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General Category => General Scroll Saw Talk => Topic started by: dunk on June 19, 2010, 06:19:57 pm
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I have a couple of puzzles done that I want to paint with acrylics.
However, I want to do a wash effect.
How thin do I dilute the acrylic paints with water?
Do you wipe it on with a paper towel or rag?
What kind of container do you use for thinning?
I'll be using several different colors on one project so I need something economical for mixing.
Can you save the left overs?
Thanks for any advice.
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It depends on the look you want. I would suggest that you start with about 50-50 and try it on some scrap of the same type wood as your project. That'll probably be too much paint and you'll want to thin it some more for a real wash-effect. Usually a wash is more (sometimes considerably more) water than paint.
I don't know how big your project is or how much paint you will be using. I have a small plastic palatte that is divided into several sections. I squirt a blob of paint into a section and then just pour in some water. I mix it with a paintbrush. I paint the wash on with the brush but always be sure to rinse it out first in case there are any blobs of paint stuck in there. I don't usually do anything huge so don't mix a lot of paint. Therefore I don't feel bad about washing the unused part down the drain.
If your project is a big one and you need a lot of wash, I would experiment with the paint to water ratio as described above and then I'd probably just use a jar that is big enough to hold however much I need. The you could just put the lid back on the jar to store it (after wiping the rim so you don't paint the lid to the jar). I imagine it would keep for a reasonable length of time though you'd need to mix/shake it before using it again.
Hope that helps.
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Storing the paint in a Mason jar should work. I have done it with Latex paints that I left customers for touch-up.
One suggestion would be after the jar rim is good and clean wipe it with a tiny bit of Vaseline and then store the jar with the lid DOWN.
That helps keep out transient air and creates less 'skimming' of the paint.
~~~GrayBeard~~~
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Thanks for the replies. Your thoughts are appreciated and helpful.
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I use the small plastic cups with lids. See them in the fast food joints, they come in packs of 16 for a couple bucks. Can keep paint for a day or two, but only mix maybe 1/8 oz at a time to do a complete piece. The acrylic comes in small plastic bottles with a flip-top so getting small quantities is easy. "Ceramacote", so an art or ceramic supply. Dilute 2 water, 1 paint, apply with brush and immediately wipe with damp lint-free rag. If it is too lite, repeat. Works for me on small pieces as in for a puzzle or segmentation and such.
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Terry,
Thanks for the reply.