Painting over WSO

I paint on canvas and in the past, when I only used acrylics, I'd just gesso over paintings that didn't "work" and paint a new one. Often the new painting turned out to be a gem. I have paintings with three or four paintings underneath from our Tuesday night still life sessions because they are mainly practice peices.

With WSO, If I don't wipe it out right away, does anyone have any good suggestions on how to prepare my used canvas surface to make it ready for starting a new painting?

Thanks.

Hi Sofie! I know one thing not to do because I tried it. Don't Gesso over Water Soluble Oils it will crack. I'm sure other members will be able to give you some good options.

You could prime it with an oil primer, just don't thin it down any. A linseed oil primer will take a long time to cure. You could also just use white paint but you would need quite a bit of it.

I usually sand my rejects, then paint over them with a color (or colors), just as I would to tone a white canvas.
So far, so good

Thanks guys. I'll try both meathids - on different canvases, and see which works best for me. I know I'll be doing this much more than once.

sophie,
I'm glad you brought up the question. I never really thought about it with the WSO. I've done it with many an acrylic.

Callie, I often read about you sanding a painting. I'm assuming that it must be totally dry before you sand it. Is that correct?

Judy

You don't need to wait as long as you would to varnish it, just enough so the paint won't gum up the sand paper. If your painting is recent, and you've got a good amount of paint on the canvas, you can use a household paint scraper to take a lot of it off, then use damp paper towels to scrub the rest.
I like sanding, because I have a smooth surface then - no distracting ridges and bumps from the previous painting.

I've even rinsed canvas boards off in the sink - you have to be careful not to get them too wet!

Thanks Callie.
Judy

Callie - what grade sandpaper do you use? Do you use this process with stretched canvas, or only with candas boards?

I use a fine grade, I like the spongy sanding blocks. They're easier to hold on to and can be rinsed out. It's a good idea to do this outside and wear a mask. Don't breathe in the sanding dust !
I sand canvasses and boards. Use gentle pressure on stretched canvas - you want to sand just enough to smooth the ridges and give the surface a bit of tooth, on either surface you don't want to sand away the texture of the canvas.

Thanks Callie - I'll try out those sanding blocks.

Here's my recent "Down the Drain" painting with the sanding sponge next to it:



Sanded just enough to get rid of the ridges and brush strokes.

Callie,
Be sure to let us see how it all comes out. The foreground deserves another chance.
Judy

Callie, I remember you told be that oils are eraseable... now I understand. Sand paper and sanding block added to my list or I'll just steal my husbands.

Sometimes I think that sanding block is my new favorite "brush". It certainly gets used a lot. I'm putting that one away for awhile, maybe I should go take a photo of that tree.