Crackling medium
- Thread starter Enkiel
- Start date
Einion
New member
I think that's the one I have. I've had mixed results with it, although I have gotten it to give both very fine (just about visible if you look closely) and coarser cracks (easily visible at normal viewing distance). Either way, it has to be used more thickly than I'd like.
The two-part systems seem to be more reliable in that they're virtually guaranteed to give a result but this adds to the potential for more brush texture and you have to be more careful of how you work to get cracks of the size/spacing you want. There's a paint made for the crafters/scrapbook people that's supposed to be absolutely fab - cracks every time - but I'll have to go searching for the name.
Einion
The two-part systems seem to be more reliable in that they're virtually guaranteed to give a result but this adds to the potential for more brush texture and you have to be more careful of how you work to get cracks of the size/spacing you want. There's a paint made for the crafters/scrapbook people that's supposed to be absolutely fab - cracks every time - but I'll have to go searching for the name.
Einion
SkelettetS
New member
that scrapbooking paint is called distress crackle medium/paint, great stuff, crack like h*ll.
otherwise ive only tested vallejos crackle medium and has never got it to work properly..
otherwise ive only tested vallejos crackle medium and has never got it to work properly..
Einion
New member
The one I have is actually from DecoArt, called One Step Crackle. Don't know if it's the same as the Folkart version.
Einion
Yep, that's the one! Totally reliable apparently, with the advantage being that it's paint rather than a medium. The disadvantage is that it's paint so you don't see through to a colour underneath in the cracks, but that can be simulated with a wash or alternatively have the paint be the crack colour then colour the tops with drybrushing/scumbling.SkelettetS said:
Einion
using GW as basecoat, but i dont think it has any effect?
I even tried the medium on an unpainted surface ; all it did was a peeling off "skin" over the piece....
Torn blue sky
New member
I'm sorry, I just honed in on this lol!
That the one they've got over at Panduro Skels? I've been curious about it but haven't dared to try it out yet.
Farin
New member
sorry i respond so late to this thread gentlemen, i just like to give my 2 cents
crackle medium has been probably been one of the most frustating chapters of my painting carreer.I tried Vallejo crackle medium - it never worked, no matter how methodically i applied it. Then i bought something from an arts and craftshop here in Berlin from a company called hobbyline - didn´t work either. Neither did the third i tried, can´t recall the name. Then i read this article by the great and mighty ape known as Jar:
http://massivevoodoo.blogspot.com/2011/03/tutorial-working-with-crackel-medium.html
let me give you the long short: This stuff is simply awesome. 100 % reliable, easy to control: The thicker you apply the color , the bigger the cracks are. The only thing you need is a little patient,as it takes some time to dry and crack, depending , obviously, on humidity and temperature.
crackle medium has been probably been one of the most frustating chapters of my painting carreer.I tried Vallejo crackle medium - it never worked, no matter how methodically i applied it. Then i bought something from an arts and craftshop here in Berlin from a company called hobbyline - didn´t work either. Neither did the third i tried, can´t recall the name. Then i read this article by the great and mighty ape known as Jar:
http://massivevoodoo.blogspot.com/2011/03/tutorial-working-with-crackel-medium.html
let me give you the long short: This stuff is simply awesome. 100 % reliable, easy to control: The thicker you apply the color , the bigger the cracks are. The only thing you need is a little patient,as it takes some time to dry and crack, depending , obviously, on humidity and temperature.
Farin
New member
@sbird1975:
well i hate to bash Vallejo, since i use their colors and products very extensively and in general their products are worth the money, but really the crackle medium just didnt work. However a fellow painter i talk to quite frequently ( You can find him as Jens her on Cmon ) claims that he got the vallejo stuff working for him, maybe if you write him a pm he can explain what he did right.
well i hate to bash Vallejo, since i use their colors and products very extensively and in general their products are worth the money, but really the crackle medium just didnt work. However a fellow painter i talk to quite frequently ( You can find him as Jens her on Cmon ) claims that he got the vallejo stuff working for him, maybe if you write him a pm he can explain what he did right.
freakinacage
Well-known member
aye the vallejo crackle stuff is the only vallejo that doesn't work
SkelettetS
New member
not sure chrome, at panduro over here they only got the ink version, crackle paint is in a bottle. i had to order it online...
The one they've got over here comes in two sizes of bottle, guess I'll just have to buy the small one and try it out some day.
from what i understand tho, Tom Holtz's cracking medium is not transparent, so you have to paint over it.. wouldnt that kind of be a problem when you want very small cracks?
the idea of transparent crackling medium, is that, when it works, you can get very small cracks, and fill em with a wash. That's kind of what i wanted to do...
the idea of transparent crackling medium, is that, when it works, you can get very small cracks, and fill em with a wash. That's kind of what i wanted to do...
SkelettetS
New member
might be the correct one then, go for it!
Einion
New member
You could in theory paint over it very carefully with layers of thin paint (or just airbrush it), or colour just the tops with drybrushing or scumbling like I mention above, but ideally you'd use paint of the right colour so you wouldn't have to.Enkiel said:
Neither system is ideal, since the transparent crackle mediums themselves can be visible as a layer sitting on the surface.
I think the method, if you can get it to work, is an intermediate coating - so you paint the area one colour, paint the crackle stuff on and leave it to dry or partially dry, paint over it with the top colour and then the cracks form.
Einion
