Using blending gel with hand painted acrylics

Our first tutorial of this year's NaMoPaiMo season comes from acrylic artist, extraordinaire, Jenn Constantine. Jenn was "voluntold" by Shauna McDaniel to write a post about using blending gel, and this is the very useful and happy result. Thank you, Jenn, and Shauna, too. I know a lot of people are going to find this very helpful!

Okay, Blending Gel

by Jenn Constantine

Acrylics are a popular choice for artists considering their accessibility, price point and quick dry time. But that quick dry time is sometimes frustrating because blending and soft shifts can be a significant challenge.

tiny, adorable models customized and painted by Jenn Constantine

In case you’re not familiar with my techniques, I hand paint exclusively in acrylics (sometimes pencils for certain details). I didn’t start using blending gel until relatively recently, and while it does take some experimenting to get a feel for how it behaves in a variety of colors, it’s incredibly useful in some painting steps.

photo by Stephanie Blaylock

Think of blending gel as acting both like a thinning medium and a drying retarder. It plays well with water too if you need both the gel in a super thin paint mix (which is a highly recommended approach for acrylics). I put a blot of it on my palette to use either in a mix, or as a brush dip before picking up color. I’ll use it on a variety of brushes, from broad for a drier application to small and pointed for details. The gel still dries relatively quickly depending on how much you use, so don’t expect the drytime of oils. You still have to be on the ball if you’re wanting to take advantage of it in multiple layers. Speaking of layers, if you put down a gelled application, and then put more gelled application on it before it’s dry, it WILL mix with the previous layers and it’s easy to end up overmixing colors accidentally. If you get a layer or blend where you want it, ensure it’s fully dry before you continue!

You don’t need much! Especially on a small scale model, a little bit goes a long way. It will make some colors look more intense or opaque at first, but it typically dries to the more expected translucency. I’ve used it successfully in both broad application, like a full body coat blend, and in very small details.

A model for demonstration: I’ve been working on this spotty baby, and the blending gel helped me achieve the very soft fade of white up her neck and into her face. The first picture is the side I’ve made the most progress on. 

This next photo shows the basecoat without white markings. I used blending gel in the buckskin basecoat to help make the changes in the yellows and browns soft and smooth.

The first video shows how faint I can make the paint mix so her face and upper neck is a very slight and soft change with more blending gel and only a little paint. First I purposely put a stroke that’s too strong a color, wipe it off, and then come back with the gel. It’s so soft the camera has a hard time picking it up, and same on the neck. Then I do a tapping/drybrush application with the gel that took me a couple tries to dial in (and I finally had the brilliant idea to show it against the dark leg) and you can see how gentle the color is. 

The second shows a sharper and more focused application with less gel to work it around a spot area. The first stroke is strong, then quickly loses opacity after, so if you suspect the color may be too much, put the first stroke in a spot that can handle the strength, then go back to the softer area. The gel is easier to control in very thin applications than water, so also use it in areas that you don't water dumping off your brush. 

Hope this is helpful. Paint on!

Thanks again, Jenn! This was great, and I love that foal!