
Do you speak the language of color?
Do you speak the language of color? When you go to the grocery market, do you read the labels for ingredients? I do. And it’s no surprise that I read the labels on watercolor paints. If you’ve always wanted to know how to interpret the pigment labels, here is an informative article by Etchr: The…

Water Media Playtime class
Water Media Playtime class What do you get when you gather 14 awesome people in a room with all kinds of art supplies? You get amazing art! Here are some of the items we used in the playtime class: I am an Amazon Associate and Jackson’s Art Affiliate, and may earn from qualifying purchases. #ad…

Brusho, Liquid Watercolor and Acrylic Inks
Let’s take our creativity for a drive and try some new things: Pigment crystals, liquid watercolor, and acrylic inks. Our first stop is Brusho. This is simply concentrated watercolor pigment powder. Think of it like freeze-dried coffee crystals. Add water, and it makes magic. There are two brands I use: Brusho and Ken Oliver’s Color…

Schmincke Limited Edition Super-Granulating paints
Jackson’s has their limited edition super-granulating paints on sale. Schmincke sale at Jackson’s Art Supply I love Schmincke paints, especially the Super-Granulating series: Tundra, Forest, Galaxy, Deep Sea, and Glacier. Look at this granulation! So awesome! All I did was wet the rough cotton paper (Shizen)… dropped in various super-granulating paints, and allowed the…

Highly textured watercolor paper – Khadi and Shizen
I tried out some new paper today: Khadi watercolor paper, 140 lb. This is handmade paper made in India from 100% long fibered cotton rag. I admire that they use the run-off water to irrigate an organic Mango farm. It has an interesting surface which creates interesting texture. And it can handle a lot of…

Experimenting with Golden High Flow acrylic paints and Alcohol Inks
I love to experiment with different mediums. I’m like a curious kid who wants to try everything! 🙂 You can use these Golden High Flow paints many ways. (and they are on sale!) I like to use the Carbon black for monochrome paintings. Pour a little paint into a tiny bowl or palette well, then…

Do you want to trade/sell watercolor supplies?
Today is the one-year anniversary of the group: Watercolor Supplies Swap/Trade led by Kristen Beltz. If you’d like to buy half-pans of paint, dot-cards, try a different brand, or if you have some you’d like to trade or sell… check out this group. I’ve enjoyed getting to know Kristen over the last couple years, and…

Tubes or pans?
Tubes for frequently-used colors, pans for select colors. As far as quality goes, there is no difference between tubes and pans. A pan is just tube paint that has been poured into a little plastic mold and allowed to dry. Tubes are usually cheaper than pans in the long run. You can buy empty pans…

Artist grade or student grade?
Artist grade is excellent but expensive. Student grade is good, budget-friendly alternative. When I started watercolor painting, I was using student grade Koi paints, and loved them. I had a few Winsor & Newton Cotman tubes, too. But as I learned more advanced techniques, I wanted to upgrade to artist grade paints. For example, layering…