[susieq]

So, if one were to order a half dozen brushes for painting carvings in detail, lets have a list.....just like when newbies ask for a list of tools they need....


Nancy! Which brushes do you use the most? I still need to find an angle shader and WN doesn't seem to have one. I would love to try a different, better brand of brush in an angle shader if I could find one. But what specific brushes do you use?

Deborah, which brushes did you order? I'm dying to know which models the masters use

[Colin_Partridge]

Susieq,
about the masters I just looked at your web site I think you are right up there with them those are great carvings.
Colin

[susieq]

Oh my! Colin...thank you! That is high praise indeed, coming from you (blushing).

[Callynne]

Wow Nancy and Colin, those are wonderful paintings, really, really fantastic!

Nancy, add my voice to those requesting all the brush sizes you like! It would be a huge help to all of us!!

Colin, to be perfectly honest, before these Winsor-Newton brushes, I didn't have any real favorites, I just bought 'whatever' and replaced them with 'whatever else', when they got bad. Figured it didn't make any sense to spend that much on brushes since painting on wood was so hard on them! No more, I'm looking for the good ones now!!

SusieQ, I ordered the 000 and the 0, I'll be ordering more Winsor-Newton brushes in other sizes and I'll let you know what I think of them too. The more I use the two I bought, the more I like them!

Colin, I totally agree, Susan is a terrific carver and painter! Deborah
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[Nancy_G]

Susie - To answer your question... I used the cheap brushes like Loew-Cornel that I picked up by the handful at Wal-Mart, Michael's or anywhere to do almost all the painting. When I was ready to do the details I switched to the the W-Ns. I've never owned or used an angle shader .... the very thought makes me nervous.

I've never painted in all the incredible, gorgeous, beautiful, CHEATING antiquing like you do. I do my antiquing after I'm all finished painting and I'm certain the paint is dry. I just smear on a layer of my home-made antiquing glaze:

ANTIQUING
Keep this in an old GLASS jar.
Jar of Winsor-Newton Liquin Original (spelled correctly) Maybe 1 small cup?
2 little glugs of good turpentine (or paint thinner - whatever is setting there)
1 little squirt of Burnt Umber OIL paint
Stir well

After I've smeared on the layer of antiquing, making certain I get it into every tiny bit of the carving, I carefully wipe it off with old fabric. A piece of old T-shirt is great. I make certain all glaze is removed from the big, flat places but some is left around the edges and some is left in the folds and wrinkles.

That's it.

[Callynne]

Nancy G, thanks for your antiquing recipe! I too do all the painting and then just spread antiquing over the entire piece, unlike the very talented way SusieQ does it! Figure me trying to do that would be like me trying to do the gentle washes of color....hopeless!

Do you still use the cheaper brushes for the large flat areas of your pieces, then switch to the Winsor-Newtons just for detail? Or do you use all good brushes for everything? Except antiquing, figure I know the answer to that one, if you scrub into places antiquing, like I do!

Bob L, if I ever get my hands on pixie dust, I'll use it to clean my house and do all the daily chores! Oh, and yard work, oh and grocery shopping....hmmmmm, the uses would be endless, wouldn't they?! Deborah
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[Hi_Ho_Sliver]

Hey, wouldn't it be easier to send the carving to Nancy and let her paint it? you're welcome, anytime Nancy lol

[susieq]

Those paintings of Nancy's and Colin's are just wonderful! You can see just who knows how to use a paint brush around here....

Thanks for sharing your antique solution and process Nancy. It is actually ver similar to my final recipe, which I apply after I am all done painting as well. It is just that part of my paint job includes a bit of burnt umber shading in places, that will blend in with the final antique job at the end. I need the angle shader for more than that though. If you look at my faces, there are 3 flesh tones that I use. Without the angle shader, I could never have them blend (fade) into each other like they do. (and thanks for the kind words about my painting...it doesn't hold a candle to yours)

Thanks for clearing up when you use the WN brushes. Now I won't drive myself nuts trying to find an angle shader in a high end brush.....although, I still might like to try one just to see the difference. Time to order some tiny WN brushes for details.

Deborah, thanks for the compliment.....again, high praise coming from someone as talented as you.

[Nancy_G]

(Dave should send his carvings somewhere/anywhere for painting - hee hee)

Yes - I'm still using (when I carve & paint ~sigh~) the cheapie brushes for everything until I'm ready for faces and details ... then I switch to the good brushes, usually the W-Ns. I have a stack of different sizes - a bunch of different 0 sizes and a few larger- and I simply pick the size I need.

I ALWAYS buy the expensive brushes ONLY when they are on sale... that's why I use Dick Blick. They send out their sale catalogs so often and are so easy to deal with. Dick Blick's own brand of sable brushes is very good too and quite a bit less expensive.

For antiquing I use the old, beaten-up brushes I'm going to throw away after use instead of trying to clean.

And Callynne -- you talked about "cleaning your house". Bah. I believe in the antique look in my house too.

[Callynne]

Antique look for the house....I like that Nancy G, here I figured after Halloween was over I didn't have any excuses left! Cobwebs and dustballs go so well with the witches, ghosts and goblins! Thanks for giving me an excuse to use the rest of the year! Deborah</IMG>