Art Fun Cheap

Experimentation is the secret of having art fun on the cheap. Here is something I discovered by playing with things I happen to have lying around the house.

If you don’t care about archival qualities, nail polishes can be used as paper glazes. The glitter is usually very fine and well distributed, it’s easy to get even coverage, and it’s waterproof, too.

I have tried using nail polish. Except for the smell, it worked fine. The artist trading card I used it on still looks great three years later.

Unlike acrylic medium, nail polish is probably not archival. It has chemicals in it that may deteriorate whatever art work you put it on. And be warned, even after two or three years, it never loses that nasty nail polish smell.

Another disadvantage is that you cannot layer water-based media (watercolor, glitter glues, and paper glazes) on top of nail polish. So plan carefully before using it. Still, it could be fun to try out on a project that you don’t intend to be saved.

I would not recommend buying nail polish to use as a paper glaze. It is more expensive than real paper glaze and has too many disadvantages.

However, many of us already have partially used bottles of irridescent or glittery nail polish that we will never use up. So why not experiment with it?

Art Fun, experimenting, Glitter Glues & Glazes, nail polish, not archival, paper glazes

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