Make Your Own Art Supplies

In this series of tutorials, I'm going to tell you how to make your own paint, oil sticks, pastels, chalk, crayons, ink, colored pencils, sketch pencils, paper and sand board. You don't really need ink or watercolor pencils. They're a convenience. Artists like them because they can travel without lugging around a lot of bulk and take their painting outdoors without the risk of spilling paint. I suppose that's the reason fabric artists like them as well. The exception is oil sticks. They're used on fabric with rubbing plates. This is where I wanted to start because oil sticks are so expensive and the palette is limited. This is why you may want to make your own art supplies. You can easily expand a palette if there's a color you want that isn't included in a set or if you run out of a color.

I purchased most of my supplies from TKB Trading and Blick Art. Anything else may be purchased from Ebay, Wal Mart or elsewhere online.

Don't feel like you have to buy all these supplies at once. I've had some of them for years and still ended up spending $300 and it took me 4 months to get everything I needed to write this series. You're probably thinking, "Do I really need all this?" Pick a medium you like working with and buy what you need to make it. Start with the basic equipment and work up to specific materials. "Will I actually save money?" Let me break it down in terms of cost.

Homemade Oil sticks $90.40/33 vs. $151.99/12 R&F Pigment Sticks Savings: $113.46, $2.74 per stick

Homemade Oil pastels $111.52/72 vs. $222.60/120 Sennelier oil pastels Savings: $185.48, $1.55 per pastel

Homemade Oil based colored pencil leads $106.35/100 vs. $109.69/72 Lyra Rembrandt Polychromos Savings: $33.02, $1.06 per lead

Homemade Pigment Ink $50.11/100 vs. $229.14/21 Akua Liquid Pigment Savings: $218.53, $0.50 per ink

Homemade Pigment markers $69.85/100 vs. $526.80/120 Winsor & Newton Savings: $470.95, $0.70 per marker

Homemade Ink leads $60.21/100 vs. $101.80/72 Derwent Inktense pencils Savings: $58.39, $0.60 per lead

Homemade Liquid watercolor $59.24/100 vs. $146.49/36 Dr. Martin's Savings: $125.01, $0.59 per watercolor

Homemade Watercolor markers $78.98/100 vs. $132.84/36 Winsor & Newton Savings: $129.54, $0.79 per marker

Homemade Watercolor pans $58.79/100 vs. $325.00/48 Rembrandt watercolor set Savings: $296.89, $0.59 per pan

Homemade Watercolor leads $69.34/100 vs. $193.50/120 Faber Castel watercolor pencils Savings: $137.96, $0.69 per lead

Homemade Colored pencil leads $50.38/100 vs. $129.50/150 Prismacolor Premier Savings: $104.12, $0.50 per lead

Homemade Soft Pastels $59.50/72 vs. $329.00/180 Blick brand soft pastels Savings: $359.14, $0.83 per stick

Homemade Chalk leads $66.66/100 vs. $64.35/60 Stabilo Othello pastel pencils Savings: $29.11, $0.67 per lead

Homemade Water soluble crayons $33.22/72 vs. $148.64/84 Caran d'Ache Neocolor crayons Savings: $120.94, $0.46 per crayon

The short answer is yes. If you do a lot of artwork, it's worth the investment to make your own supplies. Once you've purchased the equipment, the materials are cheap. Being able to make your own supplies comes in handy for those times when you run out of a color in a set and can’t purchase open stock. In this regard, you’ll save a fortune in the long run.

The following list of basic equipment is used for every formula, or nearly so. You’ll use these products over and over.

Basic Equipment

Electric Mill Herb Grinder on eBay for $5.99. You will need this to grind pigments to a fine powder and mix in additives.

If you want to make a bulk formula, you’ll need a mini chopper. Walmart sells them. I don’t like using a coffee grinder because it’s too difficult to clean.

Mini Mixer at TKB for $7.95. You need the immersion attachment (second to the right).

I purchased my 5 ml glass beaker as a set of 3 on eBay for $7.10. I couldn't find one that small anywhere else. The set includes a 10ml and a 15ml beaker as well.

Candle warmer $4.74 at Wal Mart

You'll be melting a tiny amount of wax and each wax has a different melting point. I strongly suggest using the direct heat method so you can watch the wax melt. I prefer to use an electric candle warmer with a glass beaker. You'll need a test tube clamp or kitchen tongs with silicone grips for handling the hot beaker. If nothing else, wear leather gloves. Just use a little common sense. Use CitraSolv or Goo Gone to remove wax from the beaker and then, wash with soapy water. Dry with a lint free cloth.

 

Blick Palette Knife #61, #62 You need #61 for stirring paint, wax and paste. #62 is for mixing pigment on glass. $5.83 each at dickblick.com.

4x4" Grinding Plate from Ancient Earth Pigments for $3.50.

Mini Muller from Ancient Earth Pigments for $8.00.

Mini Sieve, Silicone Bowl and Mini Spatula You need these if you're using makeup. TKB sells a mini sieve for $4.75, the bowl for $1.75, and mini spatulas are $0.99/5.

Mini Measuring Spoons measure volume in Drop (1/64 teaspoon, 1/16 ml or 5 mg), Smidgen (1/32 teaspoon, 1/8 ml or 10 mg), Pinch (1/16 teaspoon, 1/4 ml or 25 mg), Dash (1/8 teaspoon, 1/2 ml or 50 mg), and Tad (1/4 teaspoon, 1 ml or 100 mg). At least one recipe calls for a 1/2 drop; that's 1/128 teaspoon, 0.031 ml or 3.5 mg. Make sure the Drop spoon is only half full. TKB Trading $5.89.

Mini Scoops measure weight in .05 (5 mg), 0.1 (10 mg), and 0.5 gram. I refer to them as S, M, and L scoops, respectively in recipes. Some recipes call for a 1/2 S scoop; that's 2.5 mg or a Touch. There is a 15 mg (0.15 cc) scoop available, but I didn't use it in my recipes. TKB Trading $3.00

3 ml Pipettes $7.54/100 at walmart.com. You need these for transferring liquids.

Basic Ingredients

The following is a list of basic ingredients that you will use in many of the tutorials.

Glycerin is used as a wetting agent. It is mixed with pigments to predisperse them when making oil or wax based media. It is used in a 1/2:1 ratio. It is also a humectant and plasticizer that slows the drying time of acrylic and is responsible for the film left on the paint as it dries. Use a small amount for fabric paint. Using too much will leave a gummy finish on fabric. $4.89 at Walmart.

 

Triton X-100 (Polyethylene glycol octylphenyl ether) is a non foaming surfactant that reduces the surface tension of aqueous solutions. It is used as a wetting agent to pre disperse pigments and force them to mix with water and water soluble solutions. It's available on eBay for $18.00/4 oz. When used as a watercolor Blending medium, it slows the drying of watercolors allowing more time for blending techniques. For maximum effect, dilute watercolors with it. A 2 oz. bottle is $5.66 at Blick Art.

Ammonia raises the pH of a product. We often see products advertised as “acid free”. Before the invention of synthetic media in the 1960s, art supplies, canvas and paper were acidic. Everything that is animal or protein based is acidic, including egg tempera, rabbit hide glue, honey and ox gall. These products turned yellow and deteriorated over time. Making all of these products alkaline increased their longevity. Adding plain water to acrylic paint lowers the pH and destroys its adhesive properties. It will also make your paint turn rancid during storage. Diluting acrylic paint with ammonia water maintains the pH.

pH Test Strips $1.85 at Home Training Tools. Acrylic paint is alkaline. The pH should be between 8-9.

D-Limonene dissolves wax. This is the same as Eco House Orange Terpene. Get it on eBay for $7.99/4 oz. Goo Gone or CitriSolv can be used, but the dye may affect the color.

Germall Plus is a broad spectrum liquid preservative. Its active components have been solubilized in propylene glycol, making them easy to incorporate into formulations. Germall Plus is heat sensitive and should be added at a temperature of 122°F or below. Stable in pH 3-8. Available from Lotion Crafter.

UV filters such as avobenzone, homosalate, octocrylene, or oxybenzone may be added to a formula to make it fade resistant. These are the same chemicals used in sunscreen and every art house is adding them to their paint and UV topcoats. You may add them to your own paint or resin based topcoat as well. None of them are water soluble, so I recommend mixing them with oil, resin, glycerin or ethanol before mixing with other ingredients. If I had to choose just one, I would pick oxybenzone because it filters both UVA and UVB, and it is soluble in oil and ethanol. 

FYI: miscible means that a chemical will disperse, but not dissolve. Soluble means that a chemical fully dissolves. It’s the difference between salt and sugar in water. Salt only disperses in water. It cannot fully dissolve because it is a mineral. It doesn’t alter the composition. Salt water is still liquid no matter how much salt is added. The salt merely takes up space. Sugar fully dissolves in water and alters the composition. The water will thicken with the addition of sugar.

Avobenzone is a crystalline, oil soluble UVA filter. It is not soluble in water. Do not use avobenzone in formulas containing titanium dioxide or zinc oxide, as it will loose its effectiveness. Use 3 grams in a 100 gram formula.

Homosalate is a liquid, oil soluble UVB filter. It is not soluble in water, but is miscible in ethanol. Use 15 grams in a 100 gram formula.

Octocrylene is a liquid, oil miscible UVB filter. It is not water soluble. Use 10 grams in a 100 gram formula.

Oxybenzone is a solid, oil and ethanol soluble UVA/UVB filter. Use 2-6 grams in a 100 gram formula.

If you don’t want to use synthetic chemicals, Cinnamate is a botanically derived sunscreen found in Balsam of Peru and cinnamon leaves. It is soluble in oil and ethanol. Use 2-10 grams in a 100 gram formula.