5 Things To Remember when Painting by Numbers

Painting by numbers is one of the funniest and most rewarding hobbies you can learn. However, painting by numbers is not as easy as you might think, it is not simply a matter of filling in the numbers and completing your painting. It takes hours of practice, skill and patience to complete a paint by numbers kit to a high standard. 

So we thought we would help you out and explain the 5 most important things that you must remember when completing our amazing paint by number kits. If you wanted to check out our unique custom paint by numbers kit then click here to check them out.

1. Keep the Work Area Tidy

A lot of the time artists are too excited to begin paining that they rip open the packaging and start attacking the canvas with brushes and all different colours. But this is the fastest recipe for an average finished painting with half the paint on the work surface as opposed to the canvas. 

Before you begin painting your paint by numbers kit we strongly advise you put down newspaper or blank paper under the canvas, thus protecting the surface you are painting on. 

2. Start from the top

Once you have set up your painting station and surface it is time to begin painting. The next point in this article explains the process of picking which paints to use. But this pro tip focuses on the places you are going to start painting first. If you are left-handed we recommend starting from the top right of the paint by numbers canvas. No surprise if you are right-handed we advise you begin painting from the top left corner of the canvas and work down towards the bottom.

The reason for starting at the top of the painting and not just any random number is that painting from these starting positions is likely to lead to the least amount of smudges possible. 

3. Pick One Paint and Stick with It

Far too often I will watch an artist complete a paint by numbers kit and they dip their brush into one pot and paint, then another pot and paint and then another pot and paint. These are the artists who are shocked that their finished paint by numbers canvas' look the wrong colour or the shading looks slightly off. That is because they have painted an orange colour, then a green colour and then a brown colour. Want to know what colour you can make by mixing orange, green and brown? An ugly colour is the answer!

We strongly advise you pick one number and one colour to begin painting. As mentioned above your starting position may be different, so before you begin map out the canvas from the top corner and see which number occurs often. This will be a good number to start with as you can work down the painting completing several sections without having to clean or change your brush.  

4. Start with Dark Shades and Colours

If you are familiar with paint by number kits then this tip will probably seem extremely obvious to you, but we still believe it to be one of the most important tips, especially if you want your finished painting to as detailed and accurate as possible. 

If you begin with darker colours it gives you the leeway to make a few little mistakes such as paint outside a numbers section or slightly cover another numbers part of the painting. If you do make these mistake (trust us you will) you can then wait for the paints to dry and then paint over the dark colour with the correct colour and no-one will be the wiser!

5. Do Not Leave the Paint Pots Open

The paints used in our custom paint by numbers kits and our standard kits are acrylic based paints and are designed to dry very quickly. They are designed in this way to allow you to paint as many sections of your canvas as possible each time you paint. How brilliant is that! Unfortunately if an artist leaves the paint pot open for too long or forget to shut the lid when they are finished painting then the paint pots will dry out rapidly. 

No-body wants dried paint pots as they will find it difficult to complete the rest of their lovely paint by numbers kit! If a pot does become dry for whatever reason add in a few droplets of water and give the paint a mix. The smooth velvety feel of the paint should come back enough for you to complete your painting. Don't forget to only have one paint pot open at a time during your painting as you would be surprised how quickly the paint pots can dry out. 

These are the 5 most important tips and tricks to remember when completing a paint by numbers kit. If you can think of any other helpful tips please leave them below in the comments and I will be sure to include them in our next blog! 

Create your own personalized paint by numbers kit here or check out our extensive range of paint by numbers for adults here.