How do you make encaustic paint?
The term “encaustic” is derived from Greek, meaning simply “to burn in.” The “recipe” for encaustic is simple: pigment plus wax (typically a mixture of beeswax and damar resin). You melt the wax, mix in the pigment, and you have encaustic paint.
Can you use crayons for encaustic painting?
Can I melt wax crayons and use them in encaustic painting? You may have seen YouTube videos that melt crayons for encaustic medium; this isn’t recommended. Crayons are made with paraffin and a mix of other types of wax. Paraffin is inexpensive but too brittle for encaustic, it tends to crack and chip.
What is the pigment for encaustic paint?
beeswax
Encaustic painting uses beeswax as its medium. Beeswax is probably the oldest known pigment binder, and the technique of Encaustic goes back to the Ancient Greeks where beeswax, resin and pigments were used to paint warships.
How do I make white encaustic paint?
In order to get a true white, you will need filtered medium. Adding white paint to yellow medium will give you a lovely off white colour that is a regular on my griddle, but you will not get a bright white encaustic paint when using a yellow base.
Can you use oil paint with encaustic?
Yes, you can work encaustic over wet oil paint, the wax will encapsulate the oil paint. When adding encaustic over oil, the oil film should still be wet. A dried oil film is not absorbent enough to hold the wax well.
What is melted to create encaustic?
The “classic” recipe for making your own encaustic wax is to melt together 85% beeswax with 15% damar resin. This will result in a strong and quite tough wax medium into which you can gently mill / blend your chosen pigments.
Can you put encaustic over acrylic paint?
When used properly, acrylic is one of the most durable and preferred binders available to artists. It has wonderful adhesive properties and flexibility. Carefully tweaked with some other materials, it is quite suitable for use with encaustic paint. it becomes a very suitable ground for encaustic.
Is encaustic painting toxic?
With adequate ventilation and proper working temperatures encaustic is non-toxic. It is important to create cross-ventilation in your workspace, because wax fumes can be irritants, causing headaches and coughing.
Can you mix beeswax with acrylic paint?
Some of the luminous colors and lush surfaces produced with beeswax are easily reproducible with acrylics. In fact, many artists use acrylic gels simply because they create stunning multidimensional effects—even when they aren’t trying to copy the look of traditional encaustic art made with beeswax.
What is encaustic paint made of?
Encaustic is a wax based paint (composed of beeswax, resin and pigment), which is kept molten on a heated palette. It is applied to an absorbent surface and then reheated in order to fuse the paint.
How do you combine oil and wax?
Olive oil is added in much the same way fragrance oil is added to candles.
- Heat the water to about 155 degrees F in the double boiler.
- Measure and weigh 1 oz. of oil for every 3 oz. of wax you plan to use.
- Melt the wax in a double boiler.
- Add the oil slowly, stirring in slow circles until blended. Warning.
What’s the best way to make encaustic paint?
We give two basic recipes, one recipe combining beeswax and resin, and a second recipe combining beeswax with hard Carnauba wax. For a wonderful introduction to the world of Encaustic Painting, we recommend the book, EMBRACING ENCAUSTIC by Linda and William Womak – available where fine books are sold.
Where does the name encaustic paint come from?
The term “encaustic” is derived from Greek, meaning simply “to burn in.” The “recipe” for encaustic is simple: pigment plus wax (typically a mixture of beeswax and damar resin). You melt the wax, mix in the pigment, and you have encaustic paint.
How much beeswax to 1 part dammar for encaustic paint?
A leading encaustic paint manufacturer consistently uses a ratio of 4.5 parts beeswax to 1 part dammar. This would be considered at the top end of the range by most artists, producing a hard paint. An average among many working artists is a standard ratio of 6 parts beeswax to 1 part dammar.
What are the ingredients for encaustic wax medium?
A hotplate is the heat source and the working container is a stainless steel measuring cup – like a small saucepan. Ingredients: Beeswax, carnauba, damar resin, red pigment. The beeswax is measured into the heated cup which stands on the hotplate. This begins to melt and the smaller amount of carnauba is added.
