Varnishing Acrylic Paintings

I recently finished up my sister-in-law's Charlotte Skyline acrylic painting with an isolation layer and two layers of varnish, to help protect the three large canvases while they are shipped to her and on display in her apartment for years to come.

Because I had never done this step to an acrylic painting before, having only minimal experience with acrylic and using only making small paintings (or ones not even on canvas, but just on acrylic paper), I first had to buy the supplies.

I bought a new flat brush, Golden polymer varnish, and Golden soft gel gloss. (I also bought Golden soft gel matte, thinking I could use that as an isolation layer - only to later read on the label "DO NOT USE AS AN ISOLATION LAYER," at which time I went out and bought the soft gel gloss as a replacement.)

I used the Golden brand website to find instructions for how to apply the isolation layer and varnish layer. The directions were also on the labels.

I applied an isolation layer to my "test painting" first - "Find a Proverbial Mountain," the much smaller acrylic painting I completed in November 2016. I let that dry for a couple days, and then added a layer of varnish on top. When that painting survived just fine with no ill effects, I decided I was ready to try tackling the large skyline triptych.

Assembling my materials

Adding a layer of varnish to my painting

I followed the same procedure on the larger painting, following the directions on the label for ratio of soft gel gloss to water, and applying it in a thin isolation layer. It was white at first, but dried clear.

After I'd given that a couple days to dry, I went in with the polymer varnish (also diluted with water according to the label instructions). I did one coat to all three paintings, let it dry for 24 hours, and then added a second thin coat on top.

I then let it sit on my table for two weeks to make sure it was all fully dried and cured. I knew I would have to wrap the canvases in plastic and bubble wrap (not to mention packaging them in cardboard boxes) in order to ship them to North Carolina, so I wanted to make sure they were completely dry and ready before I did any of that.

They turned out great! And now I have the supplies on hand to do the same steps to any future acrylic paintings as well, to make sure they're all protected and will last a long time.

NYC Photos - Skyscrapers

My husband and I recently went on a trip to New York City - my first time ever in the Big Apple! For someone who has always loved theater and art, NYC has always been on my bucket list in a big way. Because I wanted to see everything, we went for eight days/nine nights (the concierge at our hotel was shocked how long we were staying!), and we made a plan to ensure we went to everything we wanted to do.

We took tours - the Circle Line Landmark Tour, which is a boat tour around the harbor; the NBC Studio Tour inside Rockefeller Center; the Statue Cruise boat out to Ellis Island; a tour of the New York Public Library; and an audio tour of Grand Central Terminal. We visited museums - the Metropolitan Museum of Art (the Met), the Museum of Modern Art (the MoMA), the Tenement Museum, the Jewish Museum, and the Ellis Island Museum. And we took in shows - an improv show at the United Citizens Brigade, the off-Broadway "Puffs" (a Harry Potter spoof play that was hilarious), "Avenue Q" (a fabulous puppet-musical off-Broadway), and the Broadway show "Lobby Hero," starring Michael Cera, Chris Evans, Brian Tyree Henry, and Bel Powley.

We also walked around several iconic neighborhoods including Hell's Kitchen/Chelsea (especially the High Line park), Chinatown/Little Italy/the Lower East Side/SoHo, the Financial District/Lower Manhattan, NoHo/Greenwich Village, just a bit of Brooklyn, Central Park, and Midtown/the Theater District (the last several times, as that's where our hotel was located).

The weather didn't always cooperate. We were there from March 30-April 7, and during that week we saw rain, mist, fog, snow, wind, and a little bit of sun. (I had been hoping to avoid most of the snow/cold by early April, but apparently we should have booked the trip for a few weeks later - winter has really been holding on this year!) Still, we managed to do most of what we wanted to do, even if I had to take photos of the Manhattan skyline in the fog, instead of in the sun.

I took over 2,000 photos over the time we were there, and I'm not going to post them all on this blog. But I am going to post a lot of them, over the course of several days/weeks. Today, I'm focusing on the best pictures I took of skyscrapers - those iconic NYC buildings that make up the famous skyline. I plan to use at least some of these pictures for future artworks.

Charlotte Skyline - Finished!

This triptych of three large canvases (each 22"x28") was commissioned by my sister-in-law, who lives in downtown Charlotte, NC. She wanted the Charlotte skyline painted in earth tones/dark colors and gold, to match her favorite colors and her apartment's decor.

First, to see the blog posts of this massive painting in progress, visit these:

• Planning and Sketching: http://untilthewaterfalls.blogspot.com/2018/02/charlotte-skyline-in-progress-planning.html

• First Layer of Paint: http://untilthewaterfalls.blogspot.com/2018/02/charlotte-skyline-in-progress-first.html

• Adding Details 1: http://untilthewaterfalls.blogspot.com/2018/03/charlotte-skyline-in-progress-adding.html

• Adding Details 2: https://untilthewaterfalls.blogspot.com/2018/03/charlotte-skyline-in-progress-adding_14.html

• Adding Details 3: https://untilthewaterfalls.blogspot.com/2018/03/charlotte-skyline-in-progress-adding_28.html

• Finishing Touches: https://untilthewaterfalls.blogspot.com/2018/04/charlotte-skyline-in-progress-finishing.html

And now, without further ado, here is the finished piece -

The entire set of three canvases

Note: If they look a little tilted/not completely lined up, it's because they're just leaning against the wall in our basement in these pictures, and not hung on the wall. Also, I personally think the colors look a little gross in this blue-gray room - I guess I should have taken these photos in another room instead! They'll look much better when they're hanging up in Juile's apartment, surrounded by colors they better complement. :)

The far left canvas

The middle canvas

The far right canvas

There is still one step left - adding a layer of varnish on top to help protect the paintings. Once that is finished and the varnish is dry, I'll be packing these canvases up and shipping them out to North Carolina, where they'll hang on my sister-in-law's wall!