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watercolour and water

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Hang on Studio Wall
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Syd Edward

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Posted
most artists add water to the watercolour tube or pan paint . I see a lot of them wearing out good sables transfering the water to the colour by the brushful and wiping the water off the brush on the edge of the palette. I use a sqeezy bottle ( empty one from a hairdresser) and use this to squeeze water onto the paint on the palettedrop by drop.its the orange and white bottlei]to the right. of the pictureht://www.painters-online.co.uk/forum/uploads/images/0f1e77b8-f41c-4c43-ba32-84f8.jpg[/img]

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by SydEdward

Haidee-Jo Summers VPROI RSMA

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Posted
I like that idea Syd!
michael

Michael Edwards

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Posted
I use pipettes - that's thanks to having worked for the NHS. By the way they are ever so cheap to buy on Amazon.

Michael Robinson

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That's a great tip Syd! While we are on the subject of watercolours, Syd has said in previous posts that he likes the ready made greens but I can't remember who's they were, could it be Terry Harrison? I wouldn't mind trying them. (I believe in making life as easy as possible!)
With Sarah, Phil, Ellen, Rose the dentist, and the granddaughter whose name I forget.

Robert Jones, NAPA

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I'm sure there's nothing wrong with Terry Harrison ready-mixed paints; but he did take already existing mixes and modify them - and I'm sure we can do the same. Viridian (and Pthalo Green - which is worse by far) is horrible on its own: so is Hooker's Green; Charles Evans uses Hookers, but never on its own - always mixed with something else. But - nah then: if you mix Viridian with, eg, Burnt Sienna; or Raw Sienna - both transparent colours when properly made - you can get fantastic greens; mix it with Yellow Ochre - carefully - and you can get an opaque green; mix it with Lemon Yellow, and you'll get a bright, sharp green; you can dull Sap Green (which could, frankly, be almost anything) with it; you can modify Terre Verte with it; mix it with a crimson or madder, and you can get a natural black with it. Practise with it on odd bits of paper - I use viridian a lot, in oil and watercolour: can't use it in acrylic, because it doesn't exist in that form - any colour called viridian in acrylic is going to be a pthalo mix.
michael

Michael Edwards

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I use sap green and olive green both of which I love. I never use them 'raw' though - I mix with varying amounts of mainly lemon yellow, ultramarine and bunt sienna. It's amazing the range of greens which you can get from this.

Alan Bickley

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But Syd I actually like mixing colours, even greens, I don't want to use what someone else has mixed, but that's how I think; other's will have their opinions on this I'm sure. I like Viridian, I like Phthalo Green also, not on their own of course but when added to other colours on my palette they give me something a bit different to work with, I'm not always looking for accurate greens that I see in nature, that's not my style of painting. I'm talking oils mind you, not watercolours.

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by alanbickley

Michael Robinson

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Thank you everyone for giving me so many suggestions regarding greens!
P7200031

Mia Ketels

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Posted
I bought some viridian a few years ago for a challenge here on the POL-site. Never used it since then but when I saw the colours of Terry's three mixed greens, I immediately ordered them. I don't use any other greens since then, although I sometimes add another colour to them to change them a little bit. That is again mixing my own greens isn't it? But most of the time I use them as they are. As Syd is saying: live is too short and when you find a colour that suits you, why not? :) Mia http://www.painters-online.co.uk/artist/MiaKetels
michael

Michael Edwards

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I've never had a problem with water from the tap but I must add that I rarely change it and it's quite black by the time I've finished a painting.
With Sarah, Phil, Ellen, Rose the dentist, and the granddaughter whose name I forget.

Robert Jones, NAPA

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Some painters use distilled water - I never have, so wouldn't know if it's any better or not: our water on the Isle of Wight is extremely 'hard', it'll fur your kettle for you in no time at all. I do wonder if it has an effect on the paint, and presume it must have. I might try boiling it first in future. (And I like viridian - I do, I do, I'm sorry but I do: it's just that I'd never use it on its own - because then it is, as Syd observes, fit only for painting park benches.)
michael

Michael Edwards

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To re-phrase Syd's original question if you did two identical paintings: one with distilled/pure water and one with water with a tad of lime in, It may well taste different but is anyone suggesting you would ever be able to spot any difference in the paintings? Is it worth getting worked up about or am I missing something?
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