Wet palette: what it does, and how to make one for nothing
A wet palette is a shallow sealed tub with a damp layer under a sheet of parchment paper. Paint sitting on the parchment draws moisture up from below, so acrylics that would skin over in ten minutes on a tile stay workable for hours, and often for days.
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Acrylic paint dries by evaporation, which is exactly what you don't want while you're mixing a color. A wet palette interrupts that: water moves up through a membrane into the paint from underneath, replacing what evaporates off the top.
Why a wet palette changes how you paint
Three things follow from paint that stays wet, and the third is the reason experienced painters won't go back.
- Mixes survive. The exact skin tone you spent ten minutes arriving at is still there tomorrow evening, so a figure painted over a week stays consistent.
- Thinning gets easier. Paint on a dry palette thickens continuously, so you are chasing it with water. On a wet palette the consistency holds while you work.
- You waste far less. Most paint on a dry palette is thrown away, not used. That's real money over a year, and it's the argument that usually persuades people.
How to make a wet palette: a DIY wet palette from a takeout container
You need a shallow container with a lid, something absorbent, and a semi-permeable sheet. That is it.
- Take a clean takeout container, the flatter the better.
- Cut a sponge, a few folded sheets of paper towel, or a kitchen cloth to fit the bottom.
- Soak it, then press the excess out. It should be thoroughly wet and not standing in water.
- Lay parchment paper on top, cut to size. Greaseproof paper works; ordinary paper towel doesn't, because paint sinks straight into it.
- Smooth out the air bubbles, put paint on the parchment, and keep the lid on between sessions.
No brand recommendation here, because we haven't tested any and won't repeat somebody else's. The bought versions are a tub, a sponge and a pack of paper, sold together.
How long paint actually lasts on one
Overnight is reliable. Two or three days is normal with the lid on. Beyond that it depends on your room and how wet the layer underneath is, and in practice you will know by looking - paint that has begun to gel on the parchment has gone, and stirring water into it does not bring it back.
What surprises people is that the useful window isn't the paint staying liquid, it's the MIX staying available. Re-mixing a color from scratch is the part that eats an evening, and a palette that holds it for two days removes that.
The two things that go wrong
Too wet, and paint spreads and thins itself on the parchment until it is useless. The fix is to press more water out of the layer underneath, not to add thicker paint.
Left too long, and it grows mold - a wet sealed box is exactly the environment for it. Change the water weekly if you paint often, let it dry out completely between longer gaps, and rinse the sponge, not just topping it up.
Parchment, and why the brand of paper matters less than the fit
Cut the sheet slightly smaller than the tub, not larger. A sheet pressed up the sides wicks water round the edges and floods the corners, which is where most paint gets ruined.
Smooth the air out from the middle when you lay it down. A trapped bubble is a dry spot, and a dry spot under the parchment is a patch of paint that skins over while everything round it stays wet - which is confusing enough to make people blame the paint.
| Problem | Fix |
|---|---|
| Paint spreads and thins | Press more water out of the layer underneath |
| Mold | Change the water weekly; let it dry out; rinse the sponge |
| Flooded corners | Cut the sheet slightly smaller than the tub |
| One patch skins over | Smooth out the trapped air bubble |
| Paint has gelled | It has gone; water will not bring it back |
Storing it between sessions
Lid on, somewhere cool, and out of the sun. A palette left on a warm windowsill dries through the lid faster than you would expect, and one left in a cold room lasts noticeably longer.
When a wet palette is the wrong tool
Metallics, which separate if they sit. Washes and inks, which are already thin and will thin further. And a fifteen-minute session where the setup takes as long as the painting.
Once the figure is finished
When the last highlight is dry, a good photo of the model can go on the wall: custom art prints prints the photo as it is, on archival paper.
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Match the palette to the paint
For preparation and maintenance, see The Army Painter’s wet-palette guide. Different paint formulas need different handling; check the maker’s instructions before thinning. When your miniature is finished, use our miniature photography guide to record the paintwork.
Questions and answers
What is a wet palette used for?
Keeping acrylic paint workable. A damp layer under baking parchment feeds moisture up into the paint, so mixes last hours or days instead of drying out in minutes.
What paper do you use in a wet palette?
Baking parchment or greaseproof paper. Kitchen roll does not work as the top sheet - paint sinks into it instead of sitting on it.
Why has my wet palette gone moldy?
A sealed damp box is ideal for mold. Change the water weekly if you paint often, rinse the sponge instead of topping it up, and let it dry out completely between longer breaks.
Is a wet palette worth it for a beginner?
Yes, and a homemade one costs nothing. The paint you stop throwing away pays for a bought one within a year anyway.
Do you need to water down paints on a wet palette?
Less than on a dry palette, but yes for most work. Paint on the parchment draws water up from the damp layer underneath, so it loosens the longer it sits. Thin it to the consistency the job needs, then check it again before each load, because a mix that’s been out an hour is wetter than when you made it. Thick paint fills fine detail whatever palette it came from.
What is the difference between a wet palette and a dry palette?
Where the water comes from. On a dry palette, a tile or a plastic well, paint sits in open air and skins over within minutes. On a wet palette it sits on parchment over a damp layer that feeds water up into it, so the same mix stays workable for hours. A dry palette still suits washes, inks and metallics, the three jobs the wrong-tool section above sets aside; a wet palette suits layering and a color you’ll come back to.
How do you clean a wet palette?
Throw the used parchment away, rinse the sponge or paper towel under the tap and squeeze it out, then wash the tub with warm water and a little dish soap. Let everything dry before you rebuild it. A sponge that smells or shows spots of mold is cheaper to replace than to rescue.
