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In this article about easy hacks for alcohol drops acrylic painting, you will learn to create a unique background. This painting technique will help you enhance your painting’s freshness with patterns from alcohol drops. It is a great way to allow your background to complement the design you are about to create.
You can use alcohol drop acrylic painting in two ways: a stand-alone painting and a background. They both produce stunning effects on your artwork. If you haven’t tried working with an alcohol drip painting technique, it is best to try at least once.
You might be surprised how easy this painting technique is. And you will surely love the stunning effects that alcohol drops can produce on your painting. To give you a heads up of where you can use this idea, these easy hacks for alcohol drop acrylic painting background are a cool way to start.
- Acrylic paints are fast-drying
- They are ideal for beginners
- Ideal for various painting styles and mixed media
- They are ideal for creating stunning backgrounds
- Ideal for any painting support
Since acrylic paints are known for their fast drying characteristics, you will easily do this painting technique even if you are a beginner. The best part is, you can mix it with almost any painting style and idea you have in mind. Some artists used this painting technique to create a stunning background.
While others used this to complement their painting surface already, you can work on different painting ideas associated with acrylic paint. The best part is, you can mix acrylic paints with another painting medium such as oil paints and even watercolors. It’s all about experimentation to help you understand their unique characteristics.
Since acrylic paints can go on almost any painting surface, you can work on something you are most comfortable with. Suppose you are a beginner, best to work on a smaller painting surface first and see how this painting technique works. Check how the alcohol drop reacts to the layered paints. If you like the results, you can do more. Do not stay in one area but try to explore a lot of things with your painting medium.
As for this activity, you can use either watercolor paper or a painting canvas. Suppose you will try to work with watercolor paper to secure your painting surface with painter’s tape on all edges. You can do this on a flat surface or board. On the other hand, if you will be working with a painting canvas, that is totally fine. Just make sure that you have secured the surface before applying your paints.
That way, it will not move when you are busy choosing colors for your painting surface. Some artists use this painting technique on a stretched canvas to create artwork. That will totally depend on your style and preference which one will suit you best.
There are some helpful materials that you need to prepare for this process. That way, it will help you get along easily with your painting session. Acrylic paints have different types of paints, so choose something convenient for you.
Prepare the following materials first for these easy hacks for alcohol drop acrylic painting background tutorial.
Essential materials to prepare:
Acrylic paints (heavy body acrylic paints/fluid acrylics)
Alcohol ( isopropyl or rubbing alcohol)
Painting surface like a stretch canvas
Paint Brush set
A jar of clean water
Paper towels
Spray bottle
If you will be doing alcohol drop for acrylic painting, use isopropyl or rubbing alcohol to execute this painting style effectively.
Your acrylic paints. There are a variety of acrylic paints to choose from. From heavy body acrylic paints to normal ones and the fluid acrylics usually used in the pouring technique. You can experiment with various acrylic paints to understand their unique characteristics and how they react on the painting surface.
Besides, whether a novice or established/ expert artist, you only learn how to work with various painting mediums by experience and exposure. For the drop painting technique, most artists use fluid acrylics to manipulate them on their painting support easily.
Next is your painting surface. You can use either a stretched canvas, or you can use watercolor paper for this activity. If you are new to this painting technique or style, it’s best to work with a small painting surface like watercolor paper. This allows you to understand how your painting medium reacts with the painting surface and the technique that you were working with.
Do not forget about your paintbrush for acrylic painting, some clean water in a jar, and a spray bottle that has some water in it as well. Paper towels can be an option, but best to have something easy to clean up any unnecessary paint drips for later on. These little materials are essential to the overall success of your painting.
As acrylic paints dried permanently, it’s best to clean up any unwanted mess in the area before the paint completely dries up. Paper towels or clean rugs can simplify and offer convenience on the artist’s end.
With these easy hacks for alcohol drop acrylic painting, you will also be working with some basic painting techniques. One of these is the layering technique. Decide what colors you would like to use on your painting surface. That way, you can also work on the color of your support.
The layering technique will be used in this activity. All you have to do is create a thin layer of color wash. Though you can use thick layers of paint, remember that the alcohol drop might not push off thick layers of paint. Assuming you want to work with this painting technique, it’s best to create thin layers of paint first.
Regardless of what painting medium you’re using or the painting style you’re planning to create, there are essential factors that you need to reconsider every time.
The media you’re going to be working with.
The painting medium you will be working in is an essential element for creating artwork. For instance, if you work with acrylic paints, you have to understand their unique characteristics. Since they are a quick-drying painting medium, you have to work faster with them.
Acrylics are a crowd favorite, especially for beginners, and this alcohol drop acrylic painting tutorial will help you further explore the painting medium. If you are working with mixed media painting, you must understand how every painting medium reacts. Whether you plan to integrate acrylics with watercolors or oil paints requires patience, experience, and expertise two have a successful artwork.
The painting support you’ll be working on.
Painting support or surface is another essential factor that every artist must check. You have to identify which support works best for your painting medium. For instance, with acrylic paint, you can use various painting support as this painting medium is known for versatilacry
You can use watercolor paper or a stretch canvas to work with various painting techniques. Watercolor paper is the ideal support for acrylic as it prevents your support from warping or buckling with excessive moisture on your paint. Stretch canvas or pre-prime canvas can help.
Since acrylic paints are water-soluble, you have to check the absorbency level of your painting surface. That is why the ideal support to work with acrylic paints is stretched canvas and watercolor paper.
Your color palette
The color selection that you will be working on varies with the artwork you visualize working with. This gives you an idea of the colors you want to place on your painting support. While there are no right or wrong colors, the color selection you choose determined your expertise and exposure with the painting medium you are working with. Several newcomers in acrylic painting use color charts or swatches to work with their subject efficiently.
Your subject or focal point
Alcohol drop allows you to explore various subjects or focal points. It improves the artist’s creativity to work with a topic and transform it into a masterpiece. You need to work with several painting techniques and styles to help improve your mastery of the painting medium that you are working on.
This includes the subject you are comfortable creating on your canvas. Landscape, portrait, seascapes, or abstract painting are several styles you can incorporate with this tutorial.
The format or size of your artwork
The size of your canvas varies with how comfortable you are on the painting medium you’re working with. It also affects the painting technique you are trying to work together with the file that you’re learning. Whether novice or expert, you can start with the small size support to further understand how every painting style works.
Acrylic painting using alcohol drop can be tricky if it’s your first time. So you can work with a small or standard size watercolor paper first. This will give you enough experience on how this painting style is. Once you become comfortable enough with your experience, you can experiment and mix it with other painting styles.
Now that you have completely prepared all the materials you will use, it this time to begin. You are also aware of the paint consistency and how they will react to the alcohol drops. It is best to explore the right paint consistency that you will need for this painting style, if not yet.
A thin layer of paint might just run off the surface if you thin it with a mist of water. Thick paint will not spread evenly with the alcohol drop.
To get the right acrylic paint consistency is to experiment and explore. That way, you can predict the outcome and understand the benefits associated with another tool for painting.
Now let’s start this easy tutorial for beginners
Step 1. Decide on the color of your support.
You can leave it white or add a new layer of colors. If you decide to add a new color for your watercolor paper or painting canvas, make sure that it will be dry completely before working on it.
Step 2. Apply your first layer of paint to the surface.
Thin the paint directly into your painting surface. Do not add too much water as the paint will run off the watercolor paper or canvas. If you apply thick layers of paint, It will not be spread off by the alcohol drop.
Step 3. Apply the alcohol drops directly into the surface of your paints.
Do this while your paint is still wet. You will immediately see the reaction of the paint when alcohol is applied on top of it. If there are no paint reactions, then best to check if your paint has dried up or if the paint is too thick.
Try to resist the beauty of creating this unique pattern on your painting surface. You will still be working with another layer of paint and alcohol drops. Wait for the first layer of paint to be thoroughly dried before adding a new layer of paint.
Step 4. Add a new layer of paint wash on the dried surface.
There are different ways on how you can use the alcohol drop painting technique. It is all about exploring and playing around with your paints. There are also various ways to apply your alcohol to the surface, like flicking it over with your brush or spreading it with a paintbrush.
I hope that this acrylic painting tutorial on executing the alcohol drop technique properly helps you a lot and improves your painting skill. If you have any questions, suggestions, or preferred topics, please feel free to leave a message or a comment, and I’ll get back to you soon.
Challenge: Using these techniques paint a painting in acrylic and add alcohol. The more you practice the better you'll get.
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