Good
Evening My Friends,
As
promised to my followers, I gathered information on the different
mediums available to use on your projects. Hopefully this can help you decide what to use
with your acrylic paint to obtain the effect that you want. Most mediums can be added to the paint in any
amount until you've the achieved the desired effect. Using medium, you can
modify acrylic paint properties like thickness, shine, drying time and
texture.
A. Gel Medium
Acrylic paint can be dilute with water, but I wouldn’t recommend it because the paint will loose
its adherence properties, causing uneven coverage. Adding gel medium to the
paint is a way to increase the paint’s transparency without compromising the
consistency and adhesive properties. Gel medium will have a unique effect on the
consistency, finish and adhesive.
Liquid Glaze Medium
Liquid
gel will increase fluidity and transparency of acrylic paint, so brushstrokes
will be less visible. It can be used to decrease the color intensity of acrylic
paint. Glazing allows you to obtain a transparent layer of paint,
slightly modifying the color underneath.
Gel Medium Finish
Gel
medium comes in matte, semi-gloss or gloss finish. The finish alters the
paint’s level of shine. If your completed painting has an uneven finish, with
some areas glossier than others, using a medium varnish finish will correct
this issue, resulting in uniform shine.
Gel Medium
Most
gel mediums can be used as adhesive, which works well for collaging papers.
B. Texture Mediums
Texture
mediums are used to modify the texture of acrylic paint. There's a
wide variety of texture mediums, which I love to use: modeling gel, sand texture gel, beads texture
gel, pumice, glass texture gel and so much more.
Texture mediums: modeling paste
Modeling
paste is the most commonly used texture medium. It can be used
to create 3-D textures. Once dried, modeling paste can be sanded and/or painted
over.
C. Flow Medium
You
can buy medium that will increase the flow of acrylic paint. Increased flow
makes the paint easily adhere to the canvas’s texture, increasing its staining
properties.
D. Slow Drying Medium
Acrylic
paint dries very fast, making it difficult to blend colors on the canvas. Adding
slow drying medium to the paint will double the drying time, which will allow you to blend colors.
