RebornFX paints

https://www.macphersoncrafts.com/en/online-store/rebornfx

I have received permission from Macpherson's to say now that I have just begun using these paints. I am liking them so far and have a few comments.

The product line is being made very specific to work well with vinyl and they do include more binders in them for successful adhesion and permanence. Do not assume that just because a certain medium may look and function similar to artist grade mediums we have experimented with before that they are exactly the same. I highly encourage you all to purchase the mediums meant to go with these paints to give them a good try before you make any judgments about how you like the paints. They are also trying to get the products out to us as quickly as they can rather than waiting till everything in the line is in production. So be patient. I suspect there will be some tweaking of things along the way.

I have a baby in progress with the paints that I have been working on and still am not to a place that I am ready to share her with you but that is coming soon.

Some things I can say already is I really do like their primer! It is easy to apply, not gritty and not sticky when applied correctly. To apply, I used a damp brush to brush a light layer on and a damp (not wet but squeezed out well) wedge to pounce over it. I let my pieces sit for 30 mins and then started painting. I was told if I planned to use the Open Time Medium in with my paint to extend drying time to let my primer cure for either 1 hour in front of a fan or 2 hours if just air drying. Since I did not get any Open Time Medium in my first order I did not use it and was able to paint just fine after 30 mins dry time. I do have some Open Time Medium on the way to try though. I am not one to need a lot of working time for most things but others of you might so do get it.

To this I would add that the pigments seem very good in strength and are holding their color well for me. They are different from the BabyFX brand I have been using in they are thinner but they do state they did not put any thickeners in the paints. They seem to be very pure to me.

They are working on more vidoes to upload to the site showing how to use the paints.

The premixed paints can be used right out of the bottle as is but they are intense in pigment. Therefore to lighten their intensity you would use the Emulsion Fluid and the Diluent to do so. You can add up to 50% of the Diluent to your paint to thin it down and then a drop or two of water if needed. The Diluent also contains binders. The Emulsion Fluid is literally the paint with no pigment in it. You can add as much of that as you want to. It is heavy in binders so as with all products that are, you can get some sheen with using it but that can be remedied by either adding some of the matting fluid to the mix or just applying a thin layer of straight matting fluid over your vinyl (like paint) and letting it dry if it begins to take on too much sheen for you. Then your piece will be totally matte again and you can continue to paint.

You do not want to use lots of water in any air dry paints in every layer just because water does reduce binders with all air dry paints.  If you do wish to apply a watered down water color layer or two you may do so as long as you then follow up with a regular not watered down layer to sandwich it in with binders. This is the key to successfull air dry painting with no fading that many people have not yet embraced and that is do not thin all layers with just water. If you find you need more working time you can add Open Time Fluid to your mix as well but be aware you will need more cure time and may need to use a hair dryer while painting to surface dry the paints quicker.   RebornFX Open Time fluid is not a retarder. It does have binders in it as well and retarders do not.

Lastly, if you have other brands of air dry paints you want to use with these you may do so. As long as you prime the vinyl first, then mix the Emulsion in with your other brand of air dry paint you can then layer brands on top of each other or mix them together to create your own colors. This is a way to continue to use your other brands of paints as well as to strengthen the adhesion of your other brands. To strengthen the pigment of your other brands you can add in some of the pure pigment to your other brand along with the Emulsion Fluid or even just add some Premixed RebornFX in along with the Emulsion fluid. There are so many ways to use this paint and incorporate your other brands in as well. This is what I like best about them!