Using acrylic and oil paint in my portraits

Oil painting rule: you can paint with oils over the top of acrylic paint, but you shouldn’t paint over oils with acrylics. 

I didn’t make up this rule, nor have I ever tested it to see how true it is. I’m just going to follow this rule without question, and save myself some trouble. I’m pretty sure what I’ve read and heard is true..when oil paint is painted over with acrylics, it cracks the oil paint below, causing the acrylic paint to peel. 

This painting is another from my “not finished yet” pile. It’s an acrylic portrait, and I decided to add some layers of oil paint to her face. I’m keep her hair the way it is – painted in acrylics. Painting over the hair with oils will just increase drying time because the darker the color the longer it takes to dry. Since I don’t think it would improve the look of the portrait, I’m just going to leave well enough alone. If I do decide to add layers, it will be with acrylics, not oils. 

The blue background is also oils. I usually keep the background painted in acrylic, but I had that blue already mixed on my palette, and wanted to use it up. 

More on painting with acrylic and oils can be found here.

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