I’ve always used milk paint for any painting on my horses. It is non-toxic, natural, food safe, and doesn’t contain petroleum products. Plus I love the soft and rustic look of the colors. I have, however, had difficulty producing just a few crucial colors. For example, there is no real RED red, like a fire engine, radio flyer wagon red. It must be related to the pigments they use.

On this horse I really wanted a RED red saddle. I tried the straight red, and ended up with more of a brick red, brownish color. This color might be more red when painted on a white surface, I didn’t try this. Here’s an image of the first coat of milk paint red…

salem red milk paint. This will darken when finished with oil, but not exactly the red I was looking for

So I’ve used some acrylics in the past to paint dog portraits. Using straight acrylics wouldn’t work, they have a shiny, plastic look that wouldn’t work with the milk paint of the horse body. So after a bit of googling, I discovered that some people mix the acrylic with milk paint to get specific colors, but retain the texture of milk paint. I figured I’d give it a try.

Sure enough, with about a 1/2 and 1/2 mixture of milk paint and acrylic, I ended up with just enough red and still that silky, matte texture of milk paint. And unlike with straight acrylics, it took an oil finish very nicely, and a light sanding achieved a velvet smooth finish. It’s not a huge difference, but it was enough of a red boost for what I wanted.

Though I don’t like relying on a synthetic product to create the best colors, this is one option to keep the milk paint properties plus add some color. I’d be interested to try some other methods, such as using a white or yellow base under the red, or possibly trying another brand of milk paint to get the right red. But if you are wondering about the effects of mixing acrylic and milk paint, hopefully this info could be helpful to you! Let me know if you have experience getting a RED red with milk paint.

Author: Alicia

I live and work in Asheville, NC. I've been learning to carve since 2012, and started my own rocking horse business in 2013. I've always loved drawing horses, and find those skills practiced as a teenager now come in handy as I carve each horse to life from chunks of wood. I love creating things that children can enjoy, move with, and learn from. I also love hiking through the hills of the Asheville area, swimming in the icy waterfalls, and hanging out with my husband and my dog.