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1970s vintage watercolour set...
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Message
Posted
I bought this old 1970s vintage W H Smith watercolour set on ebay. Why? I thought I might use the tray as a palette, still might...but its a real sweet thing I think anyone might have been proud of in the 70s, if thats truly when it was popped out. No, I haven't tried the paints yet...I probably should try them, just to see what they are like after nearly half a century.
I thought I'd share it, some of you older folk (I'm a sprightly 55 times round the sun...)might have actually had one of these. Actually, it is made of plastic: I would have said 1980 not 1970, but the listing said 1970, so...
Anyway, enjoy the photo...hope it brings back a memory or two.
David
Posted
Don’t you just hate it when all you have just “tapped” out...vanishes into the ether? Grrrrr.
This Golden Oldie was busy with a young family of four . Plus working nights to make ends meet. So it doesn't jog any memories for me.
Though I don’t see why the claim that it is seventies as opposed to eighties isn’t valid . Interesting how the white pan is more used than the other pans. Nice to have, and to weave stories around.
Posted
It looks like my old set of Reeves watercolours...that I was still using until a few years ago. But I don't think mine had the colour names listed. Mine was in a tin box, but I think they were in plastic at one point. I used the white a lot, to add body. You can still buy the Reeves set...about a tenner. Nostalgia in the form of a paint box.
Posted
David - the colours look fine to me, the trouble of course is that if we don't know who made them we don't know what's in them. There was a grade of watercolours called Ostwald - all the reds and most of the blues, even the umbers, faded fairly reliably if exposed to light; but if you have a watercolour sketchbook, these will be fine. Use 'em. And do as Syd says, it's the easier way in the end! I took his advice on the Liz Deakin palette, and am glad I did.
If you've any misgivings about these paints, just do a colour-fastness test - piece of paper: strip of each colour painted in a consistent strength wash over same; cut in half. Put one half in a drawer, another on a window-sill where it'll be subjected not, preferably, to the full sun all the time (in this country? Is one mental?) but to the same amount of light more or less as you'd find comfortable to live with, and keep it there for a few months (longer is better). Take out the stored paper after that time, and compare.
If there's dramatic fading, then don't use the colour for any work intended to last (obviously). A little bit of loss - well, those are the marginal colours to use with caution.
Posted
Syd is an old warrior and may get impatient. Let's just value his good advice, and accept that now and then he gets crotchety - I do too, and I'm not 91 yet by a long chalk (a stripling of 67, if you want to know...). My mum is 91, nearly 92, and still inclined to treat me as her wayward boy (which I am, of course).
We can get impatient now and then - give us a bit of elbow room; Syd's entitled to it, after all. The wicked old Scotsman has been around for a long time, and I earnestly hope will be around for a lot longer yet. If you can't mount the high horse after your 9th decade, after all - when can you?
Posted
Hello everyone, interesting reads here.
@DavidG4YVM I would suggest you to take off those vintage cakes form the palette and to fill it with some good tube colors. This obviously is a school watercolor box and the paints (cakes) in it are anything but not watercolors, I could compare them with a gouache paints more than watercolors. The lid of that box has nice deep mixing wells and I am sure you will be please to use it while mixing your good quality paints filled in. You can stay with the original cakes too but for me that would be only wasting of paper :)
If I could add my opinion for LD palette, I personally find it uncomfortable as it has too deep wells and this is not always a good option, otherwise the plastic is way better than the mass produced cheap plastic palettes and at the end the color doesn't beds when mixing.
Regards
@SydEdward I saw on a photo of your setup you have an old W&N probably a heavyweight metal palette? Why you so recommend plastic LD when your W&N is way better?
Cheers
Posted
Sorry, I don't read Syd's comment as too harsh. He is being honest in few words - like many a Scot he is not wasting his breath. And is it being disingenuous to suggest that Lpetitpalette might promote metal palettes because he makes them? And as I suspected, they are wickedly expensive.
I can see a bunfight ensuing here, as far as I am concerned this thread is closed. Welcome Marlene, welcome lapetitpalette, welcome one and all...do what you like, like what you do.
D
Posted
Ok it's really weird here. I thought that forums are invented for people with same interests where they share opinions and give advices to help each other and if you aren't capable to listen or accept anyone else advices why you start topics at the end?
If you think you know all (incl. the "old warrior") why you waste your time in such places? If you find anyone else advices useless what makes yours useful?
Same with Marialena, why if someone new here has different opinion then the others hurry to prove the oposite?
Tell me David did I told you certainly not to use any kind of paints or palettes?
Syd did I told you what to use? I just asked to explain why you find LD better, because of the plastics, the shape, the large amount of mixing wells, the very small paint wells, why?
You certainly hurry too much with answers which don't cover the question.
Why someone always try to show itselff as so very informed and in the same time its art talks different?
I will stop now and will continue to spend good time in your very friendly comunity.
Cheers S.