Like, I bought a ton of craft paint at the beginning, and before I could use it all up, I wanted to upgrade to student grade paint. I also bought gobs of canvases on sale at Michael’s and right now I prefer to pour on wood or gesso board. So, buyer beware. Just a thought from someone who’s been there, done that.
Also, at first I really tried to do this art form on a shoestring. I mean, I didn’t know what I was doing, so I didn’t want to invest a lot yet, right? I bought cheap 4” tiles at Lowe’s and 50 cent paint at Walmart, and dollar canvases at the dollar store. And I think that was a good idea. I think in the beginning it’s good to use inexpensive supplies. Except maybe not those canvas panels. I wouldn’t bother with those again. LOL But 4” and 6” tiles are great to learn on!
Some of my decisions were sound, and some of them I wish I could do over again. Welcome to Life. You do your homework and you do your best, and then you adjust as you go along.
Canvas
So! You have your “substrate”: your canvas or whatever you’re pouring on.
Right now, I enjoy pouring on wood circles from Amazon. If I’m good and not impatient and unprepared,
I put a coat or two of Kilz2 on both sides of them before I pour on them. I have had a few warp on me when I didn’t, but
mainly the wood on the back gets really rough when I take the tape off if it
wasn’t painted. That creates even more
work for me to have to sand it and get it nice again.
(There are quite a variety of wood shapes out there to pour on!)
But I also have lots of those canvases that I bought on sale, so I’m pretty set
for a while. Michael’s has sales on
canvas pretty often, but since I don’t have tons of experience with them, I
can’t tell you if they are of a decent quality or not. They seemed okay. And they are definitely nice and inexpensive
if you get them on sale.
And don’t forget about those inexpensive tiles from Lowe’s or Home Depot. They are great to work on. No prep required except to tape the backs off
before you pour.
And I’m sure you’ve noticed that people tend to pour on
almost anything! LOL
Paint
Next, you have your paint: craft,
student grade, whatever you prefer and can afford.
Since this is a blog about how I do things, I will tell
you that I pretty much only buy student grade paint right now. I use Master’s Touch from Hobby Lobby and
Artist’s Loft from Michael’s, and also Liquitex Basics (with my 40% off coupon
at H-L). Some of those brands make
colors that I can’t find anywhere else.
Lately, to save money, I have really been enjoying the “Creative
Inspirations” brand paint from Jerry’s Artarama online. It’s very economical. It’s also smooth and has a very nice
consistency. That makes it easy to
mix. (Sometimes when I use
a tube paint, I just about wear out my arm, adding enough water and mixing it
all up! LOL)
Pouring Medium
Lastly, you have your pouring medium. I
believe this is the most important part.
I pretty much began with the homemade recipe of 60% Elmer’s Glue-All and 40%
water, which is super-inexpensive to use.
And it works well, too.
I used Liquitex Pouring Medium for about a year and a half and have just recently switched to one made by Golden. Unfortunately, both are extremely
expensive to use!! I usually pour on
small things, so that’s how I get away with it.
But everything I talk about in this blog can be done with the glue &
water pouring medium, too. Tried both
and see what you think!
My Thoughts on Different Pouring
Mediums:
Liquitex Pouring Medium: It gives
beautiful results with very vivid colors. Unfortunately, it’s expensive. And it’s
hard to get off your skin--you have to use acetone. And I really hate their gallon “bucket”
packaging. Hopefully they will change
that someday.
Golden Color Pouring Medium Gloss:
It’s even more expensive, but the cells are so beautiful, it's worth it. And it comes off your skin very easily with just soap and water.
Glue and Water Recipe: It’s nice
and inexpensive. And it’s a really good
option for those people with health issues.
But I don’t particularly like the bubbly texture that it leaves on the
surface. Also you don’t have quite the
vivid colors and cells as you do with the professional products. Still, though, it’s probably the best option
for most of us.
Why don’t I use Floetrol??
First of all, you have to remember that I mainly do
Layered Flip Cup Pours.
This is based only on my personal experience.
I know there are thousands of happy, very loyal, Floetrol users out
there. I just don’t happen to be one of
them. Not for traditional cells, anyway.
From the Flood.com website: “Floetrol® is a latex paint additive to improve flow and levelling
of water-based paints. Makes latex paints, primers, stains and textured
coatings flow more smoothly. Improves flow to reduce brush and roller marks.”
As I said, I mainly do Layered Flip Cup Pours, and my goal is gorgeous
cells. And when I used Floetrol,
everything did “flow” and it looked sloshy, and had these little spots
throughout that I dubbed “Floetrol freckles”.
It just wasn’t the look that I was after.
A glue and water recipe OR a commercial art product gives me much better
cells. They hold their shape better and
look prettier to me. Just my personal
preference.
But there are countless combinations and recipes for pouring medium out there!
Have fun experimenting and finding your favorite!
XOXO,
Donna Livingston
♥
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