You may have seen them at your local art supply or online. I’m talking about Taklon brushes, the synthetic-hair alternative to hog bristles. So, are Taklon brushes good for oil painting? As it turns out, Taklon is a great synthetic alternative to hog’s hair or nylon. The synthetic fibres last a long time and they …
One of the nice things about the information age is that we have a lot of knowledge at our fingertips. The caveat, of course, is that there is also a lot of misinformation. If you’ve been wondering ‘Can You Use Vegetable (Olive/Sunflower/Cooking) Oil For Oil Painting’ then I’ll address that question today. The quick answer …
Can You Use Vegetable (Olive/Sunflower/Cooking) Oil For Oil Painting? Read More »
Experimenting with your oils is one of the pleasures of painting and you’re going to try quite a few mixes. At times art feels a little like alchemy in that way. If you are wondering ‘what can I use instead of linseed oil for oil painting’ then you’ve come to the right place. You can …
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You may have noticed in museums that a lot of paintings have a little yellowing or seem a bit darker than the composition might call for. This is actually quite normal and today we’re going to talk a little about why oil paintings turn black. Studies have been done on this and it is believed …
Oil paintings can and do occasionally get warped a bit. Sometimes different drying rates can put undue pressure in places or the canvas might ‘slack’, which is loosening up naturally. Maybe your stretcher bars have been damaged. So, can an oil painting be restretched? While you have to be very careful about it, oil paintings …
If you are a little to oil painting or you’ve simply never tried it before, then you’re probably wondering what all the fuss is about. Can you use boiled linseed oil for painting and if so, why would you? Boiled linseed oil is actually great stuff. You get a faster drying time and a smoother …
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If you like to work with different mediums then it’s only natural to wonder if you can swap your tools between them and if so, how well it is going to work or not. If you want to know ‘can I use my acrylc brushes for oil painting?’ then I’ve got some good news. While …
Displaying your art is half of the fun and you’d probably like to know the answer to the following… Can an oil painting be put behind glass? The answer is yes, but it’s best to do this only with very old oil paintings. Oil paints dry different from other paints, in a slow process of …
If you’re fairly new to working with oil paints, then something you might see is a sudden dullness in a painting that looked bright and perfect before. If you are wondering ‘why does my oil painting look dull?’ then I may have a good answer for you. ‘Sinking’ is something that can happen to your …
Mixing and matching tools can be a lot of fun, but it can also shorten their lifespan. This begs the question ‘can I use watercolor brushes for oil painting?’ and the answer is… Yes, with a caveat. While watercolor brushes will be compatible with oil and great for detail work, you’ll need to find out …
If you’re new to oil painting then you’re probably wondering how long you should wait to varnish an oil painting. The quick answer to that is that you should probably wait 6 months before you varnish, or at the very least you should wait 3 months. You want to give your oil paints time to …
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So, you’ve finished your oil painting and you want to move on to your next masterpiece. If you’re wondering where to store oil painting while drying, it’s actually not all that difficult. While leaving it on the easel is certainly an option, it’s better to invest in a drying rack so that you can keep …
Oil paintings, especially old ones, can be quite fragile and if you are unlucky, the paint might get cracked. So… Can a cracked oil painting be repaired? A cracked oil painting can be repaired but you are going to want to go with a professional in most cases. It is very time-consuming and careful work, …
If you are looking to paint over an oil painting, then you are probably wondering about your options. Acrylic definitely won’t work, so that option is off. So, can you gesso over an oil painting? Unfortunately, no, you cannot gesso over an oil painting. The gesso might go on cleanly, but ultimately it will simply …
It happens from time to time. You finish your painting, varnish it, and leave it to dry. When you take a look in the morning – the horror – the finish looks cloudy. Does this mean you have to remove it all and start over? If you’d like to know how to fix cloudy varnish …
So, you’ve finished painting, then applied your varnish and waitaminute… it’s dried all cloudy! What can you do? If you are wondering how to fix varnish on acrylic painting, then today is going to be a good day. If you want to fix varnish on your acrylic painting, you can remove it completely and reapply …
Lightening up your paints is simple, right? Just add a little white and there you go! That’s not the only way to do it, though, and today I’ll tell you how to lighten acrylic painting without simply adding white to it. While you can lighten paint with the addition of water, acrylic is already 45 …
At some point when you are playing with your acrylics, you are going to want to give MDF board a try. MDF is fun to paint on, but you do need to do a few things first, and that’s the primary focus of our article today. I’ll tell you how to prepare MDF board for …
Painting slate tiles is fun and it’s a great way to spice up some boring, old store-stock tiles. If you’d like to give it a try, then today I’ll tell you how to prepare a slate for acrylic painting so that you can give it a whirl on your own. Preparing the slate is actually …
If you’ve managed to get a little paper stuck in your acrylic painting then you are not alone. We artists mix mediums for breakfast, lunch, and dinner and this can certainly lead to some interesting and downright weird problems. Today I’ll tell you one way how to remove paper stuck to acrylic in hopes that …
Sketching on your canvas first is a good way to help to keep yourself on track, but what do you do if those lines are shining through? I’ll tell you today how to remove pencil from acrylic painting and you’ll be happy to know that there are a few methods. You can sometimes just use …
So, you need a solvent to clean up your brushes and thin out your paints, but you don’t like turpentine. If you want to know ‘what can I use instead of Turpentine for oil painting?’ then I’ve got a few helpful tips that you can put to good use. If you want a substitute for turpentine, …
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If you’ve just gotten your first set of acrylics and an untimely rash, you probably want to know if the two are connected. Acrylic paint is touted as non-toxic an allergen free, after all. So, can acrylic paint cause allergic reactions? As it turns out, some people out there might be mildly allergic to it. …
When you’re painting with acrylics you want to be careful with the temperature. Wait… what?! Can acrylic paint get cold? Painting with acrylics is best done at no lower than 49 degrees and ideally, at around 60 degrees. The reason for this is the water content that’s suspending your acrylic resin particles is sensitive to …
We artists are a weird bunch. If the ennui of life is overwhelming and you are considering a cocktail of delicious acrylic paints (yuck!) then there’s a question you’ll want to get answered first. Can drinking acrylic paint kill you? Well, I’m sorry to disappoint you, but acrylic paint is largely non-toxic and you’d have …
When acrylic paint gets on you and you’re in the middle of making your masterpiece, it’s easy to ignore it and then you’ve got a problem. That stuff sticks like crazy! Can nail polish remover take off acrylic paint? Yes it can! Nail polish remover, provided that it contains acetone, can be used to remove …
The other day a friend asked me an interesting question. Can you mix acrylic paint with poster paint? They were looking to make a cheap acrylic alternative for some kids to play with by mixing some poster paint with a basic acrylic white. I checked on it and the answer, unfortunately, is no. Acrylic paint …
If you are wondering ‘can you use acrylic paint with rubber stamps?’ then today is your lucky day. Yes, you can use acrylic paint with rubber stamps, and it really looks amazing. The acrylic turns into a semi-plastic seal that you can put envelopes, letters, or even homemade scrolls! It looks good and it’s easy …
You might have heard that you can clean acrylic with alcohol… but can you use alcohol with acrylic paint? As it turns out, you get some very interesting effects with a little alcohol on your acrylics – provided you know how to do it. A little spray alcohol and a blow dryer on a no-heat …
Mod podge is awesome stuff to have on hand. You can use it for gluing paper and fabrics, but can you use ‘Modge Podge’ on acrylic paint? As it turns out, you certain can! Mod Podge may be used to seal acrylic paint, stain, decoupage, and more. This glue is pretty good stuff and while …
