Many people seem fascinated by the name alone and wonder what all this is about! Masking is a very good way of protecting your work while you are painting other sections of your painting. You can get interesting looks pretty easily which you would not have thought possible.
You can be faced with quite complicated, intricate, detailed work, with a background that needs filling in. This often seems an impossible task. To paint round every little bit of your subject would take up much time and it could be hard to get the paint even and not patchy, and you would need to be using a very fine brush.
It is far, far easier, to simply mask out the subjects before you commence on your background. You have no worries then, you can get a flat background by painting straight over the masking. Once you remove it you will have white underneath and good outling that will be really clear.
So, the masking often produces clear and sharp shaping, but it can also be relatively subtle, textured, or patterned. It is a very useful medium to use for landscapes with watercolours. As you will appreciate if, for example, you are drawing trees and all their spreading branches. What a help this would be, to mask out the branches with a brush with a fine point.
What will I require? You will need some watercolours, plus a piece of watercolour paper, a 2B pencil, masking tape, masking fluid, an old, fine, round brush to apply the fluid and another one for putting on the paint.
When you buy masking tape, you will find that it is available in different widths. This adheres well to paper or canvas as it is fairly strong and tough. It holds well, but is easily removed.
If you want to do very straight lines, press the tape down hard so you will not suffer with the paint seeping underneath, but you will need to use a thick colour. Taping leaves a hard edge, but you can get a softer look by tearing or cutting it. It is better before you remove the tape to let it dry, but you cannot always do this.
Well, you could not do this with oils, for instance. If you were painting with oils, you would have to be careful to lift one end and hold the tape away from the painting to stop smudging.
So, this masking fluid can be employed to signify detailing or just to protect the detailing from the paint wash. It is like a rubbery type of fine film once it is dry, but it is not hard to remove. To apply this, you could use a cocktail stick, pen or brush. Very good for blocking out sections.
It is advisable to give this method a go on some paper in the first instance, but be sure to remember to let the paint dry before painting across the mask. Saying this, when the paint has dried, try removing your mask either with a soft eraser or your finger. The underneath section will be white.
After you have used the fluid, your paintbrush bristles will be rubbery too, so you do need to give your bristles a very good wash. That is why I said an old brush. It is quite possible too, in some instances, that it could ruin your paper. Basically you do need a smooth paper, but really, you can use the fluid with any paints. If you chance using rough paper, the fluid will be likely to bed itself into any crevices and you could find it difficult to remove.
