Sometimes, you happen to forget fresh oil paint on a palette after painting, and you wonder whether you can use it again since you do not want to waste materials, and you have spent some good money on it. You have probably heard that you can use the oil paint that has just dried, and it is true, but you have to obtain the necessary tools for that. So, how can you reuse dried oil paint?
There is a way to save your dried oil paint, i.e. to reuse it for your work although it has hardened significantly. Mainly to achieve that, you will first have to obtain the necessary tools. Thinning mediums are known to successfully soften dried oil paint, as long as they are well mixed with water.
Dried oil paint does not mean that it is wasted paint because there is a way to reuse it and keep its original features. This article will help you learn the way in which you can soften dried oil paint and use all of it on your next art project. Here, you will learn what tools you need in order to make this possible, as well as the whole procedure in steps that will help you reuse dried oil paint in a quick manner.
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How Can I Reuse Dried Oil Paint?
When it comes to softening dried oil paint, the most successful substance has proven to be paint thinner. Paint thinner
mixed with water in the correct amount can really be helpful, as long as the oil paint has the predispositions to be salvaged. Some oil paints can dry to a certain level at which nothing else can be done to reuse the paint after all.
This means that you will have to learn to assess the paint before you start the process of restoring the paint. However, in most cases, dried oil paint is salvageable, meaning that you will have to use the proper tools to make this happen. Generally, you do not need much for enabling this process.
In other words, you only need paint thinner, a bowl, and a brush. This is enough to start restoring the oil paint and reuse it on a different project. What you need to do is find the right thinner and mix it with an amount of water that is considered to be enough for the oil paint to be restored. Once you have the right mixture, you will see that the paint will regain its almost original features.
What Is A Paint Thinner?
Paint thinner, also known as a thinner medium, is a substance with a structure similar to gel, and when it is mixed with paints enables fluid consistency. The paint thinner is actually a way to achieve paint consistency that is needed for a certain project since not all paintings or art projects will need the same density of paint. Therefore, a painting medium is known to be useful to establish the consistency you really need, but also to restore the paint when it has dried on the palette.
This being said, it can be noticed that a paint thinner is a tool that should be always close by to you if you are a person who enjoys artistic projects on a daily basis. Paint mediums are inexpensive tools, meaning that you will not have to spend a fortune in order to achieve the consistency you need for any kind of painting. Also, you will have the necessary tool for restoring paint whenever it is needed.
Some people choose to use water as a tool for softening paint, however, it is usually more difficult to achieve a usable state of paint since oil paint is quite dense. Also, this is generally a slower process, so not many artists want to waste time taking into consideration that there is already a quicker way to achieve the desired results. The paint thinner has chemicals that make the restoration useful and quick at the same time, therefore, there is no need to try with only water first.
Paints can be restored with water only if they have just started to dry out. Otherwise, it would be really difficult to get the liquid consistency of fully dried paint by using only water. Therefore, the ideal solution would be a thinner medium, and trying other ways would be a waste of time.
How To Assess Paint To See Whether It Is Salvageable?
As I mentioned above, first, you will have to see whether you can restore the oil paint you intend to use again. Not all paints can be restored, so if you do not do your assessment correctly, you will end up trying to restore paint that cannot actually be restored. Therefore, it would be convenient to learn how to tell whether the oil paint you intend to restore is salvageable.
So, to see whether you can work with the dried paint, you need to check whether the paint has completely separated into liquid and pigment. If this is the case, you might still have a chance to reuse the paint in question. A little bit of liquid in the paint means that the paint is still capable of offering its features, i.e. you can still do something in order to use the paint in a different project.
On the other hand, if you see that the only thing left of the paint is the pigment without any traces of liquid, then you should not try to do anything since it would not be successful. It would be a complete waste of time and thinner since the paint will not be restored, and you will end up feeling disappointed. Even if you try using very valuable and strong thinners, it will still not make a difference since this is how paints work, and you can do nothing about it.
How To Restore Dried Oil Paint Using A Thinner Medium?
As we established, a thinner medium is possibly the best solution you have for restoring dried oil paint. However, you should also know the proper procedure, so you could restore the paint and use it again with its original features. If you do not use the thinner medium properly, you might destroy the oil paint altogether, and you will not be able to do anything to reuse it.
Also, a thinner medium is a great substance that is used at all times if you frequently work with oil paint. Therefore, it will not be a waste of time to invest in a good paint thinner that will be used on a daily basis.
In addition, paint thinner can really help you, if you are a person who usually forgets to put lids on the paint bottles or containers. Sometimes, even if you put the lids on, air can get inside and dry out the paint, in which case, paint thinner would be a really convenient tool to have. However, you should also consider having some additional tools alongside, so you would be able to use the paint medium properly.
The tools that are convenient to use with a paint medium are craft sticks for mixing, a cover for the surface in order to keep the surroundings clean, and a palette knife. Once you establish that you have everything, you should proceed with making the first step.
Step One – Cover Your Workspace
Make sure that you have something, so you could save the surroundings from a mess. Sometimes oil paint can be difficult to clean, so it is better to cover everything that is valuable and delicate for maintenance. Therefore, using some kind of cloth or rug would be really convenient to cover the table where you work.
Also, a table cloth is good because your table will be secured from scratches and other damages. Even though painting is a nice and calming activity, it could be really messy, so you might end up forced to clean surfaces from paint for hours.
Step Two – Open The Paint That Needs Restoring
Be careful when you open the paint that needs to be restored to prevent further damages. Once you open the paint, you will be able to make an estimate, i.e. to see whether you could salvage the rest of it for further use. You should expect that if there is no liquid left in the paint, you would not be able to restore the paint, and you should just throw it because it will be good for nothing.
On the other hand, if you see that there is still liquid detached from the pigment, you will still be able to restore it and use it again. If you assess that restoration would be possible, then you should use a palette knife to peel away the crusty bits that are probably around the cap and the bottleneck area.
Removing the crusts is important because that way you are making sure that they will not fall in the paint. If they fall inside the paint you intend to restore, they might damage or ruin the structure of the oil paint completely.
Step Three – Add The Thinner Medium
During this step, you should be really careful. Adding a thinner medium is easy, but taking it out is not possible. Therefore, the adding process should be carefully planned, i.e. you should know the exact amount that needs to be mixed with the dried oil paint.
So, you should add a few drops of a thinner medium at the time. Once you add a few drops, you should use craft sticks, or drink stirrers for mixing the thinner with the oil paint. However, make sure that the stick is not sharp, so it would not damage the bottle of the paint.
Step Four – Stir The Thinner Medium Thoroughly
You should add a few drops at a time and stir simultaneously until you reach your desired consistency. You should add the amount of thinner medium that you need for the intended surface you need to cover. In the whole process, you should continue to stir since this will help you achieve the consistency of paint that has the ability to be applied on a particular surface and stick successfully.
You might think that a paintbrush will have the same effect as a craft stick, however, there is a difference in these tools. A craft stick has a more solid structure, meaning it has the ability to mix the thinner into the paint thoroughly and give you the result you expect. A paintbrush might get damaged during this process, therefore, it is not advised to use one.
You can use a brush only if you are trying to soften a paint that is already on a palette. This is usually a smaller amount of paint and thinner, so no damage would be done on the brush.
Step Five – Replace The Lid On The Paint Bottle Or Container
Make sure to avoid further drying of the paint by replacing the lid of your paint bottle or container. Since the paint has dried, it means that the lid has some crack that allows air to enter and dry out the paint. Replacing the lid with a more suitable one would make a difference for further maintenance of the oil paint.
After you have done all the steps, you will probably be able to use the paint on a surface. You might see that the consistency is not the same as in the original oil paint, however, it will be something close to it. It is better to have something to work with than waste money and paint that can be revived.
As you could see, the process of restoring paint is not complicated and it does not involve a lot of tools. You should be able to restore oil paint easily if you know the proper steps. However, you should expect that sometimes oil paint cannot be salvaged if there is no liquid left alongside the pigment.
Sources
- The horrible waste of oil paint on a palette – See How to Remove the Dried Skin and Keep Painting!
- Saving Colors – Oil Painting Techniques