Art from the Land of Enchantment

Art Supplies

I enjoy shopping for art supplies almost as much as I love painting!  Well, maybe not quite.  Of all the brushes I have, this old worn one is one of my favorites.  It's an Isabey and at one time, I think it was a flat.  But I have worn it down to an angle and because it's also a bit stiff, it works better than some of my newer, smoother brushes.

I paint with Liquitex Heavy Body Acrylics and I use lots of blues in my paintings, especially the Pthalo blues (green and red shade).  Recently, I added a new color to my palette - Raw Sienna.  I love this color!  Very warm and earthy.

I used a glass palette for years, but living in a dry climate really makes my acrylic paints dry out even faster than normal.  I looked for a flat plastic covered container to store the palette in when I wasn't using it, but couldn't find one big enough.  I finally gave in and bought a 12x16 Masterson Sta-Wet palette, just to store my glass palette in.  However, the paints still dried out while I was painting, so I was constantly spraying water on them.  Finally, I decided to get the sponge and palette paper that goes with the Masterson Sta-Wet palette and it does work great.  It's a bit expensive, but I used my 40% off coupons from Michaels and that helped.  There are simple and cheaper ways to do this and there are several tutorials online that show you how.

Feel free to share you own favorite art supplies!

Paint Savers

Thanks to Dreama Tolle Perry's blog post, I have been introduced to Paint Savers.  I just received my order today and I think these just might save me a lot of paint.  I paint in acrylics and live in the southwest, so my paints dry out very quickly.  I prefer to paint on glass, so these are perfect for quickly protecting my little piles of paint from drying out.  Visit paintsavers.org.

My Palette

Artists' palettes are as unique as the artwork they create.  Lori McNee shared a great article today on her Fine Art Tips blog called Show Me Your Palette.

I missed my opportunity to share mine, but I had taken this picture of mine a few months ago.  Someone mentioned that it looked like spring and actually, it was the result of a painting of tulips.

I have no real method for laying out my paints.  I paint in acrylics, which dry quickly, so I just place small amounts on the palette, as needed.  I use a clear glass table top palette from Paragona.  I love how it cleans up easily with a little water and a glass scraper.  I've tried all kinds - disposable paper palettes, plastic, wooden, but the glass ones are my favorite.  I love it when I find something that works for me.

Gallery Wrap Canvas

"Desert Beauty"

Most of my acrylic paintings are painted on 1.5" deep gallery wrap canvas.  I thought I would post this just to inform anyone who may not know what that is.  It is becoming a very popular way to display art because it eliminates the need to purchase custom framing.  I love nice picture frames as much as anyone, but I think whether to frame or not should be up to the collector.  However, I do think that the gallery wrap canvas does not always work for all types of paintings.  Some paintings do look much better in a traditional frame.

Signature Canvas

Sometime last year, I was searching for high quality canvas for my paintings and I was very happy to find Signature Canvas.  They are based in Kansas City, KS and produce premium-quality archival canvas.  I was also happy to discover that as a Fine Art Studio Online member, that I receive a discount! 

I  am currently working on my third Signature canvas and I truly love it!  I use the 1.5" gallery wrap spline-fastened cotton canvas, but they also offer many other types of canvas to choose from.  I just received another order of canvases and was very pleased to see that they are now including a special label on the back of each canvas that includes the artist's name, artist statement and website.  I am so happy that I have chosen this as my "signature canvas"  and I am also thankful for my Fine Art Studio Online artist discount!

Art Supplies I Love

First of all, I love my easel!  It is a "Chimayo" Best Easel that I bought several years ago.  It is simple, strong, sturdy and works great in a small studio space.

Several months ago, I ordered my first Signature Canvas and now I'm hooked!  I prefer the 1.5" gallery-wrapped spline-fastened canvas.  I like to continue my painting along the edges, so it can be displayed with or without a frame.  These canvases have such a nice professional feel to them.  Signature also offers discounts on their overstocked canvases under their tab, Canvas City.  Thank you to Fine Art Studio Online for the 10% discount we now receive on these canvases!

My painting medium of choice is Liquitex Heavy Body Professional Acrylics.  I have experimented with many different color palettes through the years and have decided that I have to have Cadmium Yellow Light, Cadmium Yellow Medium, Yellow Oxide, Cadmium Red Light, Cadmium Red Medium, Quinacridone Crimson, Pthalo Blue (green shade), Ultramarine Blue (red shade), Dioxinine Purple, Burnt Sienna, Burnt Umber and Titanium White.

I have all kinds of paint brushes, but one of my favorites is the Silver Brush Grand Prix series.  I've also tried a few of the Isabey brushes and really like those, as well.

I finish off a painting with a coat of Liquitex Gloss Medium and Varnish.  I also use this as my painting medium.  It brings out all the colors and gives a nice finished look to each piece.

I buy all my supplies at these locations -  Artisans, with stores in Albuquerque and Santa Fe, Art Supply Warehouse, for large orders, because they have great prices and a $6.95 flat rate shipping charge, and Michaels, because they are right across the street from me and usually give me a new coupon with each purchase.