Terracotta jewellery is one of the beautiful handmade jewellery of its kind. Often a question arises what paint to use for terracotta jewellery. Terracotta means baked earth, this jewellery is made from natural clay which is reddish in color. Natural Clay is used for creating traditional jewellery, these beautiful set of jewellery add more grace to ethic look, traditional wear, Kurtis, short Kurtis, cotton sarees, suits, etc.
So, what paint to use for terracotta jewellery? There are different paints used to color terracotta jewellery like acrylic colors, oil color, metallic colors, pearl colors, etc. Mostly acrylic color is used to paint the jewellery as they dry earlier and are available in many shades. Apply a coat of varnish once the color is dried, this will help to protect the color and will give a shine to the jewellery.
I have been in love with terracotta jewellery from the past few years. In this post, I will share my experience in this post, you will get an idea of what the paints used for terracotta jewellery and will also share a few tips and tricks about how and when to paint terracotta jewellery.
Terracotta jewellery is eco-friendly and lightweight jewellery. Though these pieces of jewellery are made from clay they are strong, But it doesn’t mean that terracotta jewellery is unbreakable it needs to handle with care.
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What paint to use for terracotta jewellery?
There are a variety of colors that can be used to paint terracotta jewellery.
Acrylic Colors
Mostly for painting terracotta jewellery acrylic paints are used. Acrylic colors are fast drying and are water-soluble. These colors become water-resistant when dry. It some time darken slightly as they dry. It is budget-friendly and is available in many colors. It is also easy to find acrylic colors in any craft store. Paint the first coat on jewellery and allow it to dry before painting the second coat. Avoid painting more than two coats.
Oil Colors
Oil colors are also used to paint terracotta jewellery. The main difference is the drying time of oil color, it takes much more time to dry. Oil colors are not water-soluble hence it is not compatible with water. to dilute or to make the paint thin you will need turpentine or white spirit. The drawback of using oil colors is its drying time.
Pearl Colors
Pearl is one of the most loved jewels. When we hear pearl, a beautiful round gem comes in our mind which is of milk-white color and has a beautiful shine. The same shiny colors are available in the paint which gives a pearly shine to your jewellery. Pearl colors are available in a variety of shades to select from. These colors are available in acrylic paints and are easy to find in any local market or online stores.
Metallic Colors
Some times if it is hard to select the color for your jewellery, you can go with metallic colors. You can combine the metallic shade with any one color to give a simple yet uniques look to your accessories, like golden color with red or blue or green, etc. You can also paint entire jewellery with golden color, silver, bronze, or copper color. It will give a unique and antique look to an accessory. These combinations go perfectly with traditional jhumkas or necklace.
Neon Colors
Yes, Neon Colors are a new and popular trend of 2020. Terracotta is a traditional art of making jewellery, but you can add a twist to it. Create a trendy design lets say a square or a circle and paint it with neon colors. These colors are very bright to pass unnoticed and they are too bold to wear every day.
Also, check out the Our Recommended Products for Terracotta.
When to Paint terracotta jewellery?
Once the jewellry is baked you can start painting on it. Before baking dry the jewellery in room temperature for 5-6 days – it depends on your climatic conditions. Generally, it takes 4-5 days for the clay to dry but it is better to keep for an extra day to be on safer side. After baking, terracotta jewellery will become natural black in color.
If you don’t want to bake jewellery, you can directly paint on it. for base apply primer followed by black color. Once the base coat is dry you can start painting on it.
How to use a primer?
The primer will hold the paint strongly. However, it is not compulsory to apply primer to terracotta jewellery. If you want to use primer, apply it before painting the jewellery, apply primer on the jewellery using a brush. Take the primer in a palate and mix with little water, mix well, and apply a thin coat on jewellery. Once the primer is dried you can start to color the jewellery.
How to paint terracotta jewellery?
When terracotta jewellery is dried and baked, its time to paint it. Paint consistency is very important if you paint a thick coat of acrylic color without using water, there are chances that paint can peel off the jewellery after drying. To avoid peeling of paint, add few drops of water in paint and then start painting the jewellery. Adding water to paint is very important as it also helps to paint properly and it also helps in avoiding brush strokes. Try not to exceed more than two coats of paint.
When you bake the terracotta jewellery, the clay jewellery will naturally turn black. While painting don’t fill the impressions, lines, or design of jewellery. Natural black lines on jewellery look pretty.
How to paint both sides of jewellery?
Painting terracotta jewellery is a beautiful part of this art. You can paint one side of jewellery first and allow it to dry, once the one side is dried you can paint the other side.
How to paint beads?
To paint a terracotta bead, you can insert the bead in a toothpick or a brush handle, etc. and then paint it. Hold the toothpick with one hand and paint the entire bead. keep the toothpick on two same size bottles, cups, etc it will act as a stand for bead horizontally, or you can also keep the bead vertically in a small glass, cup or bottle, etc. Allow the paint to dry and later you can remove the bead from the toothpick.
What are the basic color paints you should have?
If you want to match the jewellery with your outfit then you have to buy the matching colors. But if you are not sure about the color of jewellery and are confuse between basic shades you should have then you can buy primary colors.
Primary colors are basic colors or you can say a source of other colors. These colors are mixed with other colors to make other shades of colors. Basic primary colors include Red, Yellow, and Blue, you can buy white and black colors.
Combination of primary form secondary colors like:
Red + Yellow = Orange
Yellow + Blue = Green
Blue + Red = Voilet
You can mix white color to red to make a pink shade or you can add black to any color to make darker shades.
Also read: How to make Designer Party Wear earrings?
Terracotta Jewellery tips
- If you ever wonder How to Take Care of Terracotta Jewellery? even though terracotta jewellery becomes hard after baking but it is not unbreakable. You need to take proper care of these jewellery. Keep it in another box and avoid keeping it with other jewellery. Don’t keep any heavy things on the jewellery.
- Use soft cotton to clean the jewellery after wearing it, this will help to maintain the look new.
- Like any other jewellery, prevent these jewellery to come in contact with perfumes, water, cosmetics.
- Take the paint in the palate and mix it with water. It will help to paint the jewellery smoothly by avoiding brush strokes.
- Don’t paint many coats on jewellery, it can peel after drying.
- Paint consistency should be good, dried paint can leave a uneven texture on jewellery.
- If you don’t want to bake the jewellery, it will be of natural brownish in color after drying. In this case, paint a base coat of black color before any other color. Painting the jewellery with a black base coat will give natural color to lines and design of jewellery.
- Don’t merge the line of jewllery, don’t fill the lines with paint.
