Quick answer: Almost every paint by numbers problem has a simple fix. Numbers showing through the paint need a second coat once the first is dry. Paint that looks streaky or thin needs a smaller amount on the brush and slower strokes. A canvas that will not lie flat needs a warm iron on the back through a cloth. Colors that look wrong on the canvas are usually right once the neighbors are filled in. Dried-out pots can be revived with a few drops of warm water, and any color you run out of can be reordered by its number. Below are the nine problems people ask about most, in the order they tend to happen.
Nobody finishes a first canvas without hitting at least one of these. The good news is that acrylic paint is one of the most forgiving materials there is: it dries fast, it covers itself completely, and almost nothing you do in the first hour cannot be painted over in the second. Here is what goes wrong, why, and what to do about it.
What you will find in this guide
- 1. The canvas arrived creased and will not lie flat
- 2. The numbers show through the paint
- 3. The paint looks streaky or patchy
- 4. I keep painting over the lines
- 5. The paint is too thick, or too thin
- 6. A color looks wrong
- 7. A paint pot has dried out
- 8. I have run out of a color
- 9. The small sections are impossible
- Frequently asked questions
1. The canvas arrived creased and will not lie flat
Kits ship with the canvas rolled or folded, and the fold lines can stay visible for days. There are two reliable fixes.
The iron. Lay the canvas face down on a clean towel, put a second thin cloth over the back, and press with an iron on a low setting, keeping it moving. Never let the iron rest in one place, and never iron the printed side. Thirty seconds per area is plenty.
The books. Lay the canvas flat, cover it with a towel, and stack heavy books on top for two or three days. Slower, but zero risk.
Do this before you start painting, not after. Once there is paint on the canvas, ironing is out and stretching over a frame is the only way left to pull creases out — our framing guide covers how.
2. The numbers show through the paint
This is the single most common worry, and it is nearly always a matter of patience rather than technique. Light colors — yellows, pale pinks, creams, whites — are naturally more transparent than dark ones, and a single coat over a printed number will rarely hide it.
The answer is a second coat, and sometimes a third, applied only once the previous one is completely dry. Wait fifteen to twenty minutes between coats. Painting a second layer onto wet paint does not add coverage; it just drags the first layer around. Two thin coats always cover better than one thick one.
If a number still ghosts through after three coats, it will disappear the moment the surrounding sections are filled in and the eye has something else to look at. Stand back six feet. If you cannot see it from there, nobody else will either.
3. The paint looks streaky or patchy
Streaks come from three habits, all easy to change.
- Too little paint on the brush. A nearly dry brush scrapes rather than covers. Dip so the bristles are loaded but not dripping.
- Going back over a half-dry area. Acrylic starts to set within a minute or two. Brushing over it at that stage lifts and smears. Paint a section, leave it, and come back only when it is fully dry.
- Brushing in every direction. Pick one direction per section and keep to it. For the second coat, go the opposite way.
For the most even finish of all, our Acrylic Paint Blend is a gel you mix into the pot with the built-in pipette; it makes the paint flow more smoothly and dry with a consistent sheen, which hides brush marks well on large flat areas like skies and water.
4. I keep painting over the lines
Everyone does. Three things help. First, use a smaller brush than feels natural for anything with a tight edge — you can always switch back to the bigger one for the middle. Second, rest the heel of your hand on the table or on a clean scrap of paper laid over dry sections, so the brush is steadied by your wrist rather than held in the air. Third, work from the center of a section out to its edges, so you approach each line slowly rather than starting on it.
And when you do go over: let it dry fifteen minutes, then paint the neighboring color over the mistake. Acrylic is opaque. Nobody will ever know.
5. The paint is too thick, or too thin
Too thick (drags, leaves ridges, will not spread): add a single drop of water to the pot with a clean brush and stir. One drop. Test, then add another if needed. Too much water turns it transparent and you are back to problem 2.
Too thin (watery, streaky, shows the canvas texture): the pot has probably absorbed moisture or was over-thinned earlier. Leave the lid off for a couple of hours and stir occasionally, or simply apply more coats. There is no way to thicken acrylic again once it has been diluted, but extra layers get you to the same place.
6. A color looks wrong
Every week someone writes to tell us that the color in pot 14 cannot possibly be right. It almost always is. Colors on a canvas only make sense in relation to their neighbors: a mud-brown looks alarming on its own and perfect once the greens are painted around it. Trust the numbers, paint at least the sections next to it, and then judge.
Two real exceptions. If a pot is genuinely a different color from the printed chart — blue where it should be green — write to us with a photo and we will send the right one. And if you simply prefer a different shade in one area, you are allowed to. It is your painting.
7. A paint pot has dried out
Acrylic dries by evaporation, so a pot left open, or one with a loose lid, will thicken and eventually set. Caught early, it is easy to save: add a few drops of warm water, close the lid, wait ten minutes, and stir thoroughly with a toothpick or the handle end of a brush. Repeat until the paint moves like thick cream. Rubbery or fully hardened paint cannot be brought back — our dried paint guide explains exactly where the line is.
Prevention is simple: keep every lid closed except the one you are using, press lids down until they click, and store the paints somewhere cool.
8. I have run out of a color
Kits include more than enough paint if it is applied in thin coats, but thick painting, a spill, or a lot of practice coats can empty a pot early. You do not need to replace the whole kit. Every color in our range can be ordered on its own by its number — find the range that contains your number in the replacement paints collection, pick the exact number, and it ships to you.
Order the moment you notice the pot is low, not when it is empty, so you do not lose a week waiting.
9. The small sections are impossible
Very small sections — a highlight in an eye, a single leaf in a hedge — are where most people slow down and some give up. A few rules make them manageable:
- Use the smallest brush in the kit, and load only the tip. A blob of paint on a tiny brush is what spreads over the lines.
- Paint the tiny sections last, after the big areas around them are dry. That way you are only worrying about one edge at a time, and a slip can be covered.
- Do not aim for perfection. A few small sections painted slightly out of shape are invisible from a normal viewing distance.
- Use magnification and light. A daylight lamp and a magnifying lens make a bigger difference than any brush. See our guide to painting with tired eyes.
And if a design is simply too detailed for you, that is worth knowing for next time: our beginner tips explain how to spot a comfortable design before you buy.
Frequently asked questions
Can I fix a mistake after the paint has dried?
Yes, and it is easier than fixing it wet. Wait until the mistake is fully dry, then paint the correct color over it. Two coats if the wrong color was dark and the right one is light.
Why does my paint dry a different shade than it looks in the pot?
Acrylic dries slightly darker and less shiny than it appears wet. This is normal for every acrylic paint, and it is one reason a finished canvas benefits from varnish, which brings the depth back. See our sealing guide.
The lines are still visible after I finish. What now?
Faint lines between sections are part of the medium and vanish from a few feet away. If a particular line bothers you, a final thin coat of the lighter of the two colors on either side, brushed gently along it, usually softens it.
Can I use water to clean up a mistake while it is wet?
On a small fresh slip, a damp cotton swab dabbed gently will lift most of the paint. Do not rub, and do not try it on a dry mistake — water will not move dry acrylic, and scrubbing damages the canvas.
Do I have to follow the numbers exactly?
No. The numbers are a map, not a rule. Painters often swap a background color, soften a shade, or leave out a detail. As long as the sections next to each other still work together, the result will look intentional.
How do I know if a problem is my technique or a faulty kit?
Almost everything in this guide is technique, and it improves quickly. A faulty kit shows up as a missing pot, a pot that is a plainly different color from the chart, or a printing error on the canvas. For any of those, write to us with a photo and we will sort it out.
Ready for the next one?
Every problem on this list gets rarer with each canvas you finish. When this one is done, our guides to sealing and framing will get it on the wall, and there are hundreds of new designs waiting in best sellers and new arrivals. Keep your replacement colors, brushes and varnish topped up from the accessories collection.
