Liquid Frisket for Airbrush Art

Liquid frisket is a masking film that can be applied to areas of your artwork to protect those areas from being painted.... it is neat stuff and has tons of applications in your airbrush artwork.

This produce comes in handy on those occasions where your art includes a lot of tiny details that you want to mask...use it anytime you look at a reference and think, "whoa... that's gonna take for ever to cut out all that detail."

The simplest example I can think of is seeds on a strawberry... you could use regular frisket and use an exacto knife to cut out each and everyone of those little seeds OR you can dab on a spot of liquid frisket and get to the fun part...painting!

There are numerous brands and types of liquid frisket, but most of them work the same way...

The liquid, which is typically the consistency of runny glue, is applied to the artwork by any means that works for you (paintbrush, toothpick, skewer, etc) ... note that this is not a precision product, it sort of just "blobs" on in a somewhat controlled way. Once it is applied it takes just a moment or two for it to set... which results in a sticky gummy glue substance.

Once applied you can spray away and the area under the sticky frisket will not be painted.

To remove the frisket, you can pick it away with your fingers, or flick it of with an exacto knife - but the easiest way is to use a piece of tape! Roll up some tape, stick it to the liquid frisket and swipe (that is a lift slash wipe motion) it off of the work.

Some things to watch for when using friskets that are liquid is ... first and foremost - the smell! This stuff (or at least the 4 or 5 brands I have tried) smells awful. Sort of a rotten sticky feet kind of smell. Sadly, the only solution I have for it is to hold your breath.

Also, if you are using a brand that comes in a bottle or a jar, you will need to shake it up really well before you use it. Most of the liquid frisket products settle out into two (sometimes three) different layers when they are left to sit for a long time. The bottom layer is a very thick gummy paste that is supposed to be equally distributed throughout the entire volume. Shaking it really well will redistribute the gummy stuff through the whole mixture. If you open the container after shaking and there are still "chunks" in it - keep shaking.

Remember too that the liquid stuff can be used at any stage of the project. That is, don't just assume that it can only be used to keep areas of a white background white. Using the strawberry example again, you could approach your use of liquid frisket two ways:

1. You could apply the frisket on to a white base color (i.e. canvas or illustration board or helmet) and then paint red over top thus leaving white areas that can later be tinted yellow to resemble seeds

OR

2. You could paint the white surface yellow, apply liquid frisket, and then paint red over top thus leaving yellow seeds.

Either way works.... I just don't want you to limit your use of this great product.

Wondering what type to buy? I personally prefer the kind that comes in a bottle or a jar as opposed the the kind that come with an applicator tip (similar to a paint pen). I find the paint pen limits the usability with respect to the application. With the jarred stuff, I determine how to apply it and figure out the method that works best for my needs... it I want to apply using a pin-head, so be it, or with a butter knife!

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