How to Prime Wood for Acrylic Painting

Acrylic paints can be painted onto wood. It could be a great experience and a piece of art. But you have to prepare your wooden surface properly before you start if you don’t want to redo it later (which is not so easy as painting on canvas).

If you have an idea to paint acrylic on wood, you might wonder how to prepare and how prime wood for acrylic painting. The recommended way is to sand it, apply at least 2 coats of sealing, 2 coats of priming, and start painting. That’s all.

Some people say you can paint directly on the wood which is not true. In this article, I’d like to share why it’s vital for a wooden surface to be sealed and primed and how to do it step by step I will also give you 6 examples of the best-recommended product to prime and seal your wood before applying acrylic paint.

Table of content:

• Primer or sealer: what you should know about sealing before you start?
• 6 reasons to prepare wood if you don’t want to ruin your painting
• How to prepare and prime wood: quick 6 steps
• 6 best products to use

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Read also: Can You Use Acrylic Paint on Wood? Best Supplies for Painting Acrylic on Wood

Primer or sealer: what you should know before you start?

Sealers are often confused with primers. Here is a simple table that explains the difference.

Sealer	Primer
A sealer protects the wood. It creates a barrier and doesn’t let the wood soak paints or be altered by environmental factors. The sealer applies BEFORE primer. Sometimes called sizing in order to not to confuse with sealing which we apply to finish and protect the painting when it’s done. Example: PVA glue, Golden CAC, etc	A primer is a foundation layer. It makes paint adhesion stronger and also helps us to create the painting as we imagined it. The primer applies AFTER the sealer. Example: Gesso

6 reasons to prepare the wood before acrylic painting

If you are going to paint acrylic on the wood you definitely need to seal and prime the surface first. This step can’t be skipped in any case. Why? The understanding of the nature of such material as wood and the consequences of not preparing it will help you create your next masterpiece, protect it, and save your time and money.

Here are 6 reasons why you should prepare, seal and prime your wood before acrylic:

1. Sanding the piece first will get rid of any ridges and make the surface smooth.
2. Priming lets acrylic paint apply easier. The wood is a porous surface, without prep, it will just soak the paint you put on and you won’t have desirable colors and effects. It also prevents the paint from becoming patchy.
3. Priming makes lighter colors appear more vibrant.
4. Without sealing the acids of your paint can seep into the wood and destroy it.
5. Sealing protects wood from the shifts in humidity, stains, rotting, or peeling
6. Sealing eliminates Support Induced Discoloration (SID).

SID occurs only with acrylic paints. The impurities contained in support can cause an amber yellow discoloring to any light colored or clear acrylic layer.

If you decide to skip the primer, the results might look fine for a while, but in a couple of years the paint can just start to flake, and you’ll lose your beautiful painting.

Read also: How to Prepare Canvas for Acrylic Paint? Beginners’ Guide

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How to prepare and prime wood: 6 easy steps

The procedure of preparing wood is very simple. I’ll guide you through the detailed instructions.

Note: for smaller craft projects I only sand and prime with gesso, skipping sealing the wood before painting it. Maybe I’m doing wrong, but I haven’t seen bad results and it saves time.

Once the wood is dry to the touch it is ready for the application of acrylic paint.

If you skip any of the steps or mess up the drying time, you can face some problems later.

Here is some advice for artists on what to do, which is not “traditional” but could still work for you personally:

– put down a basecoat of white acrylic paint first as it typically leads to fewer layers of whatever color you are using,

– apply a coat of rabbit skin glue to the bare wood, or at least a very slightly watered-down coat to make sure the wood is sealed, and add topcoats when it has dried (normally 2–3 hours)

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6 recommended products to seal and prime wood for acrylic painting

I made for you a table with prices and quick notes and before you’ll deep into studying it I’d love to say that you can use your own, homemade gesso (with any chalk you like). Considering sealants you can choose a spray or brush-on sealant including matte, gloss, satin, and many more.

*Prices are listed for this specific volume. Each product can be purchased in different volumes.

Type	Product	Price	Link	Notes
Sealer	GOLDEN’s GAC100	24,23$ for 32 oz	Click	A glossy acrylic medium. It has a special thin formulation of polymer acrylic, soaks in quickly, and minimizes brush strokes and texture.
Sealer	GOLDEN Acrylic Gloss Medium	25,19$ for 32 oz	Click	This medium works (as the brand says) better as a seal than GAC100. It can create brushstrokes though as some artists mentioned.
Sealer	PVA glue, e.i. Mont Marte PVA Glue	24,99$ for 1L	Click	You can dissolve it with water or H2O and put 1-2 coats to seal the wood (on each side).
Primer	Gesso Old Hollands	28,25$ for 0,5L	Click	It’s a universal gesso. You can also dilute it with water (up to 20%). If you apply more than 1 layer, let it dry for 3-4 h between layers.
Primer	GOLDEN Acrylic Gesso	24,23$ for 32oz	Click	Adds adhesion strength between the sealed wood and your first layer of acrylic paint. The lesser quality primer, though, does not have a high pigment content for the extra adhesion strength that acrylic paints require.
Primer	Liquitex white acrylic gesso	22,35$ for 32oz	Click	A popular choice. Adds an ideal level of tooth. It’s suitable for wood and a large variety of mediums. Available in different colors.

Below are 2 reference charts made by manufacturer GOLDEN to show typical product applications to properly prepare the support to accept paint. GOLDEN notes that there are general guidelines and certain circumstances will require additional products and procedures.

Read also: Try 15+ Gesso Alternatives Or Make Your Own Cheap Gesso

Helpful videos

How I drew on wood using Artistro acrylic paint markers. I tested each wooden surface unprimed and primed with a few layers of gesso.

Here is a nice video on how to seal and prime wood panels using PVA glue and homemade gesso (the recipe is not included!) to give you an idea.

Last update on 2024-04-19 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API