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using gel medium with acrylic paint

By Brooke Riley 3 Comments

13 Jan
Facebookpinterest

You would think that as long as I have been dabbling with painting and crafting, I would have tried gel medium in some capacity before now! BUT….I haven’t. Today was my very first experience using gel medium with acrylic paint, and I have to say- it will NOT be my last!

gel medium

I am no expert on this. Let me say that from the beginning. BUT, I will tell you what I did for this fun little project that ANYONE CAN DO!

I am always loving to make little shelf sitters for holidays and everyday decor. They are small, quick to make and fun to change out! Today, I made a valentine’s day shelf sitter with a wood block!

Supplies Needed:

Gel Medium

Acrylic Paints (colors of your choice)

Scrap wood block

paint brush

Stain (if you want to stain wood)

mod podge to seal (if desired)

Now, you are ready to start!

Take your wood block and stain it with your stain (or shoe polish…or whatever you wanna use IF you want to stain it)

kilz dark wax

After the stain sets,  mix your gel medium with your first color of paint. Mix just enough to where it has a thicker feeling to it. It should NOT feel like regular acrylic paint. It should feel much thicker.

The picture below shows the consistency pretty well.

Once mixed (takes only a second), spread your paint onto your wood piece in the shape of a heart. It should be thicker and not flush to your wood, as pictured above.

Continue this process with however many hearts you want.

Continue adding colors on top of colors for more fun and texture!

Let dry. It is thicker, so it takes longer than normal acrylic paint!

If you want to cover with mod podge to seal and give it a more glossy finish, do so! I love the spray mod podge too!

And here is your finished project! I wish I had just sawed the bottom part off, but I didn’t want to mess with that…so I added paint.

For a first timer, I think it turned out really cute!!! I will do lots more projects with the gel medium, and I know I will get better!

PIN FOR LATER!

Last Updated on January 13, 2022

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« how to transition from a christmas tree to a valentine tree
diy wooden valentine hanging sign »

Comments

  1. Bev Nelson says

    December 28, 2024 at 9:30 pm

    So beautiful

    Reply
  2. Kim Cathey says

    January 11, 2025 at 7:19 am

    Such a fun, easy way to add dimension to to paint project. ????

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. how to paint an American flag sign using thick bodied acrylics - Re-Fabbed says:
    April 12, 2024 at 5:48 pm

    […] I grabbed the Master’s Touch paint at my local Hobby Lobby! If you don’t have this, you can absolutely make your own using gel medium with regular paint. Either way, this thick paint adds so much texture and truly makes ALL the difference! Click HERE to see how to create your own thick bodied paint using gel medium! […]

    Reply

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Brooke Riley

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Hey y'all! I am Brooke, and I am SO glad you have dropped by my blog! Re-fabbed is a site designed to bring you everything from decorating on a budget to fun and easy DIY projects, with a few deep thoughts in between. I LOVE to share my journey through this crazy life!

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