Most artists spend hours, days and even months to finish a painting yet very few take the extra step to varnish their paintings. Varnish is important in providing your paintings lifetime protection from dust, dirt, abrasion and fading. For temporary protection, Retouch Varnish can be used to bring up the gloss of dull areas in a painting. However, a final varnish is still necessary to provide permanent protection to the painting which can only be applied once the painting is completely dry - within 6 to 12 months.