My Gold Must Haves for Shimmery Watercolor and Mixed Media
By Jen Shannon Updated Painting
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Short answer
My reflective look comes from layering gold on top of watercolor. My must haves are Winsor & Newton gold drawing ink, GOLDEN Heavy Body Iridescent Gold Deep loosened up with some GOLDEN High Flow Iridescent Gold, Flo Line precision tip bottles to pipe it, Mona Lisa metal leaf adhesive for gilding, and Aurasparkle glitter gel pens for the tiny sparkly details.
Some people have a signature scent. I have a signature shine. If it sits still on my table long enough, it's getting gold on it.
Watercolor on its own is soft and dreamy. Add a little metallic and the whole piece catches the light every time you tilt it. That reflective finish has become my signature, so here are the supplies behind it. There's more on my table than what's on this list, and I'm keeping a few tricks to myself. These are the ones I'd never paint without.
My must haves
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Piping gold
GOLDEN Heavy Body Acrylics, Iridescent Gold Deep (Fine)
The base of my raised gold lines.
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Sparkle pens
Aurasparkle Retractable Glitter Gel Pens, 12 Metallic
For tiny dots, dashes and outlines.
The gold ink I kept running out of
If you'd rather try it before you commit, the small bottle is the same ink.
My piping gold mix
The bottles that do the drawing
The glue behind the gold leaf
The sparkle pens for tiny details
Shop my gold must haves
Everything from this post in one place.
Questions people ask
How do you make a watercolor painting look metallic?
Can you mix GOLDEN High Flow and Heavy Body acrylics?
Should I get the 14ml or 30ml Winsor & Newton gold ink?
What are precision tip applicator bottles used for in painting?
What is adhesive size?
The bottom line
Watercolor brings the color. Gold brings the glow. Start with one of these, and before long everything on your table will be getting a little shine too. (I'll wait.)