Every first paint-by-numbers canvas — whether it's a stock design or a custom one made from your own photo — has roughly the same set of small mistakes. None of them ruin the painting, but spotting them early makes a real difference to the finished piece.
Here are the most common, and the fixes.
Mistake 1: Too Much Paint on the Brush
Overloading the brush leads to thick blobs and bleed across the lines. Tap excess paint on the rim of the pot before each stroke.
Two thin coats always beat one thick one.
Mistake 2: Skipping Around the Canvas
Painting random numbers across the canvas means constantly washing the brush and switching pots. Work one colour at a time, top to bottom.
You'll finish in half the time.
Mistake 3: Painting Light Colours After Dark Ones
If a dark colour isn't quite dry and you paint a pale colour next to it, the pale one gets muddy. Work dark to light wherever possible.
Or just wait five minutes between colours.
Mistake 4: Not Sealing the Paint Pots
Acrylic dries fast. Pots left open for a session of painting can be half-dried by the end. Close pots between uses, even mid-session.
A few minutes of care saves a whole pot of paint.
Mistake 5: Stopping Just Short of the Lines
Leaving a halo of white around each numbered region makes the finished canvas look unfinished. Paint right up to and over the printed lines.
The printed numbers disappear when covered — that's the whole point.
None of these mistakes ruin a canvas. But fix them on your first paint-it-yourself kit, and your first painting will look like the work of someone who's done many.
— Be Artistic Club