How to Prepare Paint for Pouring
- Gee Pours
- May 21
- 4 min read
Updated: May 25
Welcome everyone! In this blog post, I'm going to discuss how we prepare acrylic paint for pouring in fluid art, and several things you should know about the components that can impact your recipes and results!
In fluid art, there are two main components: a solid and a fluid. The acrylic paint is the solid component. The pouring medium is the fluid.
So let's first take a look at the solid component: the acrylic paint.
Acrylic Paint
Acrylic Paint can have several characteristics that are not immediately obvious when you're looking at a sealed tube of paint. The one that concerns us the most today is the Body.
Body is a term that describes the viscosity of the paint. If not labelled otherwise, the default for acrylic paint is called Medium-Body. Most student and artist level brands like Amsterdam, Golden, Liquitex, Pebeo and even Arteza will generally fall in this range.
But there are 3 other "bodies" for acrylic paint that you might not have noticed, and they can heavily impact the results of your recipe.
Heavy-body paints are used in paintings where artists want the texture. Whether it be from using palette knives, piping bags, or heavily loaded brush strokes, heavy-body paints are formulated by the manufacturer to lose as little volume as possible while it dries.
While this SHOULD mean they are packed more densely and therefore more efficient for fluid art, the reality is they are notoriously difficult to break down and incorporate fully (think stirring for a good 10 minutes and straining it several times) so to be honest, I personally tend to avoid them.
Next are our bread and butter, the medium-body paints. If you are on a budget, or if you're just starting out and using craft paints, I want you to compare your paints with the previous video and see how thick your paint is.
This is one of the biggest reasons people think they're following a recipe, but the reality is your materials are different. You weren't following a recipe where the artist used a craft paint. You swapped out a proper medium body paint for a craft paint that's most likely much thinner.
Medium body paints are essentially designed to be adjusted as needed from there. Want it thick? use no water. Want it creamy? use very little water.
Up next are Soft-body paints. You'll notice if you form peaks on a soft body paint, the peaks will collapse. They're designed to hide texture and used by artists that want looser applications of the paint with easier blending.
Finally, we have premixed paint, or pouring paint. These are newer formulas designed to be used as is. They're essentially paint and pouring medium already combined by the manufacturer. Convenient? Yes. Expensive? Yes. How much control do you have? Little to none.
Why is this important? Because using the wrong body of paint can yield very different results. Most, if not all, recipes call for medium body paints. If it's not a medium body paint, the artist will usually say so, because you won't be able to easily swap it out.
Pouring Medium
Now let's look at the fluid component: the pouring medium.
A pouring medium is technically a binder fluid to thin the paint and turn it into a fluid without compromising the existing binders in the paint. In almost all cases, the pouring medium makes up the majority of what's in the cup of fluid paint.
A retail pouring medium is designed to be non-yellowing and archival - and its cost reflects that. Do you HAVE to use a retail pouring medium? No. In fact, most of us don't, because it's just not cost efficient, especially if you're not selling your paintings for a handsome amount.
The majority of people use what's called a pouring medium alternative. They're also emulsion-based fluids with a polymer acting as a binder. The difference is, these are not designed as a pouring medium. They have a different primary purpose.
The most commonly used alternatives are the Floetrols. In North America, that's Flood Floetrol 6, in Australia, its simply called Flood Floetrol (same logo, red label) and in Europe its called Owatrol Paint Conditioner.
What the heck is floetrol? It's a paint conditioner for latex paint (hosue paint, wall paint, indoor paint, emulsion paint - different names, same thing) It's main purpose is to make these house paints self level better and hide brush or roller marks. It is not really designed as a binder for paint. Floetrol is also not archival, so there's always that to remember. However, if one of these products is sold in your country, its most likely the most cost effective fluid.
Another affordable option is PVA glue. In terms of archival quality, glue ranks at the bottom. It’s the worst option for longevity and quality. But it’s very affordable and widely available. In countries where Floetrol isn’t available, PVA glue might be the only option. If that’s the case, use it.
Some techniques use just acrylic paint and water. This works for thinner styles, but not all. Acrylic paint has no self-leveling properties by itself. It dries solid in its exact shape. So if you try to achieve a medium or thick consistency with just water, it won’t flow well or dry nicely. It’ll likely have lumps, waves, or texture. That’s where the pouring medium helps.
Compare the pouring medium you are using to the consistency of US Floetrol I showed you in the first video. When you follow a recipe, you will most likely be watching somebody using US floetrol. If your medium is thicker, you may need to add water. If it’s thinner, you may need more paint to thicken the final mix.
A recipe usually tells you to mix 2 or 3 parts Floetrol to 1 part paint. This can be by volume or weight. It's best to find out which the artist intends, because it can yield very different results, especially in large batches.
Want to learn more about the recipe and techniques that make fluid art so fun? Have a look at these courses:
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