Getting Started With Acrylic Pouring

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Getting started:

Acrylic pouring is incredibly messy but incredibly fun, even if you have never painted a day in your life. As long as you know some key methods and ingredients you will be able to consistently create beautiful pours.

Since originally writing this post, I have discovered an amazing ingredient that makes stunning cells without the use of a heat gun or torch.

Related: Sell Your Art

You are going to need:

stretched canvases– You don’t want the thin canvases because they will warp.

Acrylic paints– Apple Barrel is my budget friendly brand. Hobby Lobby carries my FAVORITE brand, Master’s Touch…and you can often find them half off. This is when I stock up on them.

Floetrol– this can be found at any Lowe’s, Home Depot, or any home improvement store like that.
Coconut Milk Serum– this is the ingredient that makes the cells without heat.

Craft sticks are a must.

Plastic cups– Do not waste your money on hard plastic cups (they crack when squeezed) or paper dixie cups (the bottom will fall out) From experience, can you tell:)

Varnish to protect your art

Sheet plastic– you could use a tablecloth, shower curtain, or something similar to protect the surface you are working on. This WILL get messy. I love the sheet plastic because it is super durable, and the dried paint comes off super easy so you can use the same piece over and over.

Scrap towels that you won’t mind ruining (to be able to wipe your hands as you are painting). These are the towels that I ordered over a year ago and they come in handy for crafting of all kinds.

This method of liquid pouring will make you question ever using a paint brush again. Kidding, not kidding. Totally up to you how much energy you want to put into it, and how meticulous you are in general with your creations.

Below is one of my favorites, just to give you an idea of what the final product can look like:

The painting damn near paints itself, but don’t fear messing with it a little bit to make the final product look the way YOU want.

Optional Items:

Stylus Tools– These are great for touching up acrylic pours. You can create some really beautiful wisps and delicate swirls.

Smock or apron– protect your clothes or just wear clothes you don’t care that get ruined. I have friends that take old big t-shirts, cut it down the middle in the front, and where it backwards to act as an apron.

The Acrylic Pour Painting Method:

Time to start setting up your workspace… Lay out your plastic sheeting, have your towels within reach, a cup filled with water. Grab your paints, serum, craft sticks, and Floetrol, . Put on your apron and you will be ready to go.

If this is your first pour ever, I would suggest using 3-4 colors tops until you get used to how the paints and additives flow together.

The results truly will be subjective to the brand of paint you use and the amount of serum you put in each cup. Use only ONE to TWO TOPS per color. If you use too much serum, the cool cells you achieve will just slide right off the canvas as it dries. Totally sucks when it happens, so my recommendation is to only use one single drop per color cup.

Step by step:

Set out your 4 plastic cups for color, and one extra plastic cup for the final “dirty pour” mixture.

Squeeze a nice 1/4 cup(ish) size of dollops of paint (of each color separately) into your plastic cups.
Add double the amount of FLoetrol as you did paint per cup
drop in ONE drop of serum per cup

***WARNING: Sometimes the Floetrol will have gross goobers in the bottle. You can catch it before it lands in your cup- otherwise you will have a huge glob on your painting. No bueno. Just keep your eye on the bottle as you pour to make sure it comes out smooth.

stir each cup of color WELL with your craft sticks.

Take your one cup that you reserved for the final mixing of all the colors, and add a tiny bit of Floetrol. Then take each cup of your singular colors and add a splash/dribble of each color one at a time (layering them in your final cup).

***TIP:

I have found that the smaller amounts of paint per layer, the more layers and intertwining of colors will make your final acrylic pour more magical and awesome.

Once you use all the paint in each individual cup to be combined into your final cup, you are ready to rock and roll.

let the final cup sit for just a minute to let everything kind of mix and settle (you usually can see cells and cool swirls start to form in the cup).

flip the cup upside down and let it sit for a few minutes on top of the canvas in the cup, and then when you feel ready, go ahead and slowly lift your cup.

Don’t be afraid to have a craft stick ready in case you want to blend an area a bit better or help it reach the edge of your canvas.

***TIP:

Because your paints are layered, don’t stress if you get some beautiful cells and then watch them slide off the edge when tilting the canvas.The cells will stretch and run off the sides, but you will have a feel for how much you need to tilt and maneuver your canvas with practice.

Cooler ones will emerge, and personally I think it is more important to make sure the paint runs down each side of your canvas so you won’t have to touch up as much later.

The paint is going to drip for a little bit, then once it stops you can move it to an area that is safe to leave while completely drying. Make sure your drying area is flat or your painting will slowly run.

***TIP:

Use the mixing cups you just used as a drying rack…flip 3 or 4 upside down and set your painting on top at the corners on the wooden base. If you set the painting canvas directly on the cups, and not the wooden framing, you are going to have visible cups shaped indents on your beautiful painting. Nobody wants that, so just be careful while setting this up, and then plan on letting the painting sit for a couple-few days.

***TIP:

This is also the time that you can use the clay tool to gently guide a stream of paint to go in a certain direction, add little whisps, or manipulate the paint however you see fit.

When I first started painting this way I was completely afraid to touch it at all with fear that I would destroy this self painting picture. But, this is very untrue, and the painting usually will need your loving touches to finalize and enhance parts that you may think feel unfinished.

I try not to guide too much in the method because it really is all about you finding the style and method that works for YOU.

Using the colors that feel powerful to YOU.

Try crazy color combos.

I have created some beautiful paintings with 5 or so colors I would have never thought would have looked good together. Just go for it. Don’t hold back. You can ALWAYS just do another pour right over the paintings you don’t like!

It seems most really awesome discoveries are by accident, so have no fear, try whatever your artistic heart tells you to.

So, I just wanted to share this new found way to create beautiful works of art, and to let you know that this is something damn near anyone can do once you know that basics.

PLEASE feel free to comment or ask questions below, and I would love it if you share come paintings you have created!

Also, keep in mind that besides directly selling your acrylic pours you can also scan in and sell the photo of your paintings -or even take it a step further and digitize your work– to sell via Print On Demand Sites.

Personally I love selling professional prints for my absolute favorite works of art because I can still keep the original while also selling professional copies of them.