TheBlog

From Cold Wax to Textured Painting: A New Direction

A New Direction... cold wax medium and oils will always be my first love, and now I’m exploring texture, layers, and mixed media!

How to create a harmonious color palette using 3 colors

Create a harmonious color palette with just 2 or 3 colors! Learn how to mix Sap Green, Turquoise, and Raw Sienna with Titanium White, Titanium Buff, and grey to build transparent and opaque layers, create depth, and keep your cold wax palette cohesive and beautiful.

Paint with me - An Easy Abstract Landscape Tutorial

In this tutorial, you learn how to create depth in your paintings by using aerial perspective. Warm and cool colors are important, as is texture and value.

How to SIGN your cold wax paintings

Learn 5 easy ways to sign your cold wax and oil paintings! From transfer methods to carving into the wax, signing on the edge, or even the back, discover tips to add a personal, professional touch to your artwork. Perfect for cold wax painters, oil and acrylic artists, and anyone finishing their paintings.

What is water-based cold wax medium?

Powerwax for acrylics combines wax richness with acrylic flexibility. Perfect for textured, layered, or mixed media acrylic paintings, it works on canvas, panels, and rigid surfaces. Artists can blend colors, build textures, or carve patterns for unique effects. Powerwax adds depth, texture, and creative possibilities to any acrylic painting.

Building Textured layers with cold wax

Building textures by layering your painting to create depth in your cold wax medium and oils artwork, using a palette knife and a bowl scraper. My base layers are 'busy background' on which I add faces, figures or flowers later.

Textured Portraits in Cold Wax

Learn how to paint textured portraits with cold wax and oils using layered techniques, scraping, and expressive mark-making.

How to prepare a large canvas for cold wax painting

Learn how to prepare a large canvas for oil painting, including stretching, priming, and choosing the right ground for smooth, long-lasting results. Perfect tips for beginners and experienced artists.

5 Things You Need to Start Cold Wax Painting

5 essential supplies to start cold wax painting—paints, mediums, tools, and tips for beginners and experienced artists.

How to Paint with One Color: A Monochrome Sketchbook Tutorial

Learn monochrome painting techniques in this step-by-step tutorial! Discover how to paint with one color using oil paints and cold wax medium, perfect for beginners and seasoned artists alike. This tutorial can of course be done in acrylics too!

Comparing 4 different cold wax medium for oils

A practical comparison of 4 cold wax and oils mediums, including texture, transparency, and layering behavior to help you choose the best fit.

Discover the magic of Powerwax & Acrylics!

New online class on painting with water-based cold wax (powerwax) and acrylics to create beautiful textured paintings using different cold wax techniques that also are used in cold wax and oils

I am a guest teacher at PYHS 2025

Glazing with white oil paint

Discover the difference between titanium white, zinc white and transparent white when used in glazing

Exploring the Differences: Water-Based Cold Wax for Acrylics vs. Cold Wax Medium for Oils

I often get the question about the differences between water-based cold wax for acrylics and the regular cold wax used with oils. And since I love to experiment, I decided to see for myself! The difference between the mediums: Water-Based Cold Wax for Acrylics:

A portrait in Powerwax, acrylics and Rusty Powder

This portrait is painted in acrylics, water-based cold wax and rusty powder, using different cold wax techniques. I used products from Powerwax from Powertex

Acrylics and water-based cold wax (Powerwax)

You can water-based cold wax medium (Powerwax) with acrylics to get beautiful textures and layers, similar to paintings in oils and cold wax medium

Alcohol ink meets cold wax medium

Enhance your cold wax and oil paintings with alcohol inks and cold wax medium. This technique brings a beautiful combination of transparency and textures to add interest to your paintings.

FREE water-based cold wax supply guide

Which tools to use when painting with water-based cold wax like Powerwax? Download the free guide!

Painting over a (varnished) oilpainting

Learn how to safely paint over a varnished or finished oil painting, including tips for prepping the surface and choosing the right techniques.

How to transfer your drawing to your painting surface

In this tutorial I show you how to transfer a drawing to a cold wax and oil painting using soft pastels

Water-based cold wax vs. cold wax medium/part 2

I continued to compare water-based cold wax with the ‘solvent’ based cold wax medium and the results are shown in this video</p>

10 Top texture tools

In the tutorial below I show you my 10 favourite TEXTURE TOOLS and I hope it inspires you to look around your house, kitchen, garage etc to find some cool tools too! (I would love to see them too, so don’t hesitate to send me a picture!)

How to use Cold wax medium

Learn how to use cold wax medium with oils to create texture, layers, and unique effects in your paintings. Tips for beginners and experienced artists.

What is cold wax medium?

Cold wax medium is a medium that thickens the oil paint and allows you to create beautiful textures and layers by using different techniques

Cold wax medium and drying time

Learn about cold wax medium and drying times for oils and acrylics, and get tips to control texture, layering, and workable painting time.

How I came to addicted to cold wax medium

Read my journey into cold wax and oil painting and discover why this medium became my favorite for texture, layers, and creative expression.

A Figure in Cold Wax

You definitely can paint figurative with cold wax medium. In this blogpost, I show you how I add a figure on a abstract layered cold wax background, using different cold wax techniques.

Free Guide: Must-have supplies for cold wax art

In this blogpost you’ll find the basic materials you need to paint with CWM. I have added a link with a printable PDF with these materials and more ‘not really indispensable’ materials (like yummy Marabu Art Crayons, gilding wax, R&amp;F oil sticks and more) at the bottom of this blog post.</p>

How to make LINES - Cold Wax and Oil Techniques

In this tutorial I will show you one of the cold wax medium techniques of how to paint fine lines in cold wax and oils in a direct or an indirect way, adding interest to your cold wax paintings

Transparent vs. Opaque Paint - an exercise!

Whether you work in layers as in painting with cold wax medium (oils and acrylics) or simply use a colour as a glaze or other painting technique, it is important to know whether your paint colour is TRANSPARENT or OPAQUE, WARM or COOL. In the video below, I'll show you how to recognise the transparency of your paints.

Getting started with Cold Wax Medium an oils

A beginner-friendly online class to cold wax painting: materials, layering, textures, and simple steps to start painting with confidence.

How to make cold wax medium

DiY cod wax medium, you will find the recipe with the cold wax medium ingredients in this blog post and make your own home made cold wax medium in no time!

Cold wax medium as varnish

How to protect and maintain your cold wax medium and oil paintings? Use different varnishing techniques to achieve a glossy or matte finish. Ensure your cold wax pieces are preserved in the best way!

Water-mixable paints and cold wax medium

You can use water soluble oil paints with cold wax medium, they will only loose there water mixable aspect as soon as you mix them with cold wax because there is a solvent in the wax. You can use them in your cold wax painting with no problems and can even mix them with regular oil paints

How to frame a cold wax painting

Cold wax and oil paintings on paper have to be framed, with or without mat (passepartout) and with or without glass according to your preference.

Pouring paint: cold wax and oil techniques

One of my favourite cold wax techniques is pouring paint over my painting to get interesting forms and shapes. I am using this technique after a few base layers and before I start a figure or a face

How to create expressive portraits: tips for loosening up

Blind contour drawing, two hands drawing and drawing upside down are some fun drawing techniques to loosen up and create expressive portraits

How to add collage -cold wax and oil techniques

One of the cold wax techniques I love is adding collage to the cold wax and oil painting. You can use any collage element you want but I prefer thin (silk) paper which I adhere with cold wax medium.

Glazing with cold wax medium - cold wax and oil techniques

In this blogpost I you will find tips and a video on how to glaze with cold wax and oils and create beautiful layers using the glazing technique

How to draw a portrait using a Scale divider

I have made a tutorial about how I draw and enlarge my portraits using a scale divider. It really is a magical tool and so much help getting your proportions right!

How to paint flowers in cold wax and oils

In this free cold wax medium course, I show you step by step how to paint abstract flowers using different Cold Wax Medium techniques and tools.

Must have Apps for every painter

In this blog post, you will find the must have apps which help you to progress in your painting process, whether it is in cold wax and oils or power wax and acrylics.

Effective solutions for storing wet artwork

Effective solutions for storing your wet art work, so that your workspace stays clean and you can work on several paintings at the same time, like we often do in cold wax medium and oils

Cold Wax Medium painting: My 10 most asked questions

In this free guide you will find all the answers to your questions about painting with cold wax medium and oils

Cold wax portrait painting

A portrait painting can drastically change during the process! This portrait in cold wax medium and oils went through a lot of different stages, becoming almost a mixed media portrait.

How to use Procreate in your painting process

Painting in Procreate on an existing background can give you ideas on how to proceed. You can drastically change your background colours to test what works and play with your painting without getting your hands dirty and ruin your painting!

Stay at Home Challenge - week 5

! I have decided that this weeks challenge (nr. 5) is the last one. I really enjoyed working on these challenges

Stay at Home Challenge - week 4

How are you cooping with life in lockdown? Or are you still free to leave the house? I hope all your loved ones are healthy and safe at this time! We are in our third week (almost fourth) week of complete lockdown

Stay at Home Challenge - week 3

How is the situation at your end of the world? We heard yesterday that our total lock down is extended with another two weeks till the 15th of April. I know that many of you feel restless and stressed during these days and I hope that painting will get your mind of everything that is happening!

Stay at Home Challenge - week 2

I am so happy that a lot of you are participating in the challenge! Love all the messages I got from all over the world! Only two years ago, I very disliked social media and said I would never go on IG/FB and look at me now! I feel that I am connected to all you lovely people and it is a very special feeling, thank you for that!

Stay at Home Challenge - week 1

I hope you are doing fine at your end of the world! Here in France, we are in complete lock down for at least 2 weeks, we are only allowed to do some grocery shopping and walk the dog. I feel grateful that our family is safe and home together. My son came back from Holland, where Universities closed as well.

Workshop 'Introduction to Cold Wax Medium'

Guest teacher at PYHS 2019!

Guest teacher at Paint Your Heart and Soul 2019 and 2025!