20
votes
Accepted
What do you call "negative" paint?
I think what you are looking for is called a masking fluid. It is sometimes also called liquid frisket.
Masking fluid can be treated like paint which wherever it is applied will protect what is ...
- 2,956
14
votes
Intentionally letting watercolor paints dry before using them?
Many people do this, it is common practice among watercolorists.
Watercolor paints can be used in their wet form via a tube or they can be used as a dried over consistency. It has nothing to do with ...
- 141
13
votes
Accepted
Intentionally letting watercolor paints dry before using them?
It sounds like your wife learned to paint with watercolor paints in pans, and/or learned from someone who only really knew of these types of paints:
These are in a sense the ancestors of the kiddie ...
- 1,818
11
votes
Accepted
What paint works for "mock" stained glass?
A very simple approach are Window Colour types of paint (example).
They basically produce removable decals. You can either work directly on the glass or - if bottle design and pattern permit - work ...
- 1,166
11
votes
Accepted
When mixing paint colours, what is a good technique for ensuring consistent ratios each time a new batch needs to be created?
It would be helpful to know the order of magnitude of your volumes.
I paint miniatures and so milliliters are often enough. In this case my paints are in dropper bottles and I count the droplets I ...
- 1,333
10
votes
What type of paint should I use for stone painting meant for outside
What you need is exterior masonry paint.
Which specific kind of exterior masonry paint may depend on what sort of stone you're using. This page from a decorating advice site tells you which kind of ...
- 1,996
10
votes
Accepted
Why do artists use pigments instead of dyes in paintings?
While more historical artists likely didn't understand the chemical processes behind the behaviors of the two options, the biggest reason is permanence.
Dyes are organic substances that are either ...
- 3,443
10
votes
Accepted
How can I eliminate spray paint odor?
The reason for the smell is because of the VOC (Volatile Organic Compounds) content in paint.
The best way to avoid breathing in paint fumes is to not have them to begin with. Most indoor and ...
- 644
10
votes
Accepted
Hand painting with spray paint?
Spray paint, by design is in a pressurized container, to belabor the obvious. When used, the material is converted to an aerosol by the pressure, which then travels some distance at a good speed.
If ...
- 7,231
9
votes
Accepted
My Mod Podge coat is still sticky. What do I do?
Mod Podge takes a very long time to cure; around four weeks, depending on humidity and coat thickness.
To properly use Mod Podge, you need to apply multiple thin layers (not thick ones), allowing ...
- 3,902
9
votes
Accepted
How do I replicate this misty spray paint texture/pattern?
If the material is metal, one can use a wrinkle finish powdercoat to accomplish this result. It's not quite exactly the same texture, but wrinkle finish powdercoat may qualify in that it's random and ...
- 7,231
8
votes
Accepted
Paint for kids' skin: what is suitable?
You can buy non-toxic "face paints" or "body paints" specifically made for this purpose.
Product Search: Face Paint
You can also make them yourself.
Face paints (typically) are not a "type of ...
- 1,334
8
votes
Accepted
Staining vs transparent watercolor paints
Usually you can't, as the packaging generally doesn't show this information.
What you can do, is
test the watercolour out in the store, which is often possible (if no direct means are given, you can ...
- 10.6k
8
votes
Can a half full rattle can with no propellant have any practical uses in art or craft?
Repressurize
You can repressurize the can. If you have a compressor, a valve stem from a tire makes a good adapter (insert the service end into a tire filling adapter, and use the rubber end that ...
- 11.5k
7
votes
Accepted
Is pigment necessary to obtain white milk paint?
Yes, pigment is necessary. The milk solution creates the binder for the pigment, which is basically the mechanism to deliver the pigment to the support/surface, but it is then intended to mostly ...
- 3,443
7
votes
Accepted
Are spray paints effective on laptops?
No, spray paints can get into the cooling system through the vents, blocking air flow and gumming up moving parts. Some spray paints may even conduct electricity after drying which can short out (...
- 3,235
7
votes
What kind of paint to use for tree leaves?
Spray paint is definitely the best approach due to the delicate nature of the leaves.
A quick drying acrylic spray paint works for me with sprigs. The leaves need to be free of loose material like ...
- 71
6
votes
Accepted
What paint to use for outdoor plastic chairs?
I have a plastic chair in my workshop. It is spattered with acrylic paint which is very hard to remove. I suggest you use good quality exterior grade acrylic paints. I have painted concrete ornaments ...
- 314
6
votes
What are the strengths of chalk paint?
My experience is with the commercial brands (my wife uses and sells them). The two main advantages that I see are:
that they allow a very smooth finish with a brush. If you were to paint furniture ...
- 61
6
votes
Accepted
Repaint eyes of a stuffed animal
Probably the best thing is the acrylic paint uses for plastic models followed by a couple of coats of gloss acrylic varnish. This will be pretty durable and should give a good result. They paint ...
- 1,979
6
votes
How to get spray paint off of concrete, wood, and metal
Forget turpentine and rubbing alcohol. Whatever you do, you will have to refinish some of the surfaces.
For everything other than the concrete you should be ok with acetone. Use steel wool soaked in ...
- 2,812
5
votes
What paint works for "mock" stained glass?
Most of the sites I've found on the internet recommend Deco Art for buying glass-staining paint. They sell specialised paint for use on glass, both transparent and pearlescent, as well as an opaque ...
- 1,996
5
votes
What paint works for "mock" stained glass?
When I did my faux stained glass window (see below) I used hot glue to do the "lead" outline. It worked really well on glass because although it sticks very well, if I made a mistake I could remove it ...
- 51
5
votes
Accepted
What is an easy way to waterproof large pieces of cardboard?
Waterproof paint for the flat parts, tape for the edges.
Any kind of spreadable waterproof fluid will do for the large faces of the cardboard sheets. Paint or glue could both work, but paint is ...
- 1,996
5
votes
How to avoid / deal with rough edges after painting plywood?
When using a water based paint, you will for certain cause the grain to raise and funny things that look like tear-out on the edges.
To avoid this, before painting, I sand, then intentionally raise ...
- 653
5
votes
Accepted
How to avoid / deal with rough edges after painting plywood?
Not sure if you want to hear this but this is better handled before finishing as supposed to mitigating after the fact. Either way I think you need to sand the roughness out you have first then do ...
- 11k
5
votes
Accepted
Is there anything wrong with mixing incompatible paints?
So, from my experience...
Wrong? No. Basically, looking at the major art paint options I can't see any that, when combined, would result in a dangerous mix. Some, however, will mix a bit better ...
- 3,443
5
votes
Heat resistant paints for metal smoking pipe
After looking into a few options that you might have already seen I think this will be a safety concern for yourself that you should best avoid.
I am not insinuating what you do with the pipe but ...
- 11k
5
votes
Accepted
Pony hair vs synthetic hair painting brushes
It depends on the synthetic brush that is available. Generally speaking, pony hair brushes are often used in schools since they are inexpensive, yet strong and soft. However, they do not retain the ...
- 1,140
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