New to Diamond Painting? Have no fear! You're in the exact right place. And we're SO glad to have you!
What Is Diamond Painting?
Diamond Painting is a new craft hobby that's a mix between Paint By Numbers and Cross Stitch. With Diamond Painting, you apply thousands of tiny resin "diamonds" to a coded adhesive canvas to create shimmering Diamond Art.
Diamond Painting was introduced to North America and Europe by the Paint With Diamonds™ company in 2017. Since then, millions of crafters around the world have discovered the joy and stress-relieving benefits of Diamond Painting.
How To Start Your First Diamond Painting
Step-By-Step Diamond Painting Instructions
Step 1: Remove all items from the package.
Each Diamond Painting Kit comes with everything you need to get started. Take stock of your canvas, set of diamonds, toolkit, wax pad, and tweezers.
Step 2: Lay your canvas out on a clean flat surface or workstation.
Roll your canvas out on a perfectly smooth and flat surface. Kitchen and dining room tables work wonders. Advanced Diamond Painters head over to Amazon and search for crafting tables.
Step 3: Select a color or symbol and pour diamonds into the tray.
Determine which section of your Diamond Painting canvas you want to start painting. Select the appropriate diamonds and pour a small amount into the grooved tray. Shake lightly so that diamonds shift upright.
Step 4: Apply wax to the tip of your Diamond Pen.
Peel back the plastic film on the pink wax pads and apply a small amount of wax to the tip of your Diamond Pen. The wax acts combines with the static cling and acts almost like a Diamond magnet.
Step 5: Place each diamond in its corresponding square on the canvas
Each color diamond corresponds to a specific symbol or character on the canvas. Check the legend on the side of the canvas to figure out which symbol corresponds to each color. Colors are denoted using DMC threads. Peel back the protective film covering in small sections and begin painting. DO NOT REMOVE THIS PLASTIC FILM ALL AT ONCE.
Step 6: Repeat the process until you have shimmering Diamond Art!
Work your way across the canvas diamond by diamond until you have a gorgeous DIY Diamond Painting! To increase the longevity of your Diamond Painting, consider sealing it before you put it on display! Diamond Paintings were meant to be enjoyed from afar - take a step back and marvel at the beauty.
What's The Difference Between Round And Square Diamonds?
In Diamond Painting, you will often come across the terms "Square Drill" and "Round Drill." In Diamond Painting, a "drill" is simply another word for "diamond." So when we consider Round vs. Square Drill, we're referring to the physical shape of the diamonds.
In choosing between Square and Round Drills, it's important to know that there are no right answers. Each has its pros and cons. Your goal should be to choose whichever shape that you think yields the most beautiful result with the most satisfying process.
Square Drill (aka Square Diamonds)
Creates A Fuller, More Complete Looking Painting.
Sometimes it's the little things that matter! When you start making progress on a Diamond Painting and begin filling in gaps, you get a satisfying "snap" as the diamonds settle snugly into place.
Round Drill (aka Round Diamonds)
Easier (And Faster!) To Pick Up And Apply Diamonds.Finished Painting Feels Less "Complete."
Given the round shape of the diamonds, gaps between diamonds may appear more apparent when you're close up with the painting. It's strongly recommended to view your Diamond Painting from afar!
Diamond Painting Popular Techniques
After placing thousands of diamonds, you may want to switch things up. The fine folks in the Paint With Diamonds Support Group have developed a number of different Diamond Painting Techniques and strategies that everyone can follow!
The Checkerboard Technique
Imagine the alternating black and white squares on a traditional checkerboard. Apply the same method to your Diamond Painting to mix things up a bit on areas with large amounts of the same color. The real upside comes when you fill in the gaps - SO satisfying when everything snaps into place.
"Row By Row" Method
If you have a large block on your canvas with the same color, flip your pen upside-down and get working with your Multi-Placer tool! Using the wider head, apply 3 or 5 diamonds at a time and go quickly Row By Row. This method ensures your diamonds line up easily.
"Color By Color" Method
This one doesn't require much explaining - just work your way across the canvas one color at a time! The downside here is that the exposed areas might get less sticky over time. But on the plus side, filling in all of the blank spots is that much more satisfying than going row by row, for example.
"Farm Plot" Method
Put yourself in the shoes of a farmer and divide up large blocks of the same color into little "plots" that you'll "harvest" on at a time! Are we stretching the metaphor too far yet? Keep each rectangle just wide enough that you can place 3 or 5 diamonds with the wide end of your Diamond Pen.
What Does Each Diamond Painting Kit Include?
Each Diamond Painting Kit comes with everything you need to get started!
- Pre-printed canvas with design chart (with pre-applied adhesive)
- Color diamonds delivered in separate bags (labeled)
- Diamond pen tool
- Pair of extra-sharp tweezers
- Wax pad (used to pick up diamonds)
When ordering kits, be sure to pay attention to 1) where the kit is coming from and 2) how it's packaged. If your kit is coming from overseas, you'll want to be sure it's packaged securely for transit.
At Paint With Diamonds, we avoid common shipping problems by wrapping our canvases around foam noodles to avoid creases and plastic wrapping all canvases to avoid water damage.
Diamond Painting Tips & Tricks
Remove Canvas Creases And Imperfections By Applying Weight
If your canvas has creases, folds, or other imperfections in it, apply weight for an extended period of time. to flatten it out.
Option 1: Put The Canvas Under Your Mattress. Try using your bodyweight overnight to iron out any creases and wrinkles in the canvas.
Option 2: Put Heavy Books On The Canvas: The same principle applies here - simply apply weight in the form of heavy books for a day or two.
Option 3: Cut Out Creases With A Crafting Knife: If there are stubborn creases, simply lightly go over them with an X-Acto knife to release any air trapped between the canvas and its adhesive layer.
Get Crafty With Creative Storage Solutions
In Diamond Painting, organizing your diamonds is more than half the battle. If our conventional storage containers aren't for you, get inspired and come up with some DIY storage solutions!
Want more Diamond Painting Tips & Tricks? We've got a ton!
Embrace The "Oh Sh*t" Moments
It's the instance you see your diamonds falling to the floor, almost in slow motion. Or the horrifying feeling when your fur baby walks across your canvas. We call these "Oh Sh*t" moments, and in Diamond Painting they're more or less inevitable.
It happens. Here are some common remedies:
Paper / Fur /Dirt On Canvas: Grab a baby wipe and go over the area aggressively. The debris will clump up and roll away. Wait for the area to dry and resume applying diamonds.
Diamond Spills & Mixups: Pop some pantyhose or a t-shirt over your vacuum nozzle to suck up a spill! You can then choose to manually sort the catastrophe, or submit a claim for Oh Sh*t Insurance ;).
How To Display Your Finished Diamond Painting
From professional framing to DIY foam board displays, the sky is the limit when it comes to displaying your finished Diamond painting. You'll want to select an option that's appropriate for your budget and time constraints. Here are a few of our favorites:
1. Apply Stretcher Bars To Your Canvas
For more of a DIY approach to mounting, grab yourself a set of Stretcher Bars. The instructions are super easy to follow and result in a beautiful display with some added depth.
2. Mount Your Diamond Painting To A Foam Board
This technique involves a bit of measuring and cutting. Head down to your local craft shop (or Amazon) and find yourself a foam board. To create a flat, borderless painting, use box cutters to cut the foam board down to the same size as your canvas (not including the canvas border).
3. Use Magnetic Hanger Bars
This method is very low effort and can be done in a matter of minutes. Just grab yourself a pair of Wooden Magnetic Hanger Bars cut to the exact size of your Diamond Painting and clamp them to the top!
Check out our ranking of the 7 Best Ways To Display Your Finished Diamond Painting for more ideas!
Welcome to the Diamond Painting Family!
Comments
Regina said:
How can I tell if the kit has the sparkly rhinestones?
May 17, 2023
Margaret Richards said:
I purchased PBS-010, i think I bought insurance, if not i need to purchase DMC-310. THANK YOU
May 17, 2023
Sharon said:
Hi full drill means whole background is filled with drills(jewels) part drill means just fill in the actual picture not the background .
May 17, 2023
Suzanne Hensley said:
How do you read the stock number that has a bar code that is on the packages to see what the picture is..
May 17, 2023
Marrie Saunder said:
great collection
May 17, 2023
Daniel Howard said:
Thanks for sharing useful post. you can go through diamond painting at https://paintwithnumbers.com.au/
February 06, 2023
Beverly said:
I have the giraffe with mother and baby item #J949. It was given to my 13 yr old niece who gave it to me after losing 6 bags of beads. Could you please tell me how I can buy them from you. The bead color # is 1-300, 3-310, 4-400,,10-902,11-938, and12-3371. Thank you
February 06, 2023
Linda said:
Lost the diamond chips to a painting is their anyway I can order them
July 13, 2022
Joan said:
Thanks for all the tips.I hope to get started soon.
June 09, 2022
Andrei. Penner said:
I JUST DID A BIG ONE IT TOOK ME ONE MONTH
June 09, 2022
Amaris Marte said:
Can’t wait to get my order
May 25, 2022
Lukas Nguyen said:
Thanks! for sharing the step-by-step information, I also like the video portions, helps a lot with learning…
April 04, 2022
Lukas Nguyen said:
Thank you, so much. I am about to start diamond paintings for the first time and this really is wonderful information to know! Keep up the great work…
April 04, 2022
Joyce said:
My friend gave me a Diamond Painting kit for Christmas. She lives in AK and during the long winter months, this is what she does. We live in Northern Maine and we, too, have long winter months. I didn’t think I would like doing this, but I love it. I finished my first DP and ordered three more…one is for my daughter who is a first grade teacher and needs a good stress reliever project. This is a good past time or hobby for anyone. The completed project is beautiful. The next two I make are for Christmas gifts this year.
February 01, 2022
Lukas Nguyen said:
Thanks for sharing such type of informative blog. I also like the video tutorial part…
December 21, 2021
john lucas said:
I like the technique involves a bit of measuring and cutting. It can really help for people like us. who are doing there best to learn diamond paintings. Heartful Diamonds is also a place who have huge collection of the diamond paintings.
October 29, 2021
Lukas Nguyen said:
great post
September 28, 2021
Hash said:
Where are the answers???
September 07, 2021
Margo Gipson said:
I’m new to this art, and would like to know how to use the tools. Some that I’ve gotten have wide-ranging tips. How do I use them, and the others? Help
September 07, 2021
Denise Scanlan said:
I am having problems with using the drill and wax when I get a new kit. The wax just won’t stick so I end up using one that does. Is there a trick to this that I am missing?
July 20, 2021
Sandy Sword said:
I am framing with glass. Do I need to cover with shellac or something before I frame it. Thanks
June 22, 2021
Tonya Ward said:
I would love to read the responses to submitted comments. How can I do this?
April 06, 2021
house painter West Auckland said:
This is really appreciated that you have presented this data over here, I love all the information shared. It will be very helpful to understand the what is diamond painting Great post to share!!
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April 06, 2021
Stephanie said:
I have used bulls eye shellac on mine and it keeps the drills on the canvas amd also keeps it shiny
March 22, 2021
House painters Grey Lynn said:
This is really appreciated that you have presented this data over here, I love all the information shared. It will be very helpful to understand the what is diamond painting. Great post to share!! I found thishttps://housepainterauckland.co.nz/ Having loads of data, if possible do have a look
March 17, 2021
Deanna Aranyos said:
Do you need tto put anything on the painting to keep the beades in place during weather and humidity chaanges?
February 18, 2021
Carol P. said:
First time on your site., and love all of your helpful suggestions. Just did my first diamond painting. A lot of the comments above are some of the questions I would ask. Is there a list of the answers to these questions anywhere. I wasn’t able to bring them up. I.m confused on the numbers on the different colored diamonds in each kit. Are all the colors the same numbers, even with different companies manufacturing the kits. Someone told me they thought they go by DMC colors? Thank You,
Carol P.
February 12, 2021
Chris olson said:
When ordering how do you tell if the background has no diamonds or if the whole picture is completely covered in diamonds? I am very disappointed when the background has no diamonds.
February 09, 2021
Patricia Cochran said:
I can’t find anywhere what it means when it says “full drill” or “partial drill”. Can you explain that and tell me why one would use one or the other? Thanks.
December 16, 2020
larry j aguiar said:
I have two picture would to turn them into gift before x-mas i my sis lost first grand son over cancle, than my son for hois dauthyer hter fou x-mas like ro do them myself can i help
December 16, 2020
Darlene Murphy said:
Do you need to buy the rulers that they sell to do the painting.
Thank you
December 16, 2020
JANET PAUL said:
THE BEADS WE GOT WITH OUR ORDERS ARE SOOOOOOOOO SMALL THAT WE WILL HAVE TO HAVE A magnafiy glass to see them. are all the beads this tinny ? if not, how do we get the larger beads, and we got no tray with either one of our orders.
December 16, 2020
Betty Lake said:
When the picture is done and your ready to frame it ….do you seal it with mod Podge? Also if you do small kits and don’t frame them right away…will the diamonds fall off after drying out? Please answer really curious.
December 16, 2020
Voladeen said:
I bought 5 ml glass bottles for my drills. I put the number of the color on a sticker on the side of the bottle and the symbol on another sticker on the lid. The bottles came in a box with foam dividers and the second time I used this method, I left the bottles in the box. It was much easier. The bottle is big enough around that the tray’s with the spout go right in and make it very easy to put extra drills back in the bottle.
December 16, 2020
Melissa Rutten said:
I’m trying to quit smoking so I need something to take my off of wanting one and I need to keep my fingers busy. This is the best thing that I have found that works.
December 16, 2020
Tammy Colvin said:
I absolutely love diamond painting! I have 5 done now and ordered 6 more. How do you get dog fur or dust off the sticky parts? Thanks for the tip about leaving most of the plastic cover on.
December 16, 2020
Anne Hart said:
So far I’ve done 4 and starting on the 5th kit. Having a problem as the rd diamonds are bigger then the spots on the canves. How would I be able to correct that? I dearly love doing this so would really like a cute for this problem. Thanks!
December 16, 2020
Sharon said:
Hi there i have just started my first diamond panting and it is Square drills and I’m having problems getting them straight and keeping them straight will this affect the end result of the picture can you help me please
December 16, 2020
imran said:
We have purchased many cans of Rust-Oleum deck stain and sealant. And all of then have caused bubbling, peeling, lifting and all look like crap. And much if it needs replaced.paint by numbers
April 18, 2020
Patricia Fedele said:
I got Soulmates on my second try ,missing a few colors. I knew I could order the missing colors but decided to use my creative powers. Kind of looks different from your picture but I like it.
April 17, 2020
Maureen James said:
Would like to purchase a led light box for my granddaughter age 9. Which Light box do you recommend? I want to purchase also a diamond painting kit so she can use on light box. Do you have kits that include light box and painting kit?
April 02, 2020
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April 17, 2020
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April 17, 2020
Gay Nash said:
I just bought a starter kit to try to see if this was something that I might want to do. I LOVED IT!!! So the very same day I ordered a kit. My question is….do the symbols and the drill numbers and colors remain the same from kit to kit?
March 03, 2020
Patricia R. Terrell said:
Do some of the canvas’s have thread cross stich on them.
March 03, 2020
Kathy DuToit said:
Has anyone else had problems of drills popping up and how did you fix it??
March 03, 2020
Wanda said:
If you never done these be for I can tell you will enjoy it I get stared I don’t want to stop
January 26, 2020
margaret gauthier said:
I am doing my first picture and I am afraid I will not have enough of the pink glue pad. Can I just order these?
January 26, 2020
Vicki Munster said:
I need a cm conversion chart please
January 16, 2020
Karyn Krause said:
I enjoy the sets but I am confused about if I put mod podge on a key chain headed set. Do I or leave alone?
January 09, 2020