Talking to the artist (be that person a visual, writing, or performing artist) in your life can be hard. Here I cover some ideas about what not to and what to talk about (this is long, apparently I have thoughts).

Read on to understand how the four elements of shadow and light is essential to creating three diminutional paintings.

Have you ever noticed that when walking down any craft store brush aisle, the brushes are usually labeled: Beginner, Level 1; Student, Level 2; Professional, Level 3? I am not sure who came up with this marketing ploy, but it was a very clever way to get a lot of people to waste a lot of money on really terrible brushes. Today we will be going over why we should be skipping to the top of the brush ladder, which brush brands I recommend, how to purchase your first set of brush

Read about my pet portrait painting process and how the color Red Transparent Earth can take your own animal paintings to the next level.

Because there is one thing that all artist have in common and that is Art Making Anxiety.

Oil paints come with three levels of transparency: opaque, semi-transparent, and transparent. All three have their uses and can aid an artist in their art making. You can read more about how here . Before I get too far into why some oil pigments lend themselves to opaque paints while others are transparent, I must first take you back to last Christmas. Sometime last year I informed my husband I that I wanted the book The Artist's Palette, by Alexandra Loske. True or false, d

This painting has given me some grief. I have been painting it now for months...slowly, very, very slowly. Some times I would look at it and think, "Yeah, this works," but then other days I would hate the world.

What colors to purchase after your first oil paints, can be overwhelming. Read on to see what colors I recommend you purchase next.

Walking into an art store and staring at the rows upon rows of oil colors can be either very exciting (if you are like me and want all of them), or very overwhelming (if you are also like me and you just want a green that will do what you want it to do but you don't know which one is the right one).  Here I will go over how to mix the perfect color every time, how to purchase the correct color every time, and how to purchase a new secondary or tertiary color mix. How to Mix t

Happily, figuring out what type of brush is your kind of brush is a lot easier than figuring out what type of medium is best suited to you. Today I want to give a quick break down of the most common brushes, different types of bristles, and why I think everyone should go synthetic. My next post will cover brush brands and which brushes I think a beginner should start with. Brush Types Round: pointed tip, long and closely arranged bristles. Good for details. Flat:  flat, long

I once watched a video where an art professor put oil paint on her salad and then ate said salad in order to prove that oil paints are non-toxic... Except, she was wrong and oil paints are totally toxic. Have they become less toxic as paint technology advances? Yes, they have, but that doesn't mean we should be eating them. Here I will be going over first, why not to eat your oil paints outside of them being toxic or not, and then the three main reasons why oil paints are tox

While I am a solvent-free artist, it is not everyone's jam. Here are some tips for keeping your solvent odors and harmful vapors to a minimum in your painting space. Fresh air, ventilation, and circulation are key to keeping vapors minimized. Keep doors open or even better a window. Do not sleep in your studio. When not in use, make sure all of your solvent's lids are tightly closed. Do not use solvents to clean your hands of paint. Instead of keeping your solvents open duri

This year has been a good gallery showing year for me. I have been in three different shows, but one of those shows was my elusive golden...

While trying to figure out what oil mediums you like can be annoying, happily once you know what you like, it only gets better. Remember, each artist eventually finds their own groove and their own preference as their ability to paint matures and develops, but each artist also needs a starting point. In Mediums Part 1 and 2, I am hoping to provide that starting point. In Mediums Part 1 , I covered the basics of what a medium is. Here I will be covering historical mediums, how

Purchasing the wrong kind of oil paint can lead to frustration and confusion. Here I will be explaining the difference between Student...

The theme for the 12th International Art Competition at the LDS Church History Museum is "All are Alike Unto God." This comes from a passage found in the LDS book of scripture, the Book of Mormon, in 2nd Nephi, chapter 26 verse 33. It says: "And He inviteth them all to come unto him and partake of his goodness; and denieth none that come unto him, black and white, bond and free, male and female; and he remembereth the heathen; and all are alike unto God, both Jew and Gentile

When I first started to paint with oil paints, one of the more confusing and frustrating aspects of oil painting were the mediums. How...

There are so many oil paint brands both here in the US and across the pond. Historically American-made oil paints couldn't come close to...

Oil paint labels can be a bit confusing. Not only because they have so much information, but also because that information is filled with...

There are three main characteristics to each color of oil paint that we need to understand in order to use that paint correctly and to...