RE: Anyone use Liquitex Paints?

Hi all,

I have been using Liquitex paints for the past couple of years, and I
really
like them. The trick to making them work is to remember that they're
very
concentrated, and you have to add water to the paint in order to get
started. The paint has been designed so that it needs to be thinned down
before use, so when the paint comes out of the tube (or jar) it's pretty
sticky (I have heard that the tube paint is stickier than the jar paint,
but
I haven't used the jar paint yet). I would recommend using some kind of
"acrylic extender," which is basically soapy water that you can add to
the
paint to reduce its surface tension and make it mix easier. I have used
Ivory dishwashing soap as well as the commercial extender that's sold in
art
stores, and I haven't noticed any appreciable difference between the
two.

You will need some sort of palette to work on -- I have used white
plastic
bags (supermarket bags), waxed paper, blister-pack bubbles, and those
little
plastic ketchup cups from fast food joints for mixing, but I prefer the
"paper palette" sheets that you buy in art supply stores. As you blend
the
paint together, you will find yourself watching the paint become easier
to
work with as more liquid gets mixed in, and you will eventually come up
with
a blend that feels good to you. For example, a good way to make a dark
wash
is to mix in enough water to give it the consistency of milk (regular,
not
skim).

Liquitex makes a couple of different lines of paint; the "regular"
Liquitex
that comes in white tubes is the "artists' quality" paint -- it's more
expensive, because it has a higher concentration of pigment in the mix.
The
"Liquitex Basics", on the other hand, are cheaper because they have a
lower
concentration of pigment. I have painted miniatures with both of these,
and
in my experience it makes more sense to get the expensive kind because
you're going to be stretching the paint to its limits when you mix up a
dark
wash. The tubes I own have lasted for a couple of years, and aren't even
halfway empty, so you'll definitely get your money's worth out of them
in
the long run.

Also, as somebody else pointed out, you MUST have a coat of primer on
the
miniature if you're going to be using Liquitex paints. I always prime my
figures, so I've never had a problem with this.

--
Rick Rutherford
rick@esr.com