Essentials for Acrylic Painting

Painting with acrylics has benefits and the most notable is that it's water soluble. You don't need any poisons like turpentine or even mineral spirits. I have worked with acrylic and know key things you should have. In this article I will give you a shopping list and why you should buy certain items. I also give tips that I've discovered through experience.

Spray Bottle

If you are working for a long time on an art piece, you will notice that acrylic paints start to dry quickly. If you sprits some water on your palette, your paints will stay soft longer. You can also get interesting effects on your painting if you spray it, so you should experiment. Keep in mind that because acrylic paint is water soluble, your paints will get thin if you spray too much. However, if you want to use your acrylics like watercolors, you can by using lots of water and no other medium. This is a great technique to use, but be prepared that your acrylics will dry on the palette and cannot be revitalized like watercolors.

Slow Drying Blending Gel Medium

This is a gel that will keep your paints from drying on the palette. You can add it to your paint to make it thick or blend easier. It will extend paint volume without changing or lightening the color much or at all. The glob of gel medium should not be much bigger than the glob of paint you mixed (unless you want transparency). You can usually get this product with a glossy or matte finish when it dries. I use Liquitex Slow-Dri Blending Gel Medium.

Super Heavy Gel

This is similar to the product above except it does not slow the drying time as well. It is great for adding volume to your paint so you can paint thickly. It is mostly the same as the above product, but even thicker. I use Liquitex Gloss Super Heavy Gel.

Gloss Medium/Varnish

This product thins your paint while not giving it watercolor consistency. This product will increase flow, meaning it will let you drag the brush longer. It does not add much volume to your paint, but it does add lots of transparency which is great if you work in thin layers. You can also use this as a varnish. When you are done with your painting, you can apply a thin layer of this medium over it to give it a glossy finish. In my experience, it is not super glossy which I like. I use Liquitex Gloss Medium & Varnish.

Palettes, Brushes, Palette Knives, and Painting Surface

You should have a separate palette, brushes, and palette knives for acrylic paint. You do not want to mix your oil paint stuff with your acrylic paint stuff (unless you are experimenting). You should have a glass palette (no plexi-glass) and razor blades so you can clean it. Do not let the paint dry for too long on your palette because acrylic paint is like plastic when dry. You should have an assortment of brushes including bristle and nylon. Filberts, rounds, fans, and flats are good to have of various sizes. You need a separate brush collection for your acrylics because if you get oils in them, they can't get clean with just soap and water. An assortment of palette knives is good to have, but I have two favorite shapes: the 3 or 4 inch triangular one and the flat one. Each is good for mixing paint and applying paint to your canvas. Also, do not forget to get a pre-stretched canvas to paint on OR get gesso, canvas or muslin, and stretcher bars to stretch your own. With acrylics you can also paint on paper, but the paper can become wavy.

Soap

They make special soaps that are good for cleaning both acrylic and oil brushes, but any soap is fine for acrylics. You can even use Soft-Soap or dish soap. However, if you feel like your brushes are getting stiff, you can try shampoo and conditioner.

Tube Paint

I suggest buying professional grade paints because the student grade has lots of fillers and tends to be slightly thinner. I do not suggest the student grade Liquitex paints because they are thin and do not have much pigment. An affordable and good paint brand is Winsor & Newton (Finity or Galeria). Don't feel bad if you have to buy a cheaper brand especially if you are a student or don't have much money. However, if you have the money, the best to buy is Old Holland paints because it is the most pigment rich. It is also best to get the biggest tubes, but if you can't afford that for all your colors, get the biggest white. Common tube sizes are 60 ml, 200 ml, and 500 ml. If you realize you use lots of a certain color, you can later purchase the larger size. For fun I suggest buying silver because you can mix it with anything to give the color some shimmer. It acts somewhat like a weak white to the color, but worth it for the silvery effect. Gold and other metallics are also fun.

These items will help you get started with acrylic paints. There are many mediums to try, but these are great starters. There are many ways to use acrylic paint such as impasto or watercolor techniques. Keep experimenting and you will learn what works best for you and your artwork.