No More Glass! How to varnish watercolour paintings and mount on wood panels

Learn how to mount your watercolour paintings and other art on paper onto a wood panel. In this tutorial I'll explain how to varnish and protect your watercolours, gouache, drawings and prints then stick them on to wood cradles using an archival method. Keep your art safe from light, dust and moisture and say goodbye to reflective, breakable glass and expensive framing.
You will need:
Archival Spray Varnish (I like Golden Archival Gloss Varnish with UVLS)
Gloss Acrylic Gel Medium (I recommend Golden or Liquitex)
Golden Isolation Coat
Craft knife
Cutting mat

[@mariaoverlayart]

Really helpful tutorial! I have been thinking about applying to a few art fairs but framing every watercolor painting was throwing me through a loop, Im thinking about how much glare there may be and itll take away from the art! I love this way of framing! So beautiful and your art is amazing! Thank you so much for sharing!

[@JAYBARTON1981]

Thank you. This video is probably the most informative for protecting art on water color paper.

[@barb5393]

Thank you for showing this way of finishing and protecting your paintings.

[@jmonkiew]

I started using the isolation coat independently before watching this video, very satisfying to see other artists using it. It flattens out and self-levels very nicely overnight, leaving yhr paper texture without lots of brush marks. I do find have to use many more than 2-3 coats of golden gloss varnish, though-the areas of the painting with less paint seem to absorb it, even after 5 or 6 coats. I’ll wind up with patchy gloss areas, even under the isolation coat.

[@alixtaggart1024]

Thank you for generously sharing your steps ~ so well done and much appreciated! Your art is beautiful!

[@AndreaEnglandArt]

I’m so glad it’s helpful! Thank you for your kind words!

[@juliawalsh7934]

Thank you so much for this. I use a similar system of coats and sprays for my acrylic paintings. This will be my go-to routine for my watercolor paintings.

[@barszcz88]

Brilliant tips! Thank you Andrea!! I hope you’re planning to make more art tutorials, as I find them very useful especially when you explain your reasoning for certain steps❤️

[@catierobin346]

Thank you for sharing! I've been following you in Instagram for awhile now and was excited to find that you have a youtube channel. I hope you are thinking about putting out more tutorials on your painting style! Your style is inspiring! Love and light to you

[@dcorsetto]

Thank you so much for making this video! (I'm so sick of paying for frames, cleaning the glass, and matting the artwork!)

[@bethbale956]

Thanks for the good information. Well done on the video.

[@MarianelaBoratti]

I was just wondering this and was looking for someone that has done something similar thank you!!

[@JCLittle]

Hi Andrea, thanks for this. I've been thinking about varnishing a few pieces lately just because one of the submissions I wanted to make did not allow for glass. Not sure I'm ready but will definitely save your video for when I am!

[@lilyshea6771]

So helpful!👏👏

[@garywalker-fr5rq]

Great info...Thanks!

[@rebeccaferrier4666]

Thank you for this helpful video! I am on a small island and Golden products are not available. The "local cradleboards" are hardboard surface with a pine skeleton. Can you advise which Liquitex medium you would use on the hardboard? I know I can get the gloss super heavy gel. Would that work to adhere and be archival like the golden gloss? Thanks so much for your advice.

[@madalionessBachan]

Thank you for this video! I don’t want a glossy look for my watercolours. Do you recommend anything that would work similarly to mount and protect watercolours without glass framing where they stay true to the Matte paper quality? Thank you

[@lynnriddell9632]

That was very interesting! Just these steps alone should add onto the cost/value of a piece of art. Your work is gorgeous and obviously long lasting. Thanks for sharing

[@AndreaEnglandArt]

I’m glad you enjoyed it! Yes the steps do add to the value of a painting- it’s ready to hang, there’s no need for expensive glass and the art will stay looking great for a very (very) long time

[@tinamarie9047]

Thank you!!!

[@AndreaEnglandArt]

You’re welcome!

[@lilystelzer6946]

Thank you for this video! Does the varnish deepen/restore luster to the colors? I'm familiar with varnishing oil paintings, where varnish makes the colors more intense/more similar to how the paint looked when wet. I've started painting with watercolor but am frustrated when the paint dries matte and less vibrant than when first applied! I'm wondering if varnish might be the solution

[@AndreaEnglandArt]

Yes it does! Using gloss varnish throughout the process will add vibrancy to the colours. I usually find that the thickest/ darkest layers of paint appear glossier and wetter during the first few coats of varnish, but the Isolation coat tends to even things out. Using gloss for the last coat of varnish keeps the extra sheen, whilst finishing with matte calms the colours down a bit. I switch between gloss and matte for the last coat depending on the subject

[@lilystelzer6946]

@@AndreaEnglandArt thank you so much, this is so helpful! Really appreciate you sharing your knowledge!

[@robertawenzel8178]

Are you using acrylic or water color paint ?

[@AndreaEnglandArt]

I use watercolour

[@robertawenzel8178]

I thought you could not use this over water color??

[@AndreaEnglandArt]

The spray varnish acts as a fixative as well as giving UV protection. Use as many coats as you like to ensure the watercolour is properly sealed. Thick dark layers of paint need more coats and drying time than light layers. The Isolation coat will then brush on without disturbing the varnish below. The final coats of varnish can be sprayed or brushed on,