What makes a good acrylic paint?
Acrylics vary a lot in quality and consistency, and understanding a few key terms helps you choose the right paint for your style. Here's what to know.
Paint "body" (consistency)
Acrylics come in different thicknesses, called body:
- Heavy body: thick and buttery, holds brush and knife marks — great for texture and impasto.
- Soft body: smoother and more fluid, good for even coverage and blending.
- Fluid/ink: very thin and pourable — for fine detail, glazing, and pouring.
- Craft acrylics: inexpensive, thinner, great for crafts and practice.
Heavy or soft body artist acrylics are the most versatile for canvas work.
Pigment load
Pigment gives paint its colour. Quality acrylics have a high pigment load — rich, vivid colour and good coverage. Cheap paints use more filler and water, so they look weak and need many coats.
Lightfastness
Lightfastness is how well a colour resists fading over time. Look for clear ratings on the tube — highly lightfast colours keep your work true for years, while poorly rated ones can fade.
Student vs artist grade
- Student grade: affordable, with less pigment and some imitated colours — great for learning.
- Artist grade: higher pigment, better lightfastness, and a wider true-colour range — for serious, lasting work.
Watch for colour shift
Acrylics can dry slightly darker than they look wet. Quality paints minimise this "colour shift," so what you mix is close to what you get. Cheap paints often shift more, which is frustrating.
Reading the tube label
A good label shows the pigment(s), lightfastness rating, opacity, and safety information. Learning to read it helps you choose wisely.
Buy quality where it counts
Invest in quality, lightfast versions of the colours you use most, and choose a body that suits your style. Your work will look richer and last far longer.
Find richly pigmented, clearly rated acrylic paints at calaramanor.shop — delivered free across India, with 7-day returns.