Video tutorial

Essential Blender Sculpting Brushes

This article turns the video transcript into a clear reference for the most commonly used Blender sculpting brushes. You will learn what each brush does, when to use it, and how to control the intensity with size and strength settings.

The six brushes covered here are the core of most workflows: Clay Strips, Smooth, Grab, Inflate, Crease, and Mask. Master these and you can block, refine, and detail nearly any sculpt.

Watch the video Brush breakdown Workflow tips

Clay Strips Smooth + Grab Inflate + Crease Mask control

Category: Blender sculpting tutorial Focus: core brush toolkit Level: beginner to intermediate

Video walkthrough

Watch the full tutorial for a live demonstration of each brush and how the strokes behave on a sculpted surface.

Brush breakdown

Clay Strips

Clay Strips is built for fast volume. Use it to block in forms and lay down broad strokes of material before refining.

Increase brush size for large forms and lower the strength for controlled buildup. It is ideal for the first pass.

Smooth

Smooth blends and refines surfaces. It is essential for organic transitions and removing noise after you add volume.

Hold Shift while sculpting to quickly toggle Smooth. Adjust strength to control how aggressive the blending feels.

Grab

Grab lets you pull and push forms to adjust proportions, silhouettes, and poses.

Use it early to fix large shape issues. A few controlled tweaks here save a lot of time later.

Inflate

Inflate adds or removes volume in a localized area. It is great for muscles, wrinkles, and organic variation.

Small passes build natural depth without breaking the overall silhouette.

Crease

Crease creates sharp lines, folds, and edges with high definition. Use it to emphasize wrinkles and hard transitions.

Control falloff and smoothness to balance crisp edges with a natural blend into the surface.

Mask

Mask protects parts of your sculpt so you can edit the rest safely. Paint masks to isolate areas before aggressive changes.

Blur masks to soften transitions and use invert to switch protected and editable areas quickly.

Workflow tips

Consistent results come from working large to small and switching brushes with intent. These tips keep the sculpt clean and efficient.

Block first: Start with Clay Strips and Grab to establish form.

Smooth often: Keep transitions readable before adding detail.

Control intensity: Size and strength are more important than speed.

Sharpen late: Add Crease after forms are locked.

Mask for safety: Protect areas before bold changes.

Useful links

Blender sculpting hotkeys · Installing brushes in Blender · Best sculpting brushes in Blender

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