effect to Images in Microsoft PowerPoint

Microsoft PowerPoint 2016 can be a capable tool to create interesting image effects if you know how to combine its features. For instance, in this post, we’ll show you how to give a cool paintbrush effect to any image.

PowerPoint Final Brush Effect

Microsoft PowerPoint does not have a variety of brush styles like Adobe Photoshop. So, here’s the workaround:

First, use a paintbrush font or download a free paintbrush font to your PC. Then, convert the chosen font to a shape and use it to hide and reveal part of a photo.

Let’s do it step-by-step.

Step 1: Convert a Font to a Shape

Intersect the rectangle and the font.

Download a free paintbrush-styled font and install it. For this tutorial, I am using a font called Rush Brush.
Open a blank slide and type a capital I (or any other letter if you want). Increase the font size.
Go to Insert > Illustrations > Shape. To turn the font into a shape, draw any shape (e.g. a rectangle) that covers the letter. Also, go to Drawing Tools > Format > Shape Outline > No Outline.
Select the shape and the letter. Go to Drawing Tools > Format tab > Insert Shapes group > Tap the Merge Shapes dropdown > Select Intersect.
The font and the shape intersect to form a new shape. This will be the building block for your paintbrush effect design as you can now tweak it around like any other shape. For instance: increase its size or rotate it around.

Step 2: Create the Paintbrush Strokes

Now, you can group multiple shapes and add a picture or color behind them to create slides with visual impact. The above photo used a picture hidden behind the paintbrush shape.

Duplicate the paintbrush shape to assemble them into a pattern. Press Ctrl+A to select all and then go to Format > Merge Shapes > Union and group them as one combined shape.
To create a mask that will overlap the photo, insert a rectangle. Choose Shape Outline > No Outline. Then, right-click on the rectangle and select Send to Back > Send Backward from the menu.
Now, subtract the font shape from the rectangle to create the transparent hole. Select the rectangle shape first and then the font shape. Go to Format > Merge Shapes > Subtract.
Choose a color for the rectangle shape that matches the slide color. For instance, white.
Insert a picture on the slide. Again, select Send to Back > Send Backward. Now, the rectangle shape acts as the mask for the picture except the subtracted area which works like a frame.