Painting Celluclay??

Modeling Subjects Dioramas
1

I mixed Celluclay, acrylic paint, white glue, dirt,WS ballast and some small amount of water together to make a muddy field for a WW I dio. Color was a mix of tempura acrylic (darker brown ) and Tamiya (flat earth) in a ratio oif 2/1. Texture was dark mud and perfect. It has dried without cracking but there is a change in color. Color is now dry tan brown. My question is can you paint over Celluclay to make the base color darker? What type of paint should be used? What color would you recommend? Can Celluclay be dry brushed? Would a lighter color still be used in dry brushing? Should water be used on the Celluclay?

I would appreciate your input!

Ledddy

2

Well, as soon as it dries, it will obviously be a few shades lighter. I wouldn’t just splash water onto celluclay unless you want it to remoisturize again…but you can paint it without any problems. I’ve painted it with tempera paints, tamiya acrylics, and enamels without any issues.

3

Sure you can paint it. I use cheap arts & craft acrylics, like Michael’s sells, for painting the groundwork.

I think you’ll need to experiment to adjust the final color of your groundwork, and yes, you can drybrush it.

4

You can paint it with anything… Personally, I paint groundwork with tempera… But I also use rattle-cans, airbrushing, and dry-brushing…

5

You also need to add white glue to the mix to keep it from lifting from the surface after it cures, believe me if you do’nt it will.

6

When the acrylic (tempura or Tamiya) is put on the dried Celluclay base, do you thin it with water as in other situations ? Is the water left out?

Thanks!

Leddy

7

I use undiluted tempera with a brush to paint th ground…It’ll dry super-fast and dead-flat, and won’t soften your dried celluclay. I also use a good-sized dollop of it in the celluclay as I’m mixing it… Big ol’ blob of brown will keep the gray from turning up in a place you can’t quite reach to paint…The thing about tempera to remember is that it will reconstitute with water or other liquids, even if it’s been dry for weeks… It’s probably a good idea to seal it with a clear coat of enamel. The stuff I use (Fresco) is about 1.70 a pint pre-mixed, but you can also get powdered tempera, but it’s considerably more expensive… But all you need on hand is the primary colors (red, blue, yellow), plus black & white… All the colors you’ll need can be mixed from those five…

I don’t use model paints to paint groundwork though… They’re too expensive for that kinda work…