How to Make Acrylic Paint Act and Look like Watercolor

You may be wondering why would anyone want to make acrylic paint look like watercolor? Why even use acrylic paint if what you really seek is the soft effect of watercolor paints?

Drawbacks of Watercolor Paints as a Beginning Painting Medium

There are a number of reasons that an artist might want to use acrylic paint instead of watercolor. Any painter who has painted with watercolors knows how sensitive and temperamental they can be. Watercolors are the teenage girl of painting mediums.

Watercolors may be pretty and delicate, but they are also the most unforgiving painting medium available. When a mistake is made with watercolor, that cannot be turned into a happy accident, the watercolor painting could be ruined.

A mistake in watercolor will forever be a blemish on the face of the painting. It cannot be covered up like painting mistakes made with oil paints or acrylics.

Another drawback of watercolors is that it is also a little too easy to make watercolor paintings muddy, when you are inexperienced with the medium. Certain colors do not blend well, on and off the paper. Too much water can make the paper too delicate and prone to tearing, right there in the middle of the painting.

Watercolors do not allow for the same type of layering and glazing affects that can be achieved with acrylic paints.

If watercolors are the teenage girl of paints, then oil paints are the grandfather. Oil paints know what they're doing, but require a lot of extra supplies and mixing, and their affects are somewhat limited.

Enter acrylic paints. Acrylics are the savvy, world-traveled cool aunt in the family. Acrylics are also painting's greatest impostor. Acrylics can resemble more astute oil paintings, look like acrylics, or be mistaken for watercolors.

How to Make Acrylic Paint Act and Look Like Watercolor

When you think of acrylic paint, you probably picture tubes of dark, thick paint, not light and lively watercolors.