Acrylic Painting Tips

© by Carl (CAKUart); all rights reserved

Acrylic painting is a versatile medium to use as it dries quickly, can be increased in density to create more texture, thinned down to create a lighter appeal and can be painted over without spoiling the previous layer of paint.  

Acrylic paint is a mixture of pigments and water that is combined with a binding agent (polymer emulsion) which becomes quite tough as the water eventually evaporates from the paint mix. 

"Music To My Ears"
Original Art by Carl (CAKUart)
4 x 40 x 40cm Acrylic on Canvas

If you are planning on using acrylics as your chosen medium, then please go ahead and have a look at some of my acrylic painting tips below -- they have served me well so far and I am sure you will get at least one "golden nugget" from this page...

Cling wrap is very handy to mix your colours on if you have opted to keep a clean palette. It reduces your cleaning up time. Cling wrap is also a good little tool to cover the wet area on your palette if you have stop painting due to unforseen circumstances i.e.: a phone call etc. This will keep your paint wet and prevent wastage. 

Although acrylic paint is fast drying, you can get a couple of days grace if you cover your palette well. 

Tip: Take the phone out of your studio and switch it onto answering machine. You'll get more painting done. It may be a hard habit to get into at first, but if you are looking to develop your craft seriously, try to eliminate as many unnecessary detractions as you can.
 

I use a glass panel palette on top of a clean white sheet or big piece of white paper.

The glass need not be any thicker than a standard windowpane. 

The reason why I use this method is because you can clearly see your colours as you mix them on the glass pane. The white sheet (or paper) acts a great "neutral" backdrop.

 Try it; you'll never look back.

This works exceptionally well for oils. I like both acrylics and oils but I think oils respond better to the mixing process. 

Preserving Your Leftover Paint

Ok I admit it; I am not really good with colour names. I am referring to the colours that I mix in the "heat" of a painting session. I don't really have a colour chart to try and research as to what colour I have invented (or at least think I have invented). 

Yeah I know, it is hardly unlikely I have ever invented a new colour... but I like to think I have (wink).

There have been times when I have a substantial amount of one or two colours remaining from my painting session. It doesn't happen a lot any more -- as I have become quite good at measuring what I need -- but it does still happen on occasions.

So what I to do is... 

• Put the remainder into an empty small container or small fruit jars that can be sealed properly and then swipe a strip of that particular colour on the front of the container jar… then seal the container. If I have no lid, I seal it with some cling wrap.
  
  

• You'll now know what your colour is by sight instead of having to remember the actual name of the colour you've mixed. Writing the colour details on the container simply does not register with me as well as physically seeing the colour -- that's why the "splash of paint" on the container is great for immediate recognition. 
  

• This little procedure is a good way to salvage some of your art painting supplies.

 If you are like me, when you start your next painting session, you probably wont even scrape the paint back onto your pallet and instead... paint from the container. It saves time and creates less mess. 

Water Water Water

Make sure you have adequate containers of water on your working table.

Having a rinsing container then a water and soap container is handy to have within arms reach.

I don’t clean each brush as I use it – it's simply not practical for me as it chews up too much time. What I do is throw my brush into a container of clean water to let it soak and there it stays until I am ready to clean up, unless off course I need it again throughout the session.

If I do need to re-use a brush, I have off cuts of sheets and old rags in my studio, so I can dry the brush properly before I use it again. Doing this prevents those water runs when you apply the paint on the canvas.

I do clean my brushes properly after the day's session. Its a good idea not to fall into the habit of leaving your brushes in the water for too long. The bristles will eventually lose their sharpness, shape and fall out – onto your painting as you apply them to the canvas – Grrrrrh!

Additional Tools of The Trade

I keep a pair of pliers (or multigrips) handy to help unscrew those very difficult to loosen paint tube caps. 

Years ago I would let my tubes soak in hot water for a little while. But this became a little too time consuming for me. (Are you beginning to pick up that I don't like wasting time?)

In the past... if I have not managed to get the cap off... I often resorted to simply cutting the opposite end of the tube open in haste, just so I could start working. The multi-grips do the job just fine though.

Side note: Make sure you use good quality acrylic paint materials. It really is worth it to pay the extra money to have a quality product. The problem with cheaper types of paints is that they do not respond well to varying temperatures and light.

Enhance Your Acrylic Painting Techniques

Then add some impasto gel in your paint mix. 

A good quality impasto won't alter your colour  -- at least not to the naked eye. 

Impasto gel is much like an "extender" that allows you to cover more canvas space or create more textural depth.

Of course... if you want the opposite effect, simply use water to thin your paints down.

While I favour oils over acrylics -- as they are more earthy in colour and texture -- I really love acrylics because they are very versatile.

With acrylic being a quick drying paint, it is great if you are producing work for private art commissions and you need to ship some work out sooner than later. But having said that...quick drying doesn't allow you the time to work (manipulate) your paints as well as you can with oils. 

So the answer is... to use an acrylic gel retarder. A gel retarder will slow the paint drying speed down quite considerably and allow you to work with a bit more ease. 

Acrylic paints are excellent for outdoor murals (see one I produced below) as they are weather resistant. So one of my acrylic painting tips here would be to make sure you treat the back and sides of the board with a water proofing agent before you actually start painting. 

This will help to eliminate dampness in the board if the rain does hit the mural from different angles and also protect it from the extremity of the sun.

 
"Greek Island Mural" Original art by Carl (CAKUart)
Acrylic on Hardboard -- 5.2 metres by 1.8 metres  
 

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