Want to paint vinyl? Wondering whether acrylic paint will stick to it? We are going to go through a multitude of different situations here. Hopefully, this will give you an idea as to whether acrylic paint is going to be suitable for your purposes.
Let’s start! So, can acrylic paint stick to vinyl? Yes, it definitely will! In fact, acrylic paint is probably the best paint for you to use if you are painting vinyl. Oil-based paints cannot stick to vinyl, so you need something that is water-based.
You will want to ensure that any paint you choose is as close to 100% acrylic paint as possible. There are some odd mixes of paint out there, and none of them will stick anywhere near as well as 100% acrylic would. Below are my top recommendations for acrylic paint.
Can You Use Acrylic Paint on Vinyl Stickers?
You absolutely can. This is assuming that the vinyl sticker is fully made from vinyl and it doesn’t have a special coating. However, it is incredibly rare that a vinyl sticker will have a coating on it that will prevent the acrylic paint from sticking to it properly.
My top recommended acrylic paint for vinyl is Arteza. Their paints are top quality, and they have so many styles to choose from!
The only major issue that you are going to have with painting vinyl stickers is how you go about it. We assume that you are just painting a bit of extra detail onto the sticker. This means that you will need some way of masking things off.
The problem is that putting any sort of masking tape onto the vinyl sticker runs the risk of peeling the sticker off when you pull the tape off. Some people have got around this issue by using things that are a little bit less sticky e.g. post-it notes. However, these can be a bit trickier to work with.
In an ideal world, you will want to be painting the vinyl sticker before you stick it to anything. Only when the paint is dry and you are ready to stick the vinyl decal to a surface, will you need to remove the masking tape. This will cause the minimum amount of damage to the vinyl sticker!
A great and gentle masking tape I have personally used this Scotch Delicate Surface Masking Tape. I was worried about peeling, but this tape was seriously amazing!
Can You Use Acrylic Paint on Vinyl Records?
Yes you definitely can, with a few proper steps.
As you may well know, vinyl records play music when the needle passes over the grooves on the record. This transmits vibrations to the record player which will pump out the sounds. Obviously, things are slightly more complicated than this, but this is roughly how everything works.
This means that you cannot paint the side of the vinyl record that has designed to be played. If you do, then the acrylic paint will fill up these little grooves. This means that the music will not play properly.
In fact, you would struggle to get it to play at all. At the same time, it is going to be wearing down the needle on your record player which is going to cause even more issues for you.
If you are never playing the record again, or you are just painting it as a decoration, then by all means, paint both sides of it. Just bear in mind that if you do want to play it at some point, it is going to be impossible to remove that acrylic paint, and this means it will be unplayable.
There are absolutely no issues with painting the top side of the vinyl record. Although, you will probably want to ensure that it isn’t a double-sided record if you do that!
If this is for decor or a fun art project, read below to learn how to properly seal your acrylic paint.
Can You Use Acrylic Paint Over Cricut Vinyl?
You absolutely can!
However, do bear in mind that the appearance of the acrylic paint may not come out exactly how you want it to come out. Therefore, if you have some spare scraps of Cricut vinyl, you can experiment with that to see which colors you can make.
This will allow you to see how the color will turn out without you running the risk of ruining a cool piece of vinyl.
If you are looking for a great and convenient Cricut machine, I highly recommend the Cricut Joy. It’s perfect for everyday projects, and is compatible with over 50+ materials. You can also view it by clicking the picture below.
Cricut is great because they have tons of machines and accessories for all your projects. They are all compatible with acrylic paint, and you can get as creative as you’d like! I personally have the Cricut Joy, and painting over the sticker with acrylic paint is super easy.
The latest project I did with Cricut was printing out a cute decals for my coffee tumbler. I used acrylic paint to personalize it, and it looks great.
How Do You Prepare Vinyl for Painting?
You do not have to do anything special in order to paint the vinyl. If you are painting the entirety of the vinyl, then you may want to apply a base coat or primer to it, such as this one. This gives it extra protection in that the acrylic paint stick to the vinyl.
However, the vinyl should provide decent adhesion. The only reason you will want to apply that base coat is if you want to shake up the color a little bit, or at least get a more predictable color across the surface of the vinyl. The primer recommended above, is specifically design to adhere to acrylic paint, and it’ll also make the color more vibrant.
The only thing that I suggest that you do, is to make sure that the vinyl is completely clean before you apply the acrylic paint. This acrylic paint set is also great to use on vinyl, and it will give it more of a matter finish.
If you are painting onto vinyl records that do not have any stickers on them, then all you need to do is wash the area down with warmish, soapy water. You can then dry it off with a lint-free cloth. The area should now be ready to paint.
If you are painting onto something with adhesive, then we wouldn’t recommend that you use water to clean it. This will cause problems with the adhesive. Instead, all you can really do is use a lint-free cloth to clean the area. Makes sure that you get it as clean as possible.
The reason why you need to clean it is that any dust that you paint over will remain there. This can create a weird texture in the acrylic paint. In some cases, if there is enough dust, it may even end up causing a small amount of discoloration which could end up ruining your beautiful piece of artwork!
How Do You Seal Acrylic Paint on Vinyl?
While you could probably just leave the acrylic in place without really doing anything once you have finished painting, it isn’t going to look all that good. In fact, it isn’t even going to be protected all that well.
This means that you are going to need to seal it. By applying varnish to acrylic paint, it protects it from flaking, chipping and even discoloration. I strongly recommend sealing your acrylic paint with Krylon Sealing Sprays. They’re affordable and even protect against UV rays!
Start by allowing the acrylic paint to dry completely. This is going to take at least 15-45 minutes, or until you see it’s fully dry with no damp spots. Do not use any of those speedy drying techniques such as hairdryers or ovens.
While using a heat gun, or baking acrylic paint in the oven can be done to cure glass or clay, it can’t be done for vinyl. It will burn and ruin it. Also, it will almost certainly destroy any adhesive too. This is one of those cases where you will really just have to ‘wait it out’.
Once the area is clean, dust it off with your lint-free cloth. This will ensure that no dust will be caught under the varnish.
Now all you need to do is spray on the varnish and it’s done! You can apply one or two coats of the varnish at at least 6 inches away from the vinyl. Try to apply an even coat, otherwise some areas will look thicker or runnier than others.
Once you are done, all you need to do is let the varnish dry. This can take anywhere from 15 minutes to a few hours.
Final Thoughts
Acrylic paint is one of the best types of paint to use on vinyl. Whether you’re using it on vinyl records, toys, or even stickers, just make sure to follow my tips and guidelines to endure your project turns out great.
Don’t forget to check out my other articles for all your painting Q&A’s. Happy painting!
