I quite often get questions about what specific materials I use to create my oil paintings so I've put together a list with links to all of the most important things I use below ↓

Surface

I prefer to paint on Fredrix Knickerbocker Canvas paired with Blick Standard Stretcher Bars.  I love this surface as it has a super fine weave. The canvas has a natural, varied weave that avoids a mechanical appearance. Its irregular texture adds a unique character and depth to the surface, enhancing the overall look of the painting.

Toned Canvas Base

I prefer painting on a toned surface rather than a white canvas because it allows for more accurate value judgments. The warm tone of burnt umber also adds a subtle luminosity to the final piece. While there are many options for toning your canvas, I favor mixing pure burnt umber pigment with Liquitex Clear Gesso. I love the texture and tooth that clear gesso provides—it really grabs the paint well. If you prefer a smooth and slippery surface, this type of gesso might not be for you. However, if you like a rough surface, I highly recommend trying it. The fine weave of Knickerbocker canvas combined with this toothy gesso creates a lovely painting surface, and I can’t imagine working on anything else.

Sketch/Underpainting

As I strive to maintain a non-toxic studio and avoid using solvents, for my underpainting, I opt for water-mixable oil paint thinned with a bit of water. I prefer Winsor & Newton Water Mixable Burnt Umber because it dries quickly and creates a paint film that is identical to that of traditional oil paint thinned with solvent.

Oil Paints

I love to using Gamblin Artist's Oil Colors. These paints are packed with a significant amount of pigment and have a perfect consistency—neither too soft nor too stiff. As a personal choice, I avoid cadmiums, cobalts and any paints that contain heavy metals, opting instead for non-toxic pigments. I prioritize using the most lightfast colors, typically having the following shades on my palette, all of which are rated the highest for Lightfastness: Pthalo Blue and/or Ultramarine Blue, Pthalo Emerald, Hansa Yellow Medium, Permanent Orange, Alizarin Permanent, Dioxazine Purple, Burnt Umber, Yellow Ochre, Ivory Black and Titanium White.

Mediums & Cleanup

While painting, I use Gamblin’s solvent-free gel and fluid mediums to extend my paints. An added benefit of these mediums is that they speed up the drying time of the oil paints, usually making them dry to the touch by the next day, allowing me to continue working on my painting right away.

I typically clean my brushes between colors while painting using Utrecht safflower oil, which I keep in a stainless steel brush cleaner. The cleaner has a removable strainer insert that extends the life of the safflower oil by allowing solids to sink to the bottom, keeping the oil above cleaner for longer. For the final cleanup, I use safflower oil followed by Murphy’s Oil Soap to get my brushes squeaky clean.

Brushes

The most important brushes that I use are the Winsor & Newton University Round Brushes and Silver Ruby Satin Round Brushes with short handles.  These brushes are great for getting in those tiny details and they have the perfect snap to them. My favorite blending brush is the Princeton Velvetouch 1/4" Mop brush. For all other parts of the painting I use a smattering of random brushes.

Varnish

When the oil painting is touch-dry I finish it with Gamblin Gamvar Varnish. I prefer to use a 50/50 mix of Gloss and Matte over using the Satin option. The great thing about Gamvar varnish is that you don't have to wait the standard 6 or so months for the painting to completely dry. You can simply apply this varnish when the painting is touch-dry and the oils can continue to safely fully oxidize beneath the protective surface.

Other Tools

I use both the Richeson Tabletop Easel and Meeden Versatile Studio H-Frame Easel. Both of these easels are highly customizable for the height and angle that you prefer to work at. My preferred artwork illumination is the Easel Lamp Go from The Daylight Company. This highly adjustable light attaches straight to your easel and produces impeccable color reproduction with 95+ CRI Daylight LEDs. I also enjoy using a glass palette vs an acrylic palette as it is so easy to clean up when you're done painting. The tempered glass is super durable and available in clear, grey and white.

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