Embellishing an Acrylic Pour with Lanterns

Hello, my name is Carolyn Wallace and I have been painting with acrylics for about seven years and recently found paint pouring. I recently posted a piece named “The Lantern” on the Acrylic Pouring Facebook Group and wanted to share some more information on my embellishment process. 

I would love to be able to share a fancy secret recipe for my paint mix but I can’t. It’s all pretty basic, one part paint to two parts Floetrol. With this piece due to its size I did go with Apple Barrel paint. I personally like the thin coat I get so embellishments are easier.

Supplies I Used:

• Apple Barrel Acrylic Paint in red, orange, yellow, and black
• Floetrol
• Rustoleum
• Liquitex basics in titanium white

I added a few drops of silicone to all my colors; red, orange, yellow, and black. The white that I laid down first over the whole canvas did not have silicone. I then did the normal swipe with black and let it dry for about a week. You can see the result of the first swipe below before any embellishments.

Now for the big question, embellishments. For most of my paintings, including this one, I don’t decide what to do for an embellishment until after the pouring part of the process is finished. I do the pour and wait to see what comes to mind.For me it’s like that cloud game you played as a kid, you stare at the clouds until you see something like an animal or shape. That’s what I do with my pours, just stare at the pour until I see what the final painting could be. 

Once I had the idea for the lanterns in my mind, then I start embellishing. This part comes easy for me because, as I said, I have been painting for some time and I just build right on top of the pour. I treat it like a blank canvas and just paint what I want, how I want it. 

I use Liqutex Basics for all my embellishments and in this case I took titanium white and did my “ghost painting” as I call it. This is just a thin white silhouette of the shapes or images I’m adding. I let that dry and then paint in all my details right on top. 

Once my painting is dry I varnish it using rustoleum gloss clear 2x ultra cover and she’s good to go. 

A tip for those new to embellishing: I feel that you need to go with what your comfortable with. If you’re not used to brush painting then maybe start with an old poured canvas, you know those junk ones we all have from trying something. Just practice on something like that first. Or even draw on plain paper for a design first. No need to get in over your head if you’re not ready. 

I really hope this was helpful and I want to thank everyone for all the kind words and love you have shown for my art. It really has encouraged me to paint even more.

If you’re interested in learning how to acrylic paint check out some of these beginners courses by Rod Moore (one of the most well known acrylic painting instructors):

Free Acrylic Painting Intro Course

Acrylic Painting Intro Course

Acrylic Painting Starter Bundle