A few years ago, one of the art trends that the whole world seemed to be trying was acrylic paint pour. It looked beautiful.

Paint pouring is basically pouring different coloured paints on a canvas and swirling them a bit for a unique marbling effect. Because this is fluid art, you have little control of how the paint will flow. You can have some amount of control in how you pour and distribute it, but other than that it has a mind of its own. Which means that every single piece you make will be unique. 

It’s a little more difficult than it looks in most videos. You need to get the consistency of the paint right, mix the right amount, and swirl it to get it across the whole board. 

Start with a few smaller practice pieces to get a hang of it. I did not. I was overconfident and messed up big time. Learn from my mistakes people! Thankfully I was able to salvage the piece.

I tried another one as a gift for a friend and it turned out quite nice. 

Another concern most people like me have is the amount of paint wasted as it flows down the canvas. Easy fix for that too.

Have a large sheet of plastic to catch the paint below. Let it dry then peel off. It comes off like a sheet of acrylic. You can use these to make your own abstract art or cut them into shapes. I used them to make greeting cards.

On one of my visits to a crafts store, I saw ready-mixed paint pour bottles. On Sale! How could I resist? I picked up a few and looked for something to paint. I found an old boring tray. My son was most excited to make a bit of (controlled) mess. 

I let it dry for a week because I didn’t want to take any chances. Then added three layers of varnish on top.

I’m quite glad with how it turned out.

What do you think?