How to Make Blacklight Paint

Black lights look purple to the naked eye, but the important part is what you can't see. A black light bulb puts out a lot of ultraviolet light, which is invisible to the naked eye. When this ultraviolet light shines on black light paint or anything else fluorescent, it is absorbed. The paint then re-emits the ultraviolet as visible light.

Things You'll Need

• Poster paints
• Brightening agent
• Water
• Cup
• Stir
• Paintbrush

Instructions

1. Buy poster paints in whatever colors you want. Fluorescent paints will already glow under black light, but most ordinary poster paints will not.

2. Get a brightening agent such as the one linked to below. If you are using a powder brightener, mix it with enough water to dissolve it. If you are using a liquid brightener, you can skip this step.

3. Mix a small amount of the brightener into a jar of paint. Stir it thoroughly with a paintbrush.

4. Turn off the room lights and draw the shades if there is light coming in from outside. Turn on a black light. Hold the paint under the light and see how strongly it glows.

5. If the paint is not bright enough for you, mix in more brightener until it glows brightly enough for you.

Tips & Warnings

• If you don't have a brightening agent, you can mix in a detergent that say "brightening" on it. These detergents have brightening agents in them.

Resources

• Read this Article in Spanish
• Brightening Agent