Why varnish? Varnishing an oil painting, acrylic or pour painting can make the colours more vibrant and protect the painting from damage. It’ll also give your artworks a nice, soft, sheen to them. So now that’s out of the way, let’s get started!
How to varnish an oil painting
Once your oil paintings are dry, it’s time to varnish! Luckily, it’s quite simple to do.
1. Wipe the painting to remove any dust beforehand.
2. Use an oil-based varnish like safflower oil and apply it to your painting using a soft, taklon brush.
3. Leave to dry for 3-4 days. Then your masterpiece is all done!
Varnishing an acrylic
Unlike oils, this won’t take too long to do, and you can choose your finish, win, win!
1. Wipe down the surface to remove dust.
2. Choose an acrylic varnish. Gloss and matte mediums are great for the job. If you’re looking for something quick and easy, these will give you either a gloss or a matte finish.
3. Apply the varnish with a soft, taklon brush.
4. Leave to dry overnight, then your acrylic artwork is ready to show off!
Varnishing a pour painting
If you’ve used silicone oil in your pour paintings, you’ll need to tackle this a little differently than varnishing an acrylic.
1. Remove excess oil from the silicone oil. Do this by sprinkling cornflour onto the canvas.
2. Use an old, taklon brush to scrub the cornflour into the surface.
3. Keep scrubbing until there’s no more oil residue on the canvas.
4. Use dish soap and water on a sponge to wipe down the surface and make it clean again.
5. Wipe the canvas down dry with paper towel.
6. Now it’s time for varnishing! Acrylic varnish works well on pour paintings but if you’re wanting to add a glittery touch, reach for the Mont Marte iridescent varnish. Apply this with a soft, taklon brush.
7. Leave to dry overnight. Now your pour painting is ready to be hung up!
So whether you’re varnishing an oil, acrylic or pour painting, follow these steps to tackle the project head on. See a full range of our Mont Marte varnishes here or check out more of our handy how-to videos.
