When painting with acrylic, one of the most important things to have is enough paint! You can run out very quickly if you are not careful. Luckily, there are ways to manage your liquid paints as soon as they are finished being mixed together.
This article will talk about some easy tips for how to use up all of your leftover acrylites in an organized way. These tips will be color-specific so that you can easily find what colors remain and where to store them.
Buy your paint
There are several sources you can purchase acrylic paint from to help you begin painting! Most stores have at least one line of professional quality paints that are easy to use, even if you’ve never painted before.
Most sellers offer both liquid and powdery form versions of their paints, which make it easier to mix in needed amounts later. Liquid acrylic is often more expensive, but will last longer than its powdered counterpart.
You can also find many beginner friendly brands of paint that seem to cater to people with no experience. These are usually not as bright or intense a color as other brands, but they may be better suited for individuals who are very familiar with art materials.
Make a pour chart
A pour chart is an easy way to organize all of your painting supplies. It’s also great for keeping track of how much paint you have in each color!
A pour chart is a diagram that helps you identify the colors in a composition and where there are empty spaces in those colors. By doing this, you can start to create a picture or palette of mixed-media paints.
By having a good understanding of what colors go together, it becomes easier to mix them and find new uses for them. Plus, knowing which colors go into making another color makes organizing your supply list more efficient!
There are several ways to make a pour chart. You can use different software programs such as Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, and PowerPoint to do so. Some even offer free ones like Adobe Muse and Canva.
Whatever program you choose, just be sure to edit and save it frequently to ensure its quality. This will prevent any weird formatting issues.
Thoroughly test your paint before starting
A good way to make sure your paint is ready to go in all of its beautiful glory is by testing it on a non-project surface.
A easy way to do this is using an acrylic pour chart! An acrylic pour chart comes with a glass or ceramic container that has numbers either printed or painted onto it, as well as a clear liquid called acetone.
You can use the number you get from the pour chart to determine how much paint to buy of each color.
Record your painting process
While some artists prefer to do their sketching in ink, most use very little of either medium or primer before laying down their paint coats. By not having much preparation, they are creating a seamless transition from one color layer to the next!
Acrylic paints have an extremely thick consistency which allows you to add more than just thin layers without having to mix into a thinner state first. This is particularly helpful when adding many shades to your piece as you can slowly add new colors onto the painted surface, seamlessly blending them together.
By recording your painting process, you will be able to compare it to this article’s acrylic pour chart and tell how close or different you got by looking at the settings used.
Take a break
A very popular way to begin painting is by pouring your paint onto a prepared canvas or board. Once you have painted all of the colors that you want, you need to let the paintings dry!
The most common place to do this is in a space where people can watch you while you work so they can help you with tips if needed. This is usually done at a friend’s house since everyone else there can help you look after the piece.
After the first few hours the surface will start to feel warm and fuzzy. This is because the acrylic has absorbed some of the surrounding heat. At this stage it is still wet and you can shape it but be careful not to press down too hard as you may push parts of the liquid up out of the color layer.
Once it feels solid like plastic then you can move onto the next step. Having an extra pair of pants handy is always helpful!
Dry brushing
This is when you roll the brush across the surface to remove any thick layers of paint. You must use a clean, smooth brush for this and keep rolling until the whole surface is finished.
Removing thicker coats takes longer so make sure you are watching TV or something else while you do this. It is also good to know what types of brushes work best for this so that you don’t waste time using one that doesn’t scrape off much material.
Practice making pour charts
When working with acrylic, there are two main components to consider when preparing to make your first pour chart– liquid measurements and colors. This article will discuss both of these in depth!
In order to create successful pour charts you must know how much liquid you have per color. These calculations depend on the thickness of the paint mixture as well as the size of the container you use.
Knowing this information allows us to calculate how many drops each color needs. By doing this several times, we can determine how many meters (or “drops”) of each color it takes to cover our canvas.
Try using a different paint thickness
A very common way to determine how much acrylic pour you have left is by looking at your start color!
If your starting colors are lighter than what they should be, then you may need to use thicker layers of paint to get the same result. Or, if the painted piece looks darker than it should, thin out the paint slightly and see what happens!
Either way, keep experimenting until you find one that works well!
Acrylic paints will always show some kind of texture or pattern when applied to a surface, but depending on what effect you want can help make it disappear.
Thinning down the paint layer might dull the textural quality, while adding more paint could create new ones!
A good rule of thumb is to add about two drops of thinner per every 2-3 meters (yards) of painting width.
Use a different surface
When working with acrylic, there are two main surfaces you can use to pour your paint onto. You can use a plastic bowl or tray as your pouring vessel, or you can use a glass or ceramic plate.
The advantages of using a non-porous material is that you will not run into issues like bubbles or globs of liquid getting stuck in the lines and pores of the material. This could prevent the paint from fully drying and potentially ruining the painting process!
On the other hand, if your pottery, glass, or ceramic has many small holes in it, some of the pigment may seep through and create an interesting patterned effect in the painted shape.
We recommend starting off with creating a basic acryllic pour chart on a plastic bowl first before moving onto more advanced settings.