How to Apply a Final Gloss to Your Acrylic Paintings

[leadee2007]

I varnished my painting with a brush and it's really streaky (when light hits it). I've already given it three coats of gloss varnish trying to get rid of the streaks. Is there any way to get rid of them now? The painting looks all smooth but the streaks are still visible after it dries. It seems like the more coats I give it the less I see them but I'm not sure how many coats are ok. Do you think if I use my hands they will even out?

[charleymano]

@leadee2007 That's a shame. Now, I don't know that another coat by hand will fix your painting, but I would think it's well worth the attempt. If you are using gloss that dries clear (rather than translucent), it should be okay to do so. I've slathered on the gloss as thickly as I could do it, in an experiment to see if it would still dry clear. It sure did!. Good luck with it. I hope it takes care of those shiny brushstrokes.

[leadee2007]

@charleymano Thanks :) I think I'll just keep trying to even it out with gloss varnish. When it's looking as good as I can get it, do you think it will be ok to add a final thin layer of satin varnish to cut some of the shine?

[charleymano]

@leadee2007 Personally I would stay away from a satin or translucent gloss. I worry about getting a milky effect onto the painting. 

[leadee2007]

@charleymano Ok. Hopefully the person that I did it for will be satisfied with it shiny. Thanks.

[TheUKFR]

@leadee2007 If you mean that the original painting has brush strokes and you can still see these after varnishing, then yes, if you apply enough coats then you will eventually reach the point where you won't see any of the original texture and it will look flat. If you're saying that the streaking is caused by the brush leaving brush strokes in the varnish itself then I'd suggest thinning your varnish so it flattens more before drying, or try a foam brush to apply it (or both).

[leadee2007]

@TheUKFR I kept giving it more coats of gloss varnish and it solved the problem Yay! The person who commissioned it was totally happy with the painting. I sure learned about varnishing and what not to do.

[Seedot0001]

Can you mix clear coat nail polish with the acrylic paint?

[charleymano]

@Seedot0001 Gosh, I have no idea! I would think not, because nail polish isn't generally water soluble. I bet the water would repel the polish if you are working wet into wet. You might get some really cool effects that way. But I doubt you could actually mix them together very successfully. All you can do is experiment, and that's a lot of fun!

[FULLCREMO]

beautiful

[kellylikesred]

Great video!! How would you varnish an acrylic that has heavy texture?

[charleymano]

@kellylikesred Many of my paintings have heavy texture. The one in the video actually has a lot. You'll notice that I am wiping excess medium from around the heavily textured areas with my fingers. It's not really necessary as it dries perfectly clear, but I couldn't help myself. With heavily textured pieces, I think it's even more important to avoid a brush and use my hands. The texture can introduce a lot of bubbles, and I find a brush makes that much worse.

[1414mwh]

Have you ever heard of Golden Gel Mediums Soft Gel Gloss? I'm pretty sure it's basically the same as the medium you are using. I bought some of it before I saw this video and and I'm wondering if I would get the same results. They recommend a 2:1 ratio (Medium to water). I've seen videos where it is used and it seems much more viscous. Do you think if I add a little more water it would work the same way as the novaplex? Also, do you add water to Novaplex?

[charleymano]

@1414mwh I would think that the Gel Gloss would be much thicker. It's intended to help your paint stretch further and give it more body. (No, I don't add water to the Novaplex, because it's already milk thin.) I would recommend that you try it out on something else first before you commit to one of your paintings. I imagine it will work just fine. Spread it evenly and watch the glare so you don't miss any of it. Experiment before you add water. You might not need to.

[CampusW5Homme]

I wonder can you do that with an unprimed cotton duck canvas that sucks the colour after you have painted on it with acrylics.

[charleymano]

@CampusW5Homme I honestly don't see why not. I've done it on all my huge koi paintings and abstracts that were on unstretched canvas, and it worked out beautifully. Your canvas being unprimed wouldn't change that, particularly since the gloss would go over the acrylics & enrich them. (Unprimed is a pain to paint on, isn't it!  I just did that on a huge temporary mural for my church, and I'll never skip the priming again!)

[bluesubtt]

So, I understand that you are applying a gloss medium water based gel and not a real varnish or resin with that solvent smell and all mess that it makes to use. Don´t you have problems with bubbles? Beatifull work and thanks for being so kind and pacient to share your knowlage. Best regards from Brazil, Patricia.

[charleymano]

@bluesubtt That's right, Patricia, I'm using a gloss medium as my final coat. It evens out the shine and brings out the colors. You would not want to use that over oils, but it works nicely over acrylics. I have no problem at all with bubbles, only when I applied it with a brush over a heavily textured piece. Another reason I prefer to use my hands. Have fun with it!

[myqiheart]

do you use that on gesso board too?

[charleymano]

@myqiheart Absolutely! I've done it this way on gesso board, pumice board, watercolor paper, matboard, unstretched canvas, stretched canvas, wood, and even vinyl.

[ipo123able]

5 dosnt know how to paint

[honeyeater13]

Thanks so much for sharing this great information - it will be very helpful to me with my large acrylic paintings. Hugs....Sandra :)

[philippecolin151]

great painting, pretty artist by poor sound... can't win them all

[charleymano]

@philippecolin151 Thank you, what a lovely comment. I completely agree about the sound! I was very new to making a video, and the awful noise passed right over me until I'd finished everything and put the video up here on youtube. That was the air conditioner. It was the middle of summer in Phoenix, AZ. Probably around 115 degrees outside. There are so many things I would do differently now. Ah well, I chalk it up to another valuable learning experience! :))

[LaMaraj]

Perfect technique!!! I was thinking to do exactly this ( work with my hands ) and wanted to see if anyone else was doing it and how it works for them *before* I potentially ruined my painting. LOL! I'm so happy to have found this video. Thank you! I really dislike the use of brushes and using a sponge doesn't work well if your paintings have any roughness ( like mine do ) - so using one's hands would be the perfect way to varnish :) Thanks again!!! You gave me courage!

[charleymano]

@LaMaraj I'm so glad this video was of some help to you! Go for it, nothing to be scared of! I've never had any problems with glossing my paintings this way. Have fun!

[riverredartstudio]

charleymano: I placed an order with Nova Color. They were very nice, shipped my paints & medium right away! Shipping is high from California to Texas, ($15)...so you need to order several things to have packed in one box! The paints, and varnishing medium are really nice. I have used the varnish on a large canvas (48x60) it looks great! Thanks for the video, and advice about Novaplex varnish, and the company Nova Color! Seems like a great art supply company! Keep painting! ~Rick/okriverred~

[charleymano]

@riverredartstudio Rick, I'm so pleased that you're happy with Nova. They have always been very nice to me and it's easy to get spoiled by their prices. I forgot about the shipping, but that's probably because I try to make a large order so it's worthwhile. Hey, so glad it worked out for your 48x60!  Terrific size and I'll bet it looks great. Thanks for writing. Happy painting! ~Helen/charleymano

[creegal]

Thanks for sharing...I'm not a painter,but am searching for glossing videos...hands as a tool are pretty neat...that way you can feel whether too much or not enough medium is being used...cool!

[riverredartstudio]

Nice technique! I really appreciated you giving the manufactuer's name of the medium. I have placed an order, and look forward to trying it out. Your painting looks really good!

[charleymano]

@riverredartstudio Glad you liked it!  Enjoy the medium. Nova is a terrific company. I like their products and love their prices! Happy painting!

[Patrizia817]

I love this technique. How different is it to regular varnish? I typicaly use those varnish sprays on my acrylics but it often doesn't dry evenly. thank you for sharing :-)

[charleymano]

@Patrizia817 Regular varnish is toxic, and you wouldn't want to be smushing your hands around in it. Not sure how it would work with gloves on, but perhaps if you worked quickly. Also, regular varnish tends to yellow in time. The thing is, you can varnish your painting, and then a hundred years from now, somebody might want to remove the yellowed, dirty varnish, and put clean new varnish on top. It's a valid technique. Just not for me!  The spray is too uneven for me too. I'm more hands on.

[mreinstein48]

Were you drunk on this video? Or maybe a big hangover????

[charleymano]

@mreinstein48 Well, *clever* as your question is... I decided to answer it anyway. No I was not drunk, nor did I have a hangover. I'm a painter, not a videographer and this was about the 4th stab at trying to get the camera set up correctly. I was pretty tired of trying at that point.

[mreinstein48]

@charleymano I didn't mean to hurt you , it was just a kind of humour... Thanks anyway for the tip!

[charleymano]

@mreinstein48 ah okay.. sorry for being touchy. (friends again) Have a great day! I'm off to paint. I've got a 24x30 on the easel... yum

[charleymano]

@mreinstein48 How many times are people going to ask me that? Nope, not drunk, not hungover. Just tired of trying to get the video to work. At that point I'd hit the "hell with it" attitude. :)) I'm actually a very happy drunk. You'll know it if I ever make a drunk video. lol

[ptptpt84]

hi, it's a very good video and thank you. i have a question. when i was applying the gloss varnish (either with my hand or brush) , i realised that some of the dark color dissolve in the varnish and when i brush it over the white surface part, it got "contanminated" with a little bit of dark color....am i the only one have this problem? can i apply white on it without using varnish remover and do the varnishing again just on the white area??? thanks :(

[charleymano]

@ptptpt84 It sounds as if your dark color is water soluble. I've had that happen when I've glossed over watercolor before, but not with acrylics. Or, perhaps your acrylics weren't quite dry? Yes, you can apply white (or any color) on your painting without removing the gloss. This is because the gloss medium is not like the final varnish you might put over oils. It will work "with" the acrylic paint and you can paint right over it. Then once it's absolutely dry, go ahead and gloss it again.

[ptptpt84]

@charleymano thanks for your reply....i'd been waited for 3 days before i applied the gloss. do u think its enough ??? kinda dissapointed that the color run. :((

[charleymano]

@ptptpt84 That should be more than enough time. Acrylics dry so fast. Tell me, what kind of paint are you using? What are you painting on? And what kind of gloss are you applying over it?

[erin1226]

@charleymano i;m using Boldmere acrylic colours, painting on double-primed canvas. using winsor & newtom gloss varnish. thanks...... :)

[charleymano]

@erin1226 Your canvas and gloss sound good. Although the Boldmere acrylics are an inexpensive student grade, I've read nothing to indicate that they would still be water soluble after drying. This is a puzzle! I've only had your problem when I tried to use watercolor pencils, and even the Inktense pencils, over my acrylic work. When I glossed it, the pencil work wanted to smear. I had to gloss very quickly and be careful of the directions of my strokes so they wouldn't dirty the work.

[ptptpt84]

@charleymano if i paint it too thick would it be easier to dissolve in the varnish ??

[charleymano]

@ptptpt84 I've glossed over paintings that are extremely thick. My koi paintings and my abstracts are quite thick, especially when I've used molding paste on them. It made no difference in the end. I just made sure they were dry. But that's very quick compared to traditional oils. I've also used the gloss in an exaggeratedly thick application one time when I wanted to test out the transparency then it dried. It was crazy thick, but dried crystal clear.

[mxikna]

Helloo! I really love the final result of your paint with the final gloss layer, and I want to know what kind of product do you use, I listen about resins, epoxy mix and wax, for protect your job, and it finish increase the cost of the work or decrease it ... sorry I have many questions I start to paint and want to know more about finishes , thank you so much for your help ! :)

[hematitecrow]

Hi i have a question (:

The other day i was in an art supply shop, and they were selling bottles of acrylic glaze, acrylic gloss varnish. What's the difference between the two bottles?

[charleymano]

@hematitecrow hello, it's a little hard to say without being able to really look at the bottles and compare the ingredients. However, my guess is that it's more of a marketing issue. They are probably pushing for the acrylic glaze to be used for mixing into your acrylics as a gloss medium. And the acrylic gloss varnish being marketed as more of a final gloss "varnish" at the end of the painting, like how I am using it in the video. To protect the painting and bring out the colors.

[HanaPainting]

Great!

[jawayetti]

FWIW, any polyurethane floor sealer should work equally as well. It should be the exact same thing and 1/4 the price.

[charleymano]

@jawayetti Cool, thanks for letting us know! Now I"m doing the same thing with Liquitex Clear Gloss because the surface it leaves after drying seems "harder" somehow. I'll be curious to see how the floor sealer works out. It doesn't yellow with age?  That would be the worry for me.

[jawayetti]

@charleymano Oh, I completely forgot to mention to make sure the sealer is UV-stable so it doesn't yellow! Thanks for catching that.

I've also used Future Wax (now called Pledge with Future Shine) that is an acrylic sealer that comes as a transparent liquid. I use that or the floor finish as a topcoat for my polyester resin casts that are frequently handled. Future Wax is amazing stuff and is easily removed with ammonia/Windex.

[Yusrararts]

very nice technique

[nessa82]

Yayy! Thank you so much for posting this video :) Very helpful

[jane25449]

This use of the hands makes more sense to me than fighting with brush strokes. Thanks for the tip!

[datzfast]

ok i have to stop and do some work

[datzfast]

its funny because she is as stoned as i am.

[charleymano]

@datzfast Actually I wasn't. I left that behind back in my twenties.  I'm just naturally "me". And you try photographing all that by yourself, without any clue how to do it. lol

[kurtstenberg]

What if you use a brush and get some tiny bubbles in the varnish? I know on the bottle it says to pop them before it dries but I used some on highly textured acrylic painting and I can see lots of tiny tiny texture from bubbles! Any tips?

Thanks in advance

[Cre8iveSignWorks]

you can use a hair dryer or a heat gun to get the bubbles out before they dry

[charleymano]

@kurtstenberg Those tiny bubbles are one of the big reasons I don't use a brush anymore. They are horrible. I had one highly textured painting that was nearly defeated because of them. I haven't tried the hair dryer or heat gun, although that sounds like it would be perfect. I stood there carefully blowing on them, from an angle so they'd just sort of fall in on themselves from the side and collapse. It was a pain in the neck! Much better to smoosh them along by hand.

[valeagrl1]

I hope u don't mind all my questions!! ;- p I am working on my very first painting that I intend to try to sell ; -P I'm so nervous & excited. So, one of the things I'm wondering is, I heard some lady on youtube saying that you have to wait 1 month for acrylic painting to dry & 4mos. for oil painting to dry B4 you should varnish it. Now I see u didn't use real varnish, but anyway, do you think that is true. Also, if u have time to answer, do u ever paint w/ oil? why have you chosen

[valeagrl1]

ran out of room there... if you've made a career doing acrylic paintings, why did you choose it over oil (other than the usual reasons -stink/varnish/ turpentine etc.; was there any other reasons?)? Did u go to school to study art? I went to school 4 fashion design & now know it's not where my heart was at ; )

But now that I'm going to be a painter, I'm perplexed as to whether I should go to school for it or not - I guess at least take a certificate or something, or find a mentor. Thanks!

[charleymano]

@valeagrl1 my goodness, so many questions. I'm sorry I wasn't around to see them when you posted. (made a bunch of major life changes) I hope yo have been painting up a storm! Okay, painting the sides first and glossing is entirely your own choice. Do what you like. But using your hands will avoid those annoying brushstrokes.

[valeagrl1]

@charleymano thank you for your answers; very helpful! I used your 'hands' technique, but it left hand streaks all over the painting but I think it's b/c the background colour of my painting is totally solid colour -no fancy abstract/colours 4 hand strokes to blend into I guess. Also, I used high gloss instead of satin which I realize is thicker, & more tricky b/c shows EVERYTHING; and I only put on 1 coat when, really, I prob should have done a couple thinner coats. I'm still glad 4 ur help!

[charleymano]

@valeagrl1 I think it might be that you worked the gloss for too long. You want to stop pushing the gloss around before it begins to tack up. If it begins to dry (which happens rather quickly), then it will start to grab and hold onto the marks of your hands (or brushes even). Push the wet gloss quickly, and stop before it begins to dry. If it's still very wet, all the streaky ridges should melt right in on themselves. Otherwise, with your solid backgrounds, you might need a spray gloss.

[valeagrl1]

@charleymano thank you; that makes sense now that you make me think about it, b/c really, whether w/ brush or hand, it shouldn't leave marks unless I did it wrong. so you don't think the fact that I used "glossy" instead of satin is a problem? Do you have a website so I can see your art etc.? thanks for your responses? love your work! the painting I"m doing right now is of the eiffel tower. it has turned out to be way more work than expected LOL! but I'm almost done! very exciting. thanks

[charleymano]

@valeagrl1 I do work in oil too. I use oils in the field for plein air work, and acrylics for contemporary studio pieces. They each have their positive aspects. I choose the medium for the things I like about them, rather than the things I hate. I've been working in acrylics because I love the fast drying time. I love to layer color in multiple glazes, and with acrylic I can do it almost immediately. I also use acrylics because I sell most of my work online & need to ship right away.

[mamuchi78]

@valeagrl1 Sounds like me, I am going to school for graphic design, but I love art.

[jehargro]

This is a great technique. I have since used it on two of my paintings and they turned out amazing! Thank you! :)

[JessisKnoll]

Hmm, interesting, I'll have to try it that way. I get really nervous when varnishing and I hate brush strokes and unevenness showing up.

[valeagrl1]

normally, wouldn't u paint the sides of the painting first b4 varnishing? and then include the sides in the varnish, or not? Thank you for this. Very nice and wonderful technique to have learned!

[charleymano]

That's really an individual choice. You can certainly paint the sides and then varnish the entire thing. I rather like a matte finish on the sides, so I usually leave them alone with just a black gesso edge. But I've also done it the other way around, especially if I do a piece where I am extending the painting around the sides.

[Rosyroo622]

i've heard a sponge will work if you don't want brush strokes- but I haven't tried it myself.

[charleymano]

I've tried sponges in the past, but they still left textures that I didn't like. Plus I hate cleaning them!

[alejmiami]

thanks for your information, your art is great!! but i would like to see the final product when is complete dry

[ConcertoLove]

waaw..

this is so great.

this is really look like oil painting.

[NolaGB]

Great method .. thank you for sharing it with us! The painting you used to share your method looks wonderful .. I would love to see more of your work and perhaps even of you painting. Thanks again!!

[art4artsake66]

OMG I'm so glad to have found this vid. I love putting gloss glazes over the finished product. It reminds me of finding a neat stone on the beach and then putting it into the water to see what it really looks like. It comes alive. However, I have been frustrated with the brush strokes left behind, it interferes with seeing the painting.I am definately trying your technique. I absolutely love the two paintings in this vid (we have similar style and pallet, if I do say so myself);)

Thank you

[missdoobs]

Excellent, i'll keep an eye out!

LOL

[missdoobs]

great technique and gorgeous painting! Would love to see more vids of your painting process...hint hint :)

[charleymano]

Thank you! I'm glad you like the vid and my work. I'll give some thought to sharing my process. Gotta learn how to do that fast motion filming trick,, or we'd be here all night.

[JudiG]

The painting is beautiful! Isn't the varnish you use toxic in any way? Its normally not advised to have so much skin contact. I use gloves now when I paint. I'd like to try it, though, even with gloves on.

Thanks for the demo!

[charleymano]

I don't really want to try to guess how toxic this acrylic medium might be. There's a lot of folks nowadays who wouldn't dream of painting without gloves on, much less smear it around with bare hands. I started painting 43 years ago, and basically the only thing we avoided was putting brushes with lead based paint in our mouths. Everything else was pretty much fair game. I've had paint and solvents all over me for so long that I can't worry about it now. Try the gloves! It might work!

[GuacamoleKun]

That's cool! (looks fun) I'll try it some time, when I do a big painting, which is something I haven't done yet.

[charleymano]

I use this technique on miniatures too. All sizes. Of course, with some paintings that are really tiny, I end up spreading the glaze with one finger! LOL

[HighPriestSatanis]

hmm, interesting technique.

thanks,

VS

[loveupskirts]

im jst aplying varnish to mmy acrylic painting, but im using oil varnish from dale rowney. it better work or itll ruin the bst thing ive done. i am a semipro artist hope to trun pro at sm point.

[charleymano]

I hope it worked out well for you. I've been receiving emails from artists who tried it with the oil varnishes and it's worked out perfectly for them too.

If you've never used a varnish or finishing gloss on your paintings before, you might want to practice on something before you go into the best thing you've ever done. You want to be confident and steady while you're doing this. As I said in the video, don't overwork it. Good luck!