Help! Why Are My Gel Prints Muddy? (Part 1: Paint Opacity & Layering)

"HELP! Why are my gel prints so muddy?" If your gel prints keep turning brown, dull, overworked, or “muddy,” this video will help you understand one of the BIGGEST causes: paint opacity and layering. In this Part 1 lesson, I’m sharing a full teaching segment directly from my online course, “The Gel Print Studio”, so you can learn exactly how opaque, semi-opaque, and transparent acrylic paints behave during gel printing. In this video, you’ll learn: • How to tell if acrylic paint is opaque, semi-opaque, or transparent• Where to find paint opacity symbols on paint tubes • Why some “opaque” paints still allow layers underneath to show through (This is key!!) • How paint color affects layering results in gel printing• How to test your own paints at home • How to create transparent paint using matte medium • What lightfastness means and why some colors fade faster than others I also demonstrate real examples using sheet music and layered paint so you can actually SEE how different acrylic paints behave on a gel plate. At the end of the video, I’ll show you examples from my online course, “The Gel Print Studio”, where I teach techniques like: • Botanicals • Image transfers • Masks and stencils • Texture printing • Grunge effects • Layering techniques • Printing with found objects • And much more PLUS — students in the course participate in weekly live Zoom sessions where we go over questions, challenges, and successes together. ✨ 🎨 👉Want to learn more about “The Gel Print Studio” or join the waitlist? Click here: https://jenna-mclean-art.mykajabi.com... NEXT WEEK: Part 2 will dive even deeper into muddy prints, layering, and how to build cleaner, more successful gel prints. If you found this helpful, please like, subscribe, and leave a comment—I read every one. 📕 FREE Gel Printing Supply List: https://jenna-mclean-art.mykajabi.com... Liquitex Matte Medium: https://amzn.to/4dmVdEX 👉 There’s also a gel print playlist here on Youtube! DISCLOSURE: the free Gel Print Supply List contains links to Amazon, and I am a member of their affiliate program. If you click on the links to Amazon and make a purchase, I may receive a small commission. Timestamps: 00:00 Why do prints look muddy? 02:08 Understanding paint opacity 05:25 Paint lightfastness 06:48 Don’t judge a paint by its color 07:44 Paints with no opacity info 08:49 Opacity test 13:41 Paint transparency hack 16:53 How to test your own paints 17:50 Demo: yellow paint over blue 20:29 Online course info #gelprinting #gelliprinting #acrylicpaint #printmaking #mixedmediaart #gelplate #arttutorial #beginnergelprinting