---

 

Okay… have y’all been painting rocks? I have. Actually, rocks have taken over my craft room. I have about 2 or 3 dozen finished and I hid 6 of them (in plain site) all over town while running errands yesterday. A little rock here…a little rock there. I had so much fun imagining the smiles the rocks would bring to whomever found them; like a little spritz of happy in their day. Today, I’m very excited to share a different way to paint rocks. A method that requires NO drawing ability and only three steps to create drop dead gorgeous art rocks. I promise you, if you weren’t addicted before…you will be now.

Many people assume that because I craft, I’m an artist. True, I am creative and I do make things BUT I CAN NOT DRAW. Seriously! Drawing the figure for hangman is the extent of my drawing abilities. Consequently, I absolutely love this method of rock painting. By applying acrylic paint with a pouring method, people like me can create something truly artistic and randomly beautiful. Each rock is completely unique and SO COOL! Let’s get started.

 

Altering Acrylic Paint for Pouring

---

First of all, let me say there is a BIG difference between my casual methods of paint pouring and the pouring methods of artists creating works on canvas. There so much more research and testing done by these artists; I am just painting rocks and I want to do this as inexpensively and carefreely as possible. Therefore, I have scraped bits and pieces of info to create a paint that works for my hobbyist purpose. If you are interested in acrylic pouring on canvas as an art form, please do your research and check out the many fabulous professional artists out there – like my personal fav mixed media artist, Emma Lindstrom. 

---

 

So, let’s take a look at how to alter acrylic paint so that it pours well. You’re probably thinking, why not just add water to your paint until it is thin enough to pour? Well, water alters paint in many ways. Primarily, it dilutes the pigments so they are not as intense or as opaque (solid). It also alters the texture and how the paint dries. You want your paint to flow but you also want it to retain it’s color, shine and smoothness when dry. After trying several options, I found that a combination of acrylic paint, Floetrol, Golden GAC 800 and Silicone (treadmill lubricant) worked the best. Here’s the scoop on each

 

ACRYLIC PAINT

What: Semi-gloss or gloss acrylic paint. Can be craft paint such as Plaid Apple Barrel or Americana OR basic fine art acrylic paint like Amsterdam Standard Series, Liquitex Basic or Master’s Touch (Hobby Lobby)

Where: Local art or craft store or Amazon on-line.

Cost: $1.30 for small craft paints or $4-$6 for basic fine art acrylic (usually 2-4 oz)

Formula Quantity: 1 ounce

 

FLOETROL

What: “Flood” (brand) Floetrol is a paint additive that makes paint flow more easily and level out smoothly without diluting the pigmentation of the paint.

Where: Local hardware store or order HERE from Amazon.

HERE is a combo set with Floetrol, 8oz cups, and stir sticks

Cost: $7.00 for 1 Quart

Formula Quantity: .33 to .44 ounces (10-12ml) per 1 ounce of paint

 

GOLDEN GAC 800

What: An acrylic medium (paint additive) for pouring colors with reduced ‘crazing’ (basically helps your poured paint dry level)

Where: Local art supply store or HERE from Amazon.

Cost: $14 for 8 ounces

Formula Quantity: .33 to .50 ounces (10-15ml) per 1 ounce of paint

 

SILICONE (TREADMILL LUBRICANT)

What: This is what creates the ‘cells’. Don’t skip this – the cells are so cool looking!

Where: I ordered from AMAZON. Buy the 4 ounce HERE

Cost: around $12 for 4 oz

Formula Quantity: 1-3 drops per 1 ounce of paint. You want some colors to have more than others

 

There are two additional items you may want to purchase if you think making these art rocks is going to be your new favorite hobby

 

8 oz Squeeze Bottles with Lids – HERE

4 oz. Squeeze Bottles with Lids – HERE

(As long as the lids are on tight – they store well for a week or so)

2 oz Pouring Cups 50 count – HERE

2 oz Pouring Cups 150 count – HERE

I like the 2 oz so you have room for stirring. You can wash these out and get several pours out of each one. They have measurement marks too which helps you measure out the Floetrol and GAC 800. If you don’t want something disposable, a shot glass works well.

Additional Items: paper towels, aluminum foil, rubber gloves, stir sticks, a propane candle lighter and an inexpensive cookie tray and wire cooling rack (Dollar Store!)

---

Please remember, ordering your supplies from the affiliate links I provide makes it possible for me to continue producing the Crafty Composition Blog. You pay the same price and get the same perks (Prime) as you would if you went directly to your Amazon account. So, IF you are going to purchase these items, I greatly appreciate your support by using the links provided. Thank You!

---

 

Oops – Almost forgot…here’s a quick recipe card for my paint formula.

(you can also pin this from my Pinterest “Crafty Comp Rocks!” Board)

 

---

OKAY – I know at this point you are thinking…

Hey! I thought JoElle said this was 3 easy steps to gorgeous art rocks?!

It is. It is…once you have your paint mixed up.

ONWARD

 

Three Easy Steps to Art Rocks that ROCK!

 

Step ONE

Place your washed rock on top of your cheap cooling rack which is sitting on top of your cheap cookie sheet, lined with foil. Place your mini measure cup/shot glass next to it. Pick 3 coordinating paint colors plus white (pre-mixed using the formula above). Layer the paint into your mini cup until it’s about half full. Any random order of colors is fine but I often start with white.

 

Step TWO

There are two ways to do step two and I use both techniques. Of the two, I would say Technique B gives you the most control over your design. Technique A is completely random. . . Surprise!

Technique A:

You can place the TOP of your rock, facing down, over your mini measure cup and flip it so the cup is now upside-down on top of the rock. I REALLY like the little medicine cups for this technique because they are flexible enough to form to the curves of the rock. I can usually get a pretty good seal between the cup and the rock before I flip it. Pull the cup up, letting the paint flow over the rock. Tilt, tap, or shake the rock to help the paint flow in the direction you want. Try to get as much of the top of the rock covered as possible using these actions. Place rock down on cooling rack. With a small paint brush or craft stick, scoop up pooled paint from the cookie sheet and drip or drag onto uncovered areas or areas your fingers were holding. DON’T DO TO MUCH OF THIS as this paint tends to be more blended and you will lose the unique ‘pouring’ effect.

Technique B:

Holding your rock in one hand and your mini cup in the other, start pouring the paint over your rock, moving from one end towards the other. Tilt, tap, or shake the rock to help the paint flow in the direction you want. Try to get as much of the top of the rock covered as possible using these actions. Place rock down on cooling rack. With a small paint brush or craft stick, scoop up pooled paint from the cookie sheet and drip or drag onto uncovered areas or areas your fingers were holding. DON’T DO TO MUCH OF THIS as this paint tends to be more blended and you will lose the unique ‘pouring’ effect.

 

 

Step THREE (Optional)

You will need a little propane torch or candle lighter for this step

 

Now that you have the whole top (and sides) of your rock covered, you will notice that the paint is settling into a nice flat layer of beautiful swirling colors. You also might notice some circles or ‘cells’. You can bring out more of these cells by applying torch heat to your paint. These heat induced cells are usually much smaller but add so much amazing detail to your rock. Be careful not to hold the torch in one area to long as you don’t want to bubble or brown your paint. Literally 1 second per area is usually plenty.

 

 

Do you see all the little dots of purple and blue in the middle part of this rock? Those are all heat induced cells. Probably one of the coolest things ever! Sometimes you get a lot of cells and sometimes hardly any but that is the beauty of this painting method. Every rock is like opening a present and being completely surprised.

 

Don’t forget to protect your art rocks with Rust-oleum Clear Gloss. 

Wait 72 hours before sealing to ensure paint is completely dry.

 

---

 

GALLERY

Here are some of the acrylic paint poured rocks I made this week using the three easy steps above. Oooooos and Ahhhhhhs are totally encouraged!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

---

These Art Rocks have to be one of my favorite craft projects to date. I love the random shapes and how I’m continuously amazed at how creatively interesting and beautiful they are. I especially love the cells created by the silicone; scientifically spectacular. I hope you enjoyed learning about fluid paint pouring on rocks. Give it a try and if you have any questions please post to the comment section below or shoot me an email through the ‘contact me’ link. Feel free to pin, save, SHARE, like and all that jazz on social media. I’ve been working very hard at getting A Crafty Composition out there but I can’t do it without you guys. Have a marvelous week and as always, 

PS – to finish off the back of the art rocks for hiding/gifting/sharing, I simply paint the backs with gesso and adhere my labels BEFORE spraying the entire rock with Rustoleum Clear Gloss. If you haven’t heard about rock hiding or ‘kindness rocks’ head on over to my post  GO PAINT A ROCK to read all about it.

Sharing is caring!