Top Tips for Painting Glazes

How do you paint glazing?

A varnish is simply a thin, transparent layer of paint, and the glaze simply builds up color by applying thin transparent layers one on top of the other, a dry layer. Each glaze stains or alters the following. So why can glazing disturb and even threaten artists? While the theory may be simple, putting it into practice requires patience and persistence to master.

If you are a painter in need of instant gratification, glazing is probably not for you. But if you are a painter and want to enhance your paintings, glazing will give you colors with brilliance, richness, and depth that you cannot get by mixing colors on a palette. Why? In very simple terms, this is because the light passes through all the clear coats (glazes), bounces off the canvas, and reflects off of you. Your eyes blend layers of color to "see" the final color, resulting in a luminosity that you don't get with physically mixed color.

Paint enamel tip No. #1: know your transparent colors

Take the time to learn which pigments are transparent, semi-transparent, or opaque. Some manufacturers say this on their tubes of paint (see How to Read the Label on a Paint Tube), but you can also try it yourself.

Transparent colors work best for creating rich and subtle colors through layers of polish, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't experiment with opaque colors. But if you are just beginning to study glazing, stick to transparent colors for your glazes and keep opaque colors for the lower layers that will be glazed.

Tip for painting enamels n. #2: be extremely patient

If you apply a varnish to a paint that is not completely dry, the layers of paint will mix, which you don't want. Be patient instead of repenting. If you work in acrylic, you can speed things up by using a hairdryer to dry some polish. How quickly an oil varnish will dry depends on the climate you live in and the state of your studio; Make some sample polishes to find out. The paint should be dry to the touch and not tacky. Work on multiple frames at the same time so you can switch from one to the other while you wait for the varnish to dry.

Paint the board of enamels n. #3: enamels like smooth surfaces

Varnish is a thin layer of paint that should rest gently on the previous layers. You don't want it to pile up or pile up on the roughness of your media, or rather, not when it starts to glaze. (This is something to experiment with once you've mastered the basics of glazing.) A smooth hardboard or a fine-woven canvas is great to start with.

Tip for paint glazes # 4: use a light earth

Use a light or white background, which helps reflect light, rather than a dark background, which helps absorb light. If you are not convinced, try painting the same glazes on a white background and a black or dark brown background.

Tip for paint enamels n. #5: icing media

The glazing media will dilute the paint you are using to the correct consistency for the glaze, and if you buy a quick-drying formula, it speeds up the speed at which the paint dries. They also solve potential adhesion problems resulting from over-dilution of paint, especially with acrylics (see How much medium can be added to acrylic paint?). Experiment with the medium-to-paint ratio to get an idea of ​​how much to add; too much and sometimes you get a glassy and excessively shiny effect.

Tip for paint enamels n. #6: use a soft brush

Enamels should be painted smoothly, with no visible brush marks. Use a soft brush with rounded edges, like a hazelnut brush. You can glaze with a stiff bristle brush, but this is not ideal if you are new to glazing. Brushing the top of the paint with a dry fan or hake brush is a helpful way to remove visible brush marks.

Paint Enamel Tip No. #7: unify a painting with a final glaze

When finished painting, apply a final varnish over the entire paint. Helps to unify all parts of the painting. An alternative is to apply a final unifying polish only to the focal point elements.

Enjoy The Video Tutorial about Top 5 Glazing Tips & Tricks