DecoArt Media: My Top 5 Favorite Products

Mixed media is something that I have been really interested in since doing my sculpting course in University. Unfortunately, due to budget cuts, we didn't have kilns or the ability to torch or fire anything, so we had to resort to using unconventional sculpting materials such as styrofoam, concrete and even cardboard.

Decoart recently came out with an artist grade Mixed Media line, so when the opportunity came up for me to test out some of the products, I jumped at the chance. Here are my top 5 favorite products from the Mixed Media line.

Texture Sand Paste and Modelling Paste

What I love most about these products is that they are buildable, yet really lightweight.

In the past when I have painted with plaster on wood, I loved being able to build out the texture and make a truly three dimensional piece of art. However, plaster breaks and the piece becomes incredibly fragile. With the Mixed Media products, I can get that same effect with both the modelling paste and the texture sand paste.

The Texture Sand Paste gives a really great fine sand effect to your piece. If you are working on adding any beach themed home decor pieces, this product would be a great addition to give dimension, depth and texture. I really liked pairing it with the Liquid Glass, for an unexpected texture pairing to give balance and also to ensure that the focus is on the gritty sand texture.

The Modelling Paste is really amazing. By using a palette knife, I was able to layer it on smooth in some areas, and thick in others to play with the different textures. While the Texture Sand Paste is gritty, the Modelling Paste is really smooth.

Crackle Paste

Similar to the texture sand and modelling pastes, the Crackle Paste goes on with a palette knife and provides thin or deep cracks, depending on how thick you put in on over your surface. I was curious as to what it would do over a medium like the Modelling Paste and was really pleased with the results. Sometimes mediums will resist one another, but that was not the case here!

Misters

I really wasn't expecting to like the misters as much as I do. With vibrant, yet transparent, color options, you can spray as little or as much as you would like. I chose to add carbon black over top of my crackle paste, to give a bit more dimension into the foreground of my abstract pieces.

Liquid Glass

I was so excited to test out the Liquid Glass. This product comes in a squeezable bottle with a very fine tip, so you can make the perfect little glass bubbles on your piece. What's even better is that those tiny glass bubbles dry three dimensionally, which makes for yet another layer of texture!

 
The results on all three pieces were fantastic, and I really love the black and white pairings, along with the layers of  texture. I definitely will be adding more one of a kind textured pieces like these to my Etsy shop, and think that they would look fantastic mounted on glass.

Disclaimer: I was provided the Mixed Media line by DecoArt for the purposes of this post. All opinions expressed are my own!