Welcome to the Grit-O-Meter! We’ve ordered our mediums and grounds from smooth to gritty in an effort to show you how they may be used as grounds for Acrylics, Oils, Watercolors, and Dry Drawing Media, or as acrylic mediums for creating texture in your paintings. The Meter runs from smoothest at the top to grittiest at the bottom.
Each of the images below shows how the product behaves when used as a ground for pencil, pastel, and acrylic paint.
Gloss Medium
is useful for creating glazes, extending colors, enhancing gloss and translucency. It has an oil-like feel and resinous nature that promotes flow and leveling.
Can be used as a ground with Acrylic and Oil.
Fluid Matte Medium
Can be used as an acrylic medium or as a clear ground. Levels well. Dries to a wax-like appearance.
Apply 2-3 coats to block oil absorption BEFORE any subsequent layers of oil paint.
Can be used as a ground with Acrylic, Oil, Watercolor, and Dry Media.
Back Gesso
Ready to use flexible black, toothy, semi-absorbent, acrylic ground. May be wet sanded.
May be thinned with up to 25% water.
Can be used as a ground with Acrylic, Oil, Watercolor, and Dry Media.
Molding Paste
Opaque acrylic, satin finish, grayish or off-white, semi-opaque. For use as a medium for building texture or for as a ground. Retains tool marks and peaks.
Can be used as a ground with Acrylic, Oil, Watercolor, and Dry Media.
Hard Molding Paste
Grayish off-white, opaque acrylic medium used to build hard texture or for use as a ground. Retains moderate tool marks and peaks.
Can be used as a ground with Acrylic, Oil, Watercolor, and Dry Media.
White Gesso
Ready to use flexible, white, toothy, semi-absorbent, acrylic ground. May be wet sanded.
May be thinned with up to 25% water.
For oil painting apply a minimum of 3 coats to avoid oil penetration. Allow gesso to dry thoroughly.
Can be used as a ground with Acrylic, Oil, Watercolor, and Dry Media.
Absorbent Ground
White, acrylic, highly absorbent, soft, flexible ground. Multiple coats increase absorbency and opacity. Allow to fully dry before painting upon. Apply 2 coats of White Gesso before applying Absorbent Ground. Not recommended under full strength oil paints, but could be used for thinned oil washes.
Can be used as a ground with Acrylic, Watercolor, and Dry Media.
Watercolor Ground
Creates an absorbent surface that allows for soft edges and flowing wet-in-wet techniques. May be brush applied for a linen-like texture, rolled on for a dappled effect, or scraped on smoothly with a palette knife. May also be lightly wet sanded for a smoothness similar to a hot pressed surface. May be applied to many different materials, including canvas and panel. Watercolor Ground dries to a lightfast, flexible surface that withstands repeated lifting and scrubbing. Apply thinly and allow to fully dry before adding another layer or painting on. Apply 2 coats of White Gesso before applying Watercolor Ground. Not recommended under full strength oil paints, but could be used for thinned oil washes.
Can be used as a ground with Acrylic, Watercolor, and Dry Media.
Hard Sandable Gesso
Ready to use acrylic ground for a white, toothy, semi-absorbent surface. May be wet sanded. Use on rigid supports only.
Can be used as a ground with Acrylic, Oil, Watercolor, and Dry Media.
Light Molding Paste
A white, lightweight paste that spreads like frosting. Can be applied smooth and thinly, or built up to create ridges, peaks and other interesting textures. Use on a wide variety of surfaces, including board, canvas, wood, panel, and paper. May be wet sanded. This opaque acrylic medium offers dramatic weight reduction when building thick layers of acrylic. It can also be used and an absorbent ground. Dries to a soft, flexible, matte, absorbent surface for color washes. Retains tool marks and peaks. Not recommended as a ground for oil paints.
Use alone or blend with acrylic mediums or colors. Skim with wet palette knife for smooth surface. Apply above 49°F/9°C.
Can be used as a ground with Acrylic, Watercolor, and Dry Media.
Micaceous Iron Oxide
An iridescent charcoal color, this paint also makes a sensuous ground for opaque light colors in dry media or acrylics.
Can be used as a ground with Acrylic, Oil, Watercolor, and Dry Media.
Fine Pumice Gel
Dries to a warm gray, translucent, matte and toothy surface. Suitable as an acrylic medium or ground for many media including pencil, pastel, and similar drawing media.
Can be used as a ground with Acrylic, Oil, Watercolor, and Dry Media.
Cold Press Ground
Dries to a unique rough surface and looks like handmade paper with all its beautiful imperfections. Great nooks and crannies to catch watercolor, and will allow for interesting lifting effects that you can’t get with traditional paper surfaces. Apply with a palette knife by spreading it over a surface (board/panel/paper/canvas). Applied with a dry palette knife, the texture will be similar to rough handmade paper. Use a bit of water on your palette knife and run over the wet application to eliminate some of the roughness for a smoother surface more like cold press paper.
Can be used as a ground with Acrylic, Oil, Watercolor, and Dry Media.
Fiber Paste
Off-white, opaque acrylic for building texture as an acrylic medium or as a semi-absorbent ground. Dries to a handmade paper-like surface.
Best applied with palette knife. Skim with a wet palette knife for a smoother surface.
Can be used as a ground with Acrylic, Oil, Watercolor, and Dry Media.
Glass Bead Gel
made with genuine glass beads, offers a unique effect similar to condensation on glass – best seen in thin films over a light color to allow the glass beads to be illuminated.
Can be used as a ground with Acrylic, Oil, Watercolor, and Dry Media.
Coarse Molding Paste
thick, warm white colored medium, translucent up to about 1/8 inch thickness. Dries to a hard, stiff but flexible film with a tooth like fine sandpaper. Accepts wet and dry media very well. Mix with Fluid or Heavy Body Acrylics to create dense paint that holds good peaks and dries matte to satin with a finely pebbled surface.
Can be used as a ground with Acrylic, Oil, Watercolor, and Dry Media.
Coarse Pumice Gel
Dries to an opaque gray porous texture. Has a rough concrete-like appearance.
Use alone, as an acrylic medium, or as a textured ground. Best applied with palette knife or trowel.
Can be used as a ground with Acrylic, Oil, Watercolor, and Dry Media.
Clear Granular Gel
Acrylic medium, dries to an extremely rough crushed glass appearance.
It can also be used as a textured ground.
Use alone or blend with acrylic mediums, colors and water. Best applied with palette knife or trowel. Apply above 49°F/9°C.
Can be used as a ground with Acrylic, Oil, Watercolor, and Dry Media.
Extra Coarse Pumice Gel
Dries to an opaque gray and porous texture. Has a rough concrete-like appearance.
Use alone, as an acrylic medium, or as a textured ground. Best applied with palette knife or trowel.
Can be used as a ground with Acrylic, Oil, Watercolor, and Dry Media.
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6 thoughts on “GritOMeter”
thanks for info on hard sandable gesso.As I paint on mainly braced wooden panels, I will try this gesso to see if works better than ordinary gesso as a ground for my acreylics .
Thank you for commenting David, we are happy to help! Best of luck with your paintings and if you have further questions about a particular ground you can always reach us at help@goldenpaints.com
could do with a few more photos…
…can’t really see the effect of the texture of the pumice gel and lighter.
This is a fun (and informative) representation of the surface qualities of different mediums.
Thank you Joshua!