Tip For Acrylic Painters

That does add a great texture. Wonder if you could do that with gesso and sand then oil paint over?

Gesso might not glue the sand... just buy a tube of white acrylic paint and fix the sand. Oil will go well on the acrylic surface.

I've tried sand, but I found over time it chipped off....maybe I didn't glue it down enough.

Now I use crushed walnut shells. They stay in suspension in paint and are cheap to buy in the hardware store.

I use acrylic paint but I would assume you can add them to oil, gesso, etc.

Cheers, Barbara

from the beach.......LOL
Where's a beach?????
::::waving Hi to Lutz:::::::

I am not so lucky live near the beach but I use things from close by, I saved the eggshell after breakfast for use as texture.

From the beach is cool if it is a seascape you are painting.
For Santa Fe motifs I would prefer desert sand though.



Acrylic paint can glue different things onto the canvas, like wooden sticks, metal bits, and love.

Hiya Lutz,

I have used this technique on many of my paintings. But you can purchase this many art stores. It's called sand gesso. Here's a example ofone of mine using this technique

Right Harold,
But for a still life painting, a Natura Mortuum, you should go for the real thing, the autenthic sand...

I live in the desert and was shocked when I moved here that there was no sand, much less dunes....just a bunch of scruff, dirt, dead plants, bramble bushes...but amidst it all, some gorgeous cacti..with something blooming every day of the year!

Thanks for the tip Lutz. I love texture in paintings. I never thought of sand before though I've used other bits of things and enjoyed the outcome.

Yes, gesso and sand, even largish pebbles will adhere just fine. You can color the gesso too. You can mix it thick or thin. And yes gesso/sand is fine (I have used it) less expensive to make your own. I got a bag of sand from the store and then filtered the sand to fine/medium/heavy (pebbles)