Materials

Swatching Oils

Britchida

Jan 19, 2023 • 4 min read

Today's post is a quick one. I want to show you some swatching I've done recently as I've been trying out some new paints.

I started on a set of large commissions last year and was several weeks of work into it when the client and I realized I had to completely s t a r t o v e r: I was using M Graham's oil paints which are walnut oil based and the client has a severe nut allergy. It's not uncommon for commissions to take on a life (and a timeline) of their own, but this was the biggest reset I've had yet. The client and I worked out a new timeline and I began again.

The fun part though was getting to buy a whole new set of paints.

I'm keeping nut based and nut-free oil supplies totally separate so that I can make nut-free paintings if needed. Also, I don't recommend having an open flame near oil painting supplies - let's pretend that candle isn't there.

I love M Graham's walnut based oils as a solvent-free system, but have also been interested in trying other types of oil paint. I'm planning to write up more about oils in a future lesson, but for now, here are the new ones I tried out: