hmmm
read a lot about thining out acrylic paints to use on bass wood carvings.

I have tried this and find that I thin the paint way way to much. to the point of having to go over a area about 6 times before you can tell it is coloured.

After looking at many of the groups carvings I wonder if I should bother even thinning out the paint , seems many are using the paints at full strength .

SO THE QUESTION IS

IS IT WORTH THINNING OUT THE PAINTS OR JUST USE THE PAINT FULL STRENGHT????

[noel58]

I'm sure there are no hard and fast rules here. Its totally up to you. My carvings such as Santa's, I thin so I have to apply two or three coats. Thicker paints tend to cover up the detail you have tried so hard to achieve. Some areas you may want a transparent cover. The Santa's beards I want to see some of the wood underneath. Some colors you may want to prime or seal white first. A white undercoat really brings out some true colors. Some bird carvers do apply at least eight coats to achieve depth. Paint thin!

Let me start by saying that I'm far from and expert painter xxx That said, I kind of let what I'm doing dictate whether I thin the paint or not. For instance, Ijust finished an aquarium scene which I used paint thinned quite a bit to the grain of the wood showed through on he blue background making it look more realistic also the green on the plants had the grain showing, while the fish I just put a matte sealer on. On the other hand, I did some penquins on another project and tired thinned paint and the looked terrible so put full strienth on them and the look o.k. I guess the lesson is if there is any doubt try the paint thinned first and if you don't like it you can always redo it, but once you use them full strength, your done.

I'm with Eddy on this one. When painting on any wood, I use acrylic paints very thinned down, the add layer upon layer until I get the look I want. That said, though, there are some areas of a carving that I will paint full-strength, such as black shoes, black gloves, etc. I paint winter country scenes on most of my Santas' coats, and those are also painted in very thin layers of paint, with just a few of the highlights done full strength.

Just experiment with it - it really will depend on what look you are trying to achieve. As you play with it, you'll find your own 'look' that makes YOU happy - that's the important thing.

Teri
SantaCarvinLady@aol.com
http://www.picturetrail.com/santacarvinlady
http://hometown.aol.com/santacarvinlady/santas.html

Hi painters,
Most of us hate to think about ruining our hard won carvings with a bad paint job. I agree that how you paint depends on what look you want to achieve. I prefer the thin paint (about 5-1 ratio or 10-1) applied in several coats until I get the look I want and STILL let the wood and detail show through. I've gotten to the point where I prefer water colors (tube) -- especially if I mix my own colors. When water colors dry on the pallet, you can reconstitute them by adding water again. Acryllics can't do that because of the plastic in it. I rarely use white--pure white--prefer an off white alternative that makes the carving look softer and less stark.

It's kind of trial and error. Face it, you gotta kiss a lot of frogs before you find your prince! Painting is like that too--you gotta try lots of techniques before you find the one that works for you.

Donna A

[Bandaid]

Donna and Teri.....Do you use a sealer prior to painting? If so I'm curious as to what you use. I'm wondering if water colors require a different technique from acrylics.

???What do you all use to thin your paint?

One more thing - don't use cheap/inexpensive brushes. Just like tools, buy the best you can afford. From one who learned the hard way.

No, I don't use a sealer before painting. In fact, I soak the area with just plain water before I begin to add paint (very watered down) - it helps the paint to soak in more evenly. I then just keep layering more washes of color until I get the value I want.

I use a variety of paints - acrylics, watercolors, water-based stains - and I mix types together often. Whatever it takes to get the exact hue I'm trying to reach. Sometimes, beautiful mistakes happen, as well.

Teri

Hi all,
No, for the most part, using water colors are very much the same as acrylic paints. I thin with water. If I have trouble blending because it's too hot and dry, I have added a drop of flow medium. I do like to let each layer of paint dry well before putting on the next because the colors look so different when dry. (A hair dryer can speed up the process if you're impatient.)

To me, the water colors seem a bit brighter/clearer and best of all, when you've mixed colors to get one that's just right, and the water evaporates, you just add water to the dried paint and you can start all over---Can't do that with dried acrylics.

I paint in the shaded (dark areas) first, then work from the lightest colors to the darkest. It's a lot trial and error and taking the best of what everyone tells you to see what works for you....and some day when I grow up, I'll take a painting class so I won't worry so much about ruining a carving with a lousy paint job. About the only time I seal a carving before I paint (and I do it with just a spritz of something like Krylon Matt Clear) is if I want to make sure the finish is even--don't do it much anymore, except when I airbrush something like a fish decoy. Then I seal it WELL, Scotchbrite it smooth, then paint. Hope I answered the questions about how I paint.


Donna T.