LISA ' s pretty great . Completely different sort of game , but very memorable . <| sep |> I would suggest flow release vs retarder . Flow release is made by Golden , flow aid is made by Liquitex , both work the same . What they do is increase the ' wetness ' of the paint and allow for easier blending . Never use straight , mix 10 parts water to one part flow release . You can mix it with your paint or put down a layer of it straight and paint over it . Acrylic has surfactant in it , which is soap . Lower quality brands have higher levels of it which makes it feel snot like , too little makes it thick and gritty . This is why water breaks acrylic paint up . Flow release added to water prevents that from happening because it ' s surfactant water you ' re making . The problem with retarder is you have to use it very sparingly . Too much and the paint stays tacky , and it ' s easy to use too much . I ' d also say that part of learning how to paint is to work within the limitations of the medium . Acrylic dries within 20 minutes . That ' s just it ' s nature . It ' s possible to get smooth fades but it takes practice . Layering , dry brushing , and blending is how I do it . So yah . Mediums help but you have to work with the paint , not try to bend it to your expectations of painting .