Okay so acrylic paint and I have a complicated history.

It's usually the go-to medium for a lot of people, sip and paint nights, school projects, beginner art classes. I've worked with it before but I never really liked it, and for the longest time I couldn't remember why.

And then I sat down to actually paint with it again and I remembered immediately. They dry so fast.

Blending is really hard when the paint dries before you even get a chance to work with it. Water helps, but I don't think I have the right technique yet to get a smooth blend. There are also different mediums you can mix in to improve fluidity, which I want to explore more. But something about acrylic just refuses to cooperate with me.

Because the paint I used is more on the opaque side, everything ended up looking a little cartoon-y. Which is actually kind of charming in the fruit study, all those bold bright colors piled together. The Bay Bridge though, that one surprised me. Getting that warm orange glow under the bridge against the cooler sky felt like a small win.

I do think acrylic has a lot going for it, especially for detail work since the fast drying means you can layer quickly. I just haven't figured out how to make it feel natural yet.

Materials

I started with the Shuttle Art 16 piece set, cheap, small 12ml tubes, figured it made sense since acrylic isn't something I reach for often. It was okay but I burned through it way faster than expected. So I ordered the Winsor & Newton primary colors set, just the basics plus black and white, because honestly that's all you really need. It made a noticeable difference in terms of smoothness and how opaque the colors felt. Winsor & Newton is my go-to brand for art supplies and it hasn't done me wrong yet. I also grabbed a large tube of Liquitex white because I mix white into almost everything, and Liquitex has a solid reputation for acrylics.

The lesson there: be intentional about what you buy and why. If you're just doing a one-off project or hosting a paint night, the cheap stuff is fine. If you're actually trying to learn and improve, go for a mid-tier brand and work up from there. Don't just buy a whole set because it's on sale. Know your why.

I'm not closing the door on acrylic though. It's very much on the list of things I want to get better at.