Masking Fluid for Watercolours
If you paint with watercolours you should try using a masking fluid sometimes. I just did, and it’s a lot of fun. A new thing to play with, yay!
I got this one from Schminke, for my birthday (thanks mom!). You cover the part of the paper that you want white. When the masking fluid dries it creates a resist, so the paint will not soak into the paper. This will create areas that stay white. In proper “watercolour technique” there is no “white paint”, so you’ve got to plan your white areas before you start your painting. When you’re finished with your painting you remove the gummy texture from the paper, using your fingers to rub it away.
I really like the little bottle I’ve got because it has a pipette opening, and I used it as a pen when making my first try.
I doodled some swirls, and left them to dry thoroughly before I filled the whole page with different colours;
No detailed painting or over-thinking, just trying the materials out here!
I added masking fluid to my want-to-try-list after reading the very inspirational book Journal Spilling by Diana Trout. I read and reviewed it last year.
In the book Diana uses masking fluid to write with (using a thin brush) and also adds it to a stamp (creating a white stamped pattern). Her advice is to be careful with your tools, this fluid will clog up your brush in no time if you’re not careful.
Have fun!
Also check out
* To mask or not to mask – advice from world of watercolor
* Masking fluid experiments at Eveline’s timeless blog
I love that stuff! I was turned on to it a few years back and it is amazing! So much easier than trying to keep white spaces white. Is this your favorite brand?
Thank you Hanna, I didn’t know about such option. Of course, in here I might not get it without ordering from abroad, but still, its great to know what possibilities there are. Beautiful page you have – great colors!
This looks like so much fun! :]
Very creative indeed… thank you for sharing this clever technique.
I love playing around with painted paper backgrounds.
Thanks for commenting!
Kimberly, just like I wrote in the post, this is the first time I try this stuff so I don’t have a favorite brand, though I really like the tip of this bottle for writing with.
Helena, not sure what you mean with “in here”? There must be some art shops where you’re at? I found mine at a very small art shop slash gallery. :-)
April, thanks for all your lovely comments lately! It makes me happy each time you take the time to comment. Let me know if you try the masking thing!
I have never heard of this. This can give so much freedom! It will mask over colors you’ve already laid down, right?
I love this – and the colors you used are wonderful! I’ve used oil pastels to make a “resist” but hadn’t heard of this technique before. Now I’m tempted to get some masking fluid and experiment too :)
:), I’m sorry, “here” is Estonia. I just made the search, and there might be masking media in one store but also it might not be :-) We really don’t have good hobby shops in Estonia, especially when I compare to Norway where I lived last year. Panduro is a great shop in Scandinavia but unfortunately we don’t have it in Estonia. Hopefully it will get better.