I am a doll artist. My canvas is only 1” by 1 ½”! Pretty small so you would be surprised at how much paint I go through. I use acrylic paint… everything from the super expensive to the very cheap. They all serve their purpose one way or another. But one thing I have noticed through the years is how fast they dry out on my palette. In a couple hours time my paint has become basically useless to me.
I don't put a lot of paint on my palette to begin with because I paint small. I have prepared my paint before and suddenly something has come up and I have to set my work aside. I don't want to waste the paint whether something has come up or I want to take a break.
So I developed a way to make my paint last for days… here it goes.
I start with a bowl of ice. I like to use my Corelle cereal sized bowl. It fits my metal palette perfectly.
Next I cover my metal palette with foil. This way when I want to clean my palette, all I have to do is pull the foil off and discard it. Easy clean up!
I don’t need a lot of paint for what I do but this can work for anyone who uses acrylic paint.
When I am taking a break for lunch I just cover my palette with another palette. This will keep the paint from bleeding into each other.
Then I cover the whole thing with more foil to seal it.
Lastly, I put my palette in the refrigerator. I have left paint in there for a week and it is still perfect when I take it out.
The real trick to start with is that bowl of ice under your palette. It keeps the paint fresh and moist while you are painting. I just pop my bowl in the freezer so I always have a bowl of ice.
In today's economy it is always good to know you can make things last and stretch them as far as they can go.
Happy painting! LL
Love this!
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