Comments: Hi- Im currently working on a dollhouse. in milled plywood. I'm on my 5th coat of bright yellow acrylic gloss paint and it looks bad. Im thinking its the particles from the wood that have risen after painting and it gives the pieces a dirty look in some areas. I don't know what to do to fix this. Not sure if more coats are the answer, should I sand and keep trying? I'm worried with so many coats of paint that it will become tacky. thanks!

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No, don't put on any more paint until we figure out what is going on.

My normal process is to put on one coat of paint, then sand the clapboards
one-at-a-time until the surface feels soft and smooth, and the wood is
showing through.  This first coat of paint soaks into the wood and binds
together the grain so the sanding, handling, taping, etc of assembly won't
hurt it. It is the sanding after the first coat that makes the paint job good (read "where to start?").

But I do not use nor do I recommend gloss paint.  Gloss paint glints!  Glint
takes the happy texture of wood and makes it harsh and plastic looking.  It
calls attention to every bump and valley, even when they are hard to detect
with your fingertip.  I just finished (yesterday) a "gloss" project, and it
was a nightmare!!!!!!  It took 6 times longer than budgeted and I remained
un-happy with the finish (even though the client loved it).

So, your issue may be with the "gloss" of your paint, or it may be from
under-sanding after the first coat.  Run your finger over the clapboard
surface and see if it feels smooth.  If so, you may be better pleased with a
semi-gloss or satin finish.  Try sanding the surface and looking at it
without the glint.  How does it look?

If you under-sanded the first coat, adding more paint won't help.  You've
got to get the surface flat and, if that's the case, let me know and I'll help you with that.

Happy building
doc