Sunflower Festival 1997

Oil painting has been around for centuries but it has been notorious for the time it takes for it to dry. This has stopped many beginners from even trying to paint with oil paints. It's not for beginners but people need to start somewhere, don't they? The greatest artists painted with oil and it should be open to anyone who wants to try or start in this part of art. You first need a well ventilated place to start painting. Outside is the best option but if that's not available I would concentrate my work in a very well ventilated room with lots of windows. The downside of being outside is the wind and the insects but the downside of being inside is the toxic scents of the thinner. Adjust the easel that you are using to a good position so you won't have to bend down or be in an uncomfortable position for hours at a time. Try and paint at an arm's length from the easel. For some suggestions of oil paintings check out decorative flower paintings, original landscape paintings, original paintings for sale etc.

Cover the area you are working in with a cloth or newspaper. You don't want your paints dropping on the actual ground (very expensive). Put on some painting clothes. Oil painting gets very messy so make sure you wear something that you don't mind getting messy in. Things will get very messy with oil paints whether you like it or not so don't wear your church clothes when painting. Set up your paints with enough room for you to work. You need your palette, brushes and palette knife, solvent and solvent/oil containers, rags and paint tubes available. You need to have one container with just solvent, and the other with medium. A standard painting medium is 1 part oil to 2 parts solvent. You can also choose the kind of oil you'd like to paint with. Put the solvent in a closeable container either way.

Choose your colors wisely- you don't want to waste your paints. With oils there is no room for mistake, so if you do create one just grab a rag and wipe it all off. It takes about 48 hours for it to completely dry off. Clean your brushes with the thinner!! Clean clean clean!! Leave room for your materials. I cannot reiterate this enough! Like I said it takes about 48 hours for the first coat to dry off enough for you to put on the next so leave your painting in a well ventilated room where there will be no insects roaming around- it should remain undisturbed. Also use a knife to blend all the 'good paint' together and cover it up with saran wrap or foil to allow it to not dry. Clean your brushes again running them under lukewarm water, let them out to dry (you can't paint with wet brushes). Leave the lid on the thinner! We don't want it to evaporate! Again for more great oil and acrylic paints check out original paintings, flower paintings, original abstract paintings. and invest in Abstract Art.