Prepare your decoration project with an opaque white or black ground, or build raised detail with a stencil and palette knife. Pentart Primer Paste Gesso is a thick, creamy water-based paste that improves adhesion for paints and effect materials.
A ground coat or raised texture
Use the paste on wood, MDF, polystyrene foam and ceramic to prepare a surface for further decoration. The ground helps reduce absorbency and fill small surface irregularities. Once dry, it can be overpainted with Pentart paints or pastes. For a raised pattern, spread gesso through a stencil with a palette knife rather than smoothing the whole surface flat.
Choose colour and quantity
You receive one jar in your selected size and colour. White comes in 100, 230 and 500 ml; black in 100 ml. Choose white for a light ground or black for a dark ground that can remain visible between paint strokes or effect layers. Select the quantity for your number of projects and intended layer thickness; raised detail uses more paste than a thin ground coat. Brushes, palette knives and stencils are chosen separately.
Applying the paste
Clean the surface, remove dust and degrease where needed. Stir the paste thoroughly and use it without dilution. Apply an even coat with a firm brush or palette knife, or work through a stencil for local texture. Allow each layer to dry sufficiently before adding another coat or paint. Check adhesion and appearance on a sample first.
Choose the right preparation
This opaque paste does not leave the original surface visible like a transparent primer. For smooth materials that are difficult to paint, choose a primer intended for that particular surface; gesso does not replace a suitable bonding primer for every material. A ground coat is not a waterproof finish. Follow the jar instructions for use and disposal.
Compare painting mediums for grounds and finishes
