[Thomp]

PLad, Folkart, and Delta colors arn't what they shoul be as labled as im finding out..

as im getting older im finding i got a little color blindness going here. apperently.

green is green blue is blue and yellow is yellow as same for red is red..

but i cant tell the difference in hews.. asa good as i once did.

sea green and seafoam green differs very little if any hardly deceptable by me


how do yawl figure out what coloes to use?
for jeans ?


the marketed .. Denim is pail blue.

horse shoes look like chrome?

Gunmetal grey is filled with metalic sparlkes... that are impossible to wriese out of a brush..

whats the seceret?

[decoycarve]

First off get away from the craft paint. You carved something that you feel is good enough to paint. You want your carving to last forever and so should the paint. Artist paints like Liquatex, Golden, Jo Sonja, Jansen, are more pure and have a higher lightfastness. They wont fade over time. Sunlight can bleach out the craft paint in less than a month.

As far as learning about color buy yourself a color wheel and study it. Pick something like Complementary colors and study it until you understand it. Learn the triads. When I first bought one I threw it in drawer and it didn't see daylight for years. Some of us see it naturally some of us have to learn it. I had to learn it. I traded a couple of carving lessons to an artist for a couple of painting lessons, best money I never spent. First thing he asked me was do I have a color wheel. Now that I understand it I can figure out where to go with any color I need to match. I got pretty good at doing repaints and repairs to old decoys. My wife can throw a few primary and a few secondary colors on a paper plate and paint just about any scene she wants a dab of this and a little of that. But when someone brings something to us that an exact color needs to be matched she has me make it.
The Goodys

[Lynn O. Doughty]

Thomp.......Decoycarve has the best advice. .. limit your palette. The fewer colors you have to work with the beter off you are. With just the basics, red, blue, yellow, white, black, etc., you can mix any other color you need. Thats half the fun of painting! As far as quality, I don't necessarily agree that the name brand means better paint. There's probably one BIG vat of red paint over there in China somewhere that's filling all the tubes and bottles no matter what the name on the outside is. I'll bet if Michaelangelo were around today he's be picking up his paints at the craft section in WalMart! Especially on days when they're on sale for .50 cents!

[decoycarve]

Originally Posted by Lynn O. Doughty

Thomp....... There's probably one BIG vat of red paint over there in China somewhere that's filling all the tubes and bottles no matter what the name on the outside is. I'll bet if Michaelangelo were around today he's be picking up his paints at the craft section in WalMart! Especially on days when they're on sale for .50 cents!

On the cheap paint you may be right. Out of the craft paint the Delta is probably the best but we still don't use it. We have a store front with display windows. It has become our test area. We change the window for the seasons. I have always used artist paint for my decoys and Anna was using craft paint on her decorative pieces. When we took items out of the window anything I painted looked like the day I put them in, Annas was washed out and faded.
I have been to Chroma Acrylics(Jo Sonja) paint in Litiz Pa. And have been an electrician for a couple of paint factorys and I can testify that all paint is NOT created equal.
Goody

[Thomp]

Decoycarver,
I was looking for the I guess

I thought maybe one brand of acylic was better at color match.

lynn,
i been using your wet method of wetting the carving well, then applying thin washes, and was thinking maybe by thinning the paint so thin i was loosing something in the paint.

all the blues i found look more like royal blue or pail washed powder baby blue after they dry,
I must have 10 shades of blue including denim, but denim is too light, its fine for worn spots,

while the paint is wet and im painting im sadisfied with color but looks like ill have to add thin washes or start adding sealer in the paint as i finish...

it may be too that i get creative late at night, and the paint looks fine at that point maybe lighting color is effecting me more than it should be.

[LCorbett]

Craft paints are low end paints. In order to keep the cost down, several things are done. These paints are formulated to keep the cost down, and sacrifices ARE made. Ever notice that all the bottles are the same price, but with artist grade colors there is a variation in price between colors?

Cost saving measures include (some or all of these are used):
1. Lower quality pigments.

2. FILLERS to extend the pigment. Fillers can include chalk or gypsum. This results in LESS pigment per volume.

3. Coarser grind of pigments. Often results in a grainy coverage. Finer grind takes extra work making the cost go up.

4. Opaquing agents so the paint covers well. Same stuff used as the filler.

5. Less stable pigments - meaning that many are not lightfast.

6. Substituted pigments. In other words, a color labeled as "Cadmium Red Hue" contains NO cadmium pigment, but a lesser quality pigment that resemles the hue of cadmium red. This is done to keep the cost down as well as to make the paint non-toxic. Some of these pigments are not lightfast.

It is generally understood that craft paints are meant to be used on items that people don't expect to last for many years...crafts. Therefore, lesser quality pigments are used to make them.

Artist grade pigments can be expensive because there is more of the pigment in the paint, the grind is finer, there is less (or no) filler, and some of the pigments themselves are very expensive (I have a jar of Cobalt Blue that cost me $40.00).

Another thing with craft paint is that you never know what pigments are in those colors. Many are mixtures of several pigments. That's why tere are so many color choices available in craft paint lines. It's called a "Convenience" color in the industry. Many people don't want to bother mixing their own paints, and these are offered for that reason.

A quality paint will list the pigments used in that color, whether it's a single pigment color like Cadmium Red, or in a convenience mixture. JoSonja's is the most well known brand for fairly goo quality paints and offer many convenience mixtures.

So, in a nutshell...you buy a .50 cent paint, you're gonna get a .50 cent result.

A person buys quality carving tools, quality wood, then skimps on the paint. Doesn't make much sense.

I have an in-depth discussion about this subject on my web site:
http://www.whisperingeagle.com/Demos.htm#Technical

With just the basics, red, blue, yellow, white, black, etc., you can mix any other color you need.

Lynn...you're right up to a point. It actually takes a little more than that. Theree exists no "pure" red, yellow or blue pigment. So depending on which of these you choose, you may get vibrant mixes on one end of the spectrum and dull mixes on the other. In other words, a certain yellow with a certain red may make a brilliant orange. But that same yellow with a certain blue will make a very dull green. Again, the link above contains a detailed expanation of this.

Sorry if I'm long-winded on this. I have spent a long time studying color (still am experimenting...that'll never stop for me), and it's something I feel strongly about. The single most important reason many people are frustrated with their mixing & painting is because they don't really understand their pigments. A little bit of experimentation and study will arm a person with the knowledge to mix any color they want...every time...with a limited palette.

PS: Thomp...you're not color blind. There is no standard as to what a manufacturer can call their mixes. So Brand "A"s Seafoam may look blue, and Brand "B"s Seafoam may look green. Without a listing of the pigments they used to make that color, you will have no idea of what you're getting. igher quality paints will always list their pigment ingredients.

[Lynn O. Doughty]

Thomp......Sorry you're having problems. I use Midnight Blue for almost everything. A thin wash of that on wood looks just like worn denim especially if you dab on a little white on the knees and rear end and blend it in to the blue.

All the colors will look washed out when the carving dries. However, once you put the final varnish on they all come back to brilliant again. Are you separating the colors with a burn line? would suggest that or paint real carefully. Burn line works best.

Cheap vs.Expensive paints: You can talk to your Midnight Blue in the face and still not convince me that there is a difference, other than price. I've got old pieces of my work around here that are going on 40 years old and look as bright and colorful as the day I painted them. Frankly, 40 years from now I probably won't really be concerned with whether the paint color holds up but I'll take a bet that it does. Just don't set the things outside in the sun!

Just stick with it.....don't expect too much the first, second or even the third time. It takes practice, practice, practice. You'll get it!

[Lynn O. Doughty]

Sorry. just read the rest of your message........

Horseshoes or other metal (except gold). Midnight blue mixed with a little black and silver. This will give you a color similar to gun blue. Buy some brush soap at the craft section to wash your brushes clean to get rid of any silver flakes. If you want it rusty use Red Iron Oxide.

Flesh: Red Iron Oxide and Yellow Oche(sp?) Mix it...wash out your brush and just pull a little off with some more water. Just takes a bit believe me. Put a little more on the nose and the back of the cheeks next to the hair line. If it's a western figure without a hat don't paint the forehead. He wears a hat so will have a Farmers Tan.

Eyelids and area up to the eyebrow use a REAL THIN wash of midnight blue just to highlight that area. Use this same wash to add 5 o'clock shadow to the cheeks and neck

Want a silk neckerchief or a silk material on the back of a vest? Buy a tube of Liquidtex Interferrence color, red or green depending, and mix it with regular red paint or a dark green. Paint will be thick buy it looks terrific!

Hope this helps you.

[LCorbett]

You can talk till your Midnight Blue in the face and still not convince me that there is a difference, other than price.

LOL...Good one. OK, I won't even try.

Frankly, 40 years from now I probably won't really be concerned with whether the paint color holds up

Why the Heck not?? What if Da Vinci or Rembrandt felt that way? From the looks of your website, it looks like you do some pretty nice work!

[Kenny_S]

This is one reason I like this board so well, difference of opinion but learn from both sides.
As for quality of paints, I have very little knowledge but do know when it comes to craft paint, I will use Delta Ceramcoat above any other. I will use Jo sonja paint when and if I can find them.
The problem is, I hate to paint, No matter if it is crafts, carvings or the house, Just ain't my cup of tea.
However, I do and that may be my problem, I don't like to so maybe I am not doinging the paint thing justices.

Anyway, my two Abe Lincoln's worth.

Now to see what the little bride wants, Hope it ain't that "Dang club" I hid from her.