Elli and her experience in arts and crafts are the backbone of the home improvement content on the website. Elli is responsible for keeping the content up to date as Head of Updates and ensuring that facts and recommendations are valid and trustworthy.
Expertises: Art, Do it yourself, Home improvement, Design, Craft
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When it comes to expressing your creativity freely, opting for a subject such as canvas painting ideas seems like a viable option. Art in its many forms has a great ability which can be easily underestimated. It can get under your skin without you even noticing it, becoming an essential part of our beings and daily life.
Every single DIY project you start has the potential to become a work of art if enough dedication spirit and love is being given. Painting in general has been proven to exude calming effects, thus providing a wonderful method of relieving daily stress and disconnecting from the outside world.
As a beginner in the canvas painting world, one must accept from the very start that a set of basic rules apply here as in any other domain in order to obtain the desired end results. So today we'll be starting with a set of basic rules revolving  around Canvas Painting Ideas and the right choices you should take to start on the right track your easy canvas painting projects.
The very first and basic mistake everyone makes at their beginning in this art is the rush of jumping into the painting act itself without the right preparations of the working environment and materials used. As I am sure many of you have done in the past, I was used to buying a pre-stretched canvas or canvas board from a library and starting the piece right away, on the black slate, which I have found out can be a huge mistake from my part
One of the fundamental techniques used in painting is covering the white canvas with a solid paint color called a "toned ground" or "colored ground"
The reasons behind this choice are numerous. A toned ground will provide a background for your work of art which will result in a more professional looking piece, give you more speed and efficiency in the painting process .There are two methods of applying the colored ground to your canvas. The first one is opaquely where the second is a transparent stain, an Imprimatura. We recommend you to start with the opaque finish and work from there on. As for the colors themselves, it all depends on your choice of subject and the results you are looking for. Earth colors such as umber or yellow ochre are the best choices for landscapes and for the beginner level. Yellow ochre might seem like a bold first choice but can provide a balanced background on which you can build on your different acrylic layers that will compose your work. If you are still not sure of this choice, you can add some Titanium white to the mixture to tone it down.
What is the best paint to use on a canvas?
As we are working our way up from the beginner level, we recommend you to start with basic Acrylic paint. "Acrylic paint is a fast-drying paint containing pigment suspension in acrylic polymer emulsion. Acrylic paints are water-soluble, but become water-resistant when dry. Depending on how much the paint is diluted with water, or modified with acrylic gels, media, or pastes, the finished acrylic painting can resemble a watercolor or an oil painting, or have its own unique characteristics not attainable with other media."
As Acrylic is based on adding, you can count on the colored ground you have added to your canvas to do the work for you. It will temper the hues and help you observe the true tones of the paint you add in comparison to a blank white canvas which will play tricks on your eye.
How much do I dilute my acrylics?
A procent of 40-50% water is accepted from most manufacturers. More than this and you will be diluting some of the acrylics adhesive qualities, which are essential in order for the paint to really attach on the canvas and on each added layer. After gaining some experience with basic Acrylics you can opt for other paint sets which come already diluted from fabric and provide a consistent layer.
This amazing piece by Michael Shapcott has used different techniques of applying the paint layers, resulting in a rich explosion of tones and creativity. We can all agree this level is very difficult to reach, but we can aspire to greatness.
Further on we'll explore some of the different techniques you can choose in your Canvas Painting Ideas Projects.
So what is your take on these easy canvas painting ideas? Is it something you would dare to try on? We would very much like it if you would share your ideas and personal canvas painting ideas and projects in the comment section below.