Shopping list with a bit of product review

I guess I have been doing a fair bit of work in the studio, otherwise, I wouldn't be out of or running low on so many things! I know some folks don't like reading blogs with lists, but too bad- this is what is on my mind today.

1. More soy silk roving. For now, I will content myself with someone else's dye choices. Here is what I am looking at- one of every color she has- I wish!

2. Dye-na-flow paints. The last time I bought these, I did so in the 2.25 oz. size, as I hadn't used them much and I wanted to sample the bright colors. The next time I order, it will be in the 8 oz. size at the smallest. I need more bright greens and more blues. These have proven to be a very versatile paint, that works well on silk, cottons, and the good-quality homemade papers.

3. Lumiere Paint in Citron. I use this color more than any other. (Side note: If anyone had told me 20 years ago that I would fall in love with the lime green color family, I would have laughed in their face. I used to be so married to blues, and told myself I hated greens. Now not only do I love lime green, but there really isn't a color I would label as ugly- not one.) I also love the Halo colors- blue gold, pink-gold, and violet-gold. I was recently introduced to Stewart Gill paints- specifically the Byzantia and Metamica lines, and told they compared to Lumiere. I bought a couple colors of each line and have been playing with them a bit. They are nice-very rich colors in a thick paint, but the colors are very similar, so for the price, I think Lumiere is the best deal.

4. What I do want to try from Stewart Gill are their Bijoux Blends and Fresco Flakes. I think these would be fun to experiment with, on some of the big panels I want to do. These are pricey too, but I think they might be worth it. I will let you know if I get some.

5. Another thing I need in larger quantities are some gel mediums. I am very disappointed in Michael's. They stopped carrying all Golden products in favor of the Liquitex brand. I am not nearly as satisfied with Liquitex- it is cheaper (which was Michael's excuse for carrying it versus Golden), but it shows. The quality is just not near what Golden's is. To be honest, I could have been getting my gels and mediums online at cheaper prices for some time, but I was being nice by buying locally from Michael's. Not anymore. Funny thing is, the day I went in, the man who helped me said that I was the THIRD person that day to ask what happened to the Golden products. I think they may seriously regret the decision to not carry them. Rant over.

I need fine garnet gel (I can't wait to try this!), more fine and coarse pumice gels, and some Micaceous iron oxide, which I hear is fabu to use with water pastels and crayons. I really want to try this, as I have discovered that they don't work too well with gesso. I also need some self-leveling clear gel, and some more molding paste, both of which you can read about here. These last two items are used with the acrylic paints I love so much, mostly for collage techniques.

6. Some other things I need but am not sure where to get them are good quality (but not too expensive) stencil brushes and also some stencils and stamps. I really, really love the inexpensive abstract (a pattern, but not a duck or a star) foam stamps you can get at Joanne's and Michael's, but have all the ones they sell already. I am thinking of checking out the dollar stores.

7. Another type of product I have tried recently and fallen in love with are the color wash sprays. These are wonderful ways to add color to the fabric paper I have been making.

I have tried the Radiant Rain misters by Luminarte, which are bright and very sparkly, but have a distinct and icky odor that lasts after it has dried. Luminarte is the company that makes the fabu Twinkling H2O's that I love so much, so I was surprised how unimpressed I was with the misters.

Another color wash spray I tried recently is the Adirondack color wash spray. The colors are interesting on these, but the sprayer doesn't work well, and I keep ending up with drips and dribbles instead of a nice even spray. I put some into a cheap spray bottle, but if I am going to spend money on these, I think they should come in a better quality spray bottle.

I have also tried the Tattered Angels Glimmer mists. I really love the colors on these, and want more. The coverage was great, the colors bright, and no yucky smell when using them. I want many more of these colors. They are a bit pricey, but the colors are amazing, the bottles large and the sprayers are good quality.

When I was in Alabama visiting Dy, we went to a HobbyLobby store, where I convinced her to spend a lot more money on art supplies for the kids than was probably necessary, but you know already what an enabler I am when it comes to kids and art, right? Anyhow, while there I came across a Memories Mist spray in a lovely blue, that was almost half off the price. I should have grabbed them all. This has become one of my faves, and I want to order some more colors of it too. The only even slightly negative thing about these is that the mist area is quite small. That you can control it that much is good for some applications, but it made it hard to cover a large area of paper or fabric without using a lot of spray.

That is all I can think of for now. I have been researching online and looking for the best prices. I wish there was one store that had everything for the lowest prices. Joggles has almost everything I need as well as exquisite service, but their prices are not low. Dick Blick and Jerry's run head to head on prices, varying only a few cents from product to product, but Dick Blick is more likely to have the larger sizes. Jerry's sends out email coupons all the time, but you usually have to spend a minimum of $85. to use them. Dharma Trading company has the best prices on the fabric paints, but you have to order in quantities of ten or more to get those good prices. Not always worth it, and not always possible to do when each container of paint costs $10. or more.

So in order to get everything I need at the best prices, I will most likely have to do 4 or 5 orders. This will take me some time. I think it is time to start a price book for art supplies. To keep track of who has what for the best price. Like I don't have enough to do!

Talk soon,
LB