Light moulding paste
This acrylic medium is great for creating texture and for building peaks to your work. Like the name suggests, light moulding paste has a lightweight formula. This means it’s buildable, so you can create the right amount of texture you’re looking for and it can be used on a range of surfaces, like paper, canvas, card and wood. Light moulding paste dries to an opaque, matte finish, and you can easily paint over the top with acrylics. 
Not sure what to use? We recommend a palette knife for spreading, mixing and smoothing light moulding paste. 

Modelling paste
Modelling paste is thicker than its friend, light moulding paste. Because it’s heavy-bodied, it's also great for embedding small objects for a 3D effect and for creating large textured layers. This acrylic medium can be used to add texture on paper, canvas, card and wood and it dries to an opaque, matte finish. Sounds good but what should I use? A palette knife is great to apply this medium and a textured comb can be used to enhance even more of those textured details too. Or check out our modelling paste tips here.

Crackle paste
Looking to create an aged or weathered look to your artworks? Crackle paste is your answer! This acrylic medium creates cracked effects and dries to a white, opaque finish, so you can paint over the top once it’s dry too. Crackle paste is ideal for a range of surfaces like canvas, wood and even polymer clay. Using a palette knife or a flat taklon brush, apply a thick layer and leave it to dry for 2-3 hours. Once it’s dry, you’re ready to paint over!

Impasto
If you’re looking to thicken your acrylic paints for more texture or you want to retain your thick brush strokes, then you’ll want to reach for impasto. Mix impasto in with your acrylic paints either in a palette or directly on the canvas. This medium dries clear, meaning it won’t affect your paint colours and it’s great on canvas, card and wood. It’s best to use a palette knife or taklon brush with this medium as you’ll be working with thick paints, so you’ll need something strong to withstand the thickness. 

Looking for more? Check out these 20 texture techniques, browse our acrylic medium range or check out more of our handy how-to videos.