Testing the Art Basics Clear Gesso in Coloring Books Amazing Results 

...and I just placed this in my Amazon (Columbus, Ohio, US) cart 😁; $10.70 for those of you wanting to know.

Thanks, Gemma. Glad I could be of help😁

Do, it's great, Jess.

Thank you so much 😀

Isn't she amazing! She has some absolutely stunning coloring pages. Sometimes she'll do a time laps to relaxing music. It blows my mind that she's so gosh darn talented and humble as well.

I bet it will 😁

No probs, thanks for watching 😁

Yep, most of the other gesso's do dry like sand paper. Hope you love this one 😁

Haha, hope not 🙄

I definitely need to try that, Keni, thanks. I was a bit worried that it would leave big lines at the edges but I'm starting a new pic today so i'll give it a go 😁😁😁

The Art Spirits yay! A new picture!

I'm so glad to hear that you like using the clear gesso too, Goku. I really appreciate your comment😍😍😍

Thanks, Keni 😁

It was dry lol. That's the only problem with the gesso. Even the inktense lifts back up easily. 🙄

Hi Nancy, thank you so much, I really appreciate your lovely comments 😁 Firstly, I try not to let any of the gesso dry on the brush while I'm using it. I try to do the whole thing quickly and frequently rinse the brush out in a jar of water. Make sure to squeeze the excess water out with a cloth before dipping back into the gesso. Then when I'm finished I just give it a good rinse under the tap, warm water, and then I just put a blob of hand wash on the palm of my hand and gently rub this into the brush then rinse. I did get a few little bits of gesso dry on the outer bristles so I used a nail brush to brush the paintbrush and it came off. Yes, I think a heat gun would probably be fine. One mistake I did make on another coloring book, last night, was not letting the page cool before painting another layer of gesso. This made the gesso dry a little while painting it on and it got a bit thick and congealed which meant the brush marks were more prominent. The smoother you can get the gesso on the page, the better your coloured pencils will blend to a smooth finish.

Oh, I think I'm going to have to get those Procolours, Heike. I just can't get them off my mind. Especially when I read your messages about them, 😂 You are a bad, bad influence on me 😂 The Derwent artist pencils definitely worked better on this gesso. I didn't try a lot of colours but I reckon if those harder blues worked, then the others should be good. Did you get the full set of Derwent Artists? If so, have you tried the Indigo? I don't know whether mine is faulty but I can hardly get any pigment out of it at all. It just kind of squeeks on the page and barely anything comes off it.

I forgot to try waterbased markers, Sue. I don't have the Tombow ones but I have a few other various ones. I'll give them a try and let you know if they went streaky 😄

The Art Spirits that would be great. The problem on the paper is that the inks soaks in instantly so you can't move or blend the colour at all.

I know what you mean. If it works for all other waterbased mediums, I don't see why not waterbased markers. And, they do work in the other gritty gesso fine but like you said, then the problem is the grittyness.

Hi, Capyboppy. I've never tried white gesso on coloring books so I don't really know what it's like. I used clear simply because it wouldn't cover up the linework.

Ahh, right, I thought you mean't I had actually used the sandpaper in the video lol. I will order some and try it😂😂

Thanks so much for that. I'm having a problem with the lines of the paintbrush so I will try the sponge. I also need to try the sandpaper trick as well 😍

It doe's dry smooth, yes. That's why I was so delighted with it. Be careful of brush marks though. Try to get it as smooth as possible. I've had a couple of people advise me to spread it on with a credit card so I'm going to give that a go 😁

Thanks SO much for your response!

Hi Macrina. I don't actually have any waterbased markers yet. I am wanting to get those Zig Clear Color Real Brush that you mention. They are on my wish list and I might treat myself to them for Christmas....or maybe I should just go ahead and order them now, lol 👹

Oh, they're so much fun. And they work great with this gesso, I've found. By the way, are your links affiliate links? If so, would you include links to Amazon USA as well as UK? I'm happy to support your channel if I'm buying something you recommend. :)

Hi Beverley, I didn't actually try out blending with the alcohol markers. I only checked to see if it bled through the page. Sorry about that. I'll have a little go at blending them and let you know 😁

Yep, it does take a lot longer to dry on the gesso unfortunately. I just speed it up with the hair dryer though 😁

The page will warp while wet. To reduce this, use paper clips or bulldog clips to hold the corners down. Dry with a hair dryer between each layer. If you leave it to air dry, it will curl up really bad as the moisture has more time to sink deeper into the paper. You will see the paper flattening back out as you dry it. If you want it to be completely flat afterward, make sure it is totally dry, place it on a flat surface and put loads of heavy books on top and leave it until the next day. Then it will be super flat.

Thank you!

Hi Melinda, I may have used 3 thin layers. Not sure if 3 are absolutely neccessary though, 2 is probably enough. It really depends on how thick the layers are. Using a hairdryer does help stop the pages curling when applying this gesso as it's dry before it has time to fully soak into the paper and curl it. Once the page is gesso'd, it will massivly reduce the curling of the paper when using wet media. I'm not sure if drying that wet media with a dryer will make any difference as the page is already kind of protected from curling with the gesso.

Thank you. I'm using a Zen Filbert brush to apply the gesso and for the painting, I'm using a Princeton 4050 Synthetic Round No 5😄

The Art Spirits The Art Spirits Thanks. I am new to water coloring. What size was the brush for the gesso and once you use it for gesso is it ruined for watercoloring?

I'm in the same boat, Estelle. I would love to be able to print onto watercolor paper but inkjet printer ink isn't waterproof. Unfortunately, I haven't found a solution. Laser printer in is ok, BUT, my laser printer will not print on watercolor paper as it's too thick. It's very difficult to find a reasonably priced laser printer that will print on thick paper/card. I would imagine this gesso may make the printer ink run too. You could experiment though. You should be able to get a waterproof ink for stamps.

I found the solution. Spread a layer of matte gel medium on a Gel plate and pull if off with your printed image. This seals the paper 😄 you might need to do it a couple of times depending on the medium you’re using.

Not as well as real watercolor paper.

Probably not Rosa. You could do a little test on one of the back pages to see how it is. I've stopped applying this to thicker paper now. I'll only use it on the thinner papers that seep through.

The Art Spirits thank you so much; that’s what I thought thin quality like jade summers, Heather Valentin etc I should apply if using wet medium; the Gesso u are using her leaves it smooth finish not rough right? I know there is a Gesso that leaves a rough finish; do not want that; also can u recommend what are good oil pastel pencils to use with linseed oil? I do not like the Art Loft brand; sticky and chalky; it was cheap so no big deal😉

I'm not really sure about oil pastel pencils, to be honest, Rosa, I've never used them. The satin glazing liquid by Golden seems to work best for watercolor on coloring books. I discovered it after making this video. Here is a link to a more updated video that I made about which primers are best for coloring books. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-2Tnljg69BZc.html This Art Basics Gesso has a smooth finish but is thick and does sometimes leave brush strokes. I find it works really great with colored pencils though. The satin glazing liquid is not a gesso at all and is not intended to be used for priming coloring books, lol, but actually works really great.

Yes, should do Beverly 😁

Just a heads up, in my extensive research into gesso and coloring I’ve learned it does damage Copic tips. The nibs are very delicate so it’s not recommended that you use them on paper that you’ve used Gesso. Dede Willingham has a video where she tests a bunch of mediums and talks about the Copics’ risks.

Hi, I was using Winsor & Newton artist paints, Albrecht Durer Watercolour Pencils and Derwent Inktense Pencils.

Haha, are you sure??? I have no recollection of ever using sandpaper, although, I remember a few people suggesting it to me. If I have, then I must be losing my mind 😂😂😂 You've got me worried now 😂😂😂

Um, she never said anything about the sandpaper trick. Listen close she says it makes it feel like sandpaper. Then a few seconds later she said the gesso sanded the colored pencil into like a dust when she tried using them on it.