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Choosing Your Brushes
Paint Brush InformationYou cannot do very much painting without a brush. Although some people would argue with that statement, for now we will assume you will be using a standard artist's brush. There are as many brushes on the market as there are paints. Some are made better than others. Do not fall under the misconception that more expensive is better. This is not always the case. I have spent $20 on a brush to have the bristles fall out during my first session. I have one brush I have used for four years now that I paid $3.00 for. It is actually the best brush I own.

The first thing you need to know is there are many different types of brushes. Each one is made from different materials for the bristles. You can order sable brushes or hog bristle. There are squirrel brushes. You can buy the synthetic bristle brushes also.

The truth is that most artists will find a particular set of brushes they like and use them consistently. There may be a few times when they alternate. In the long run, most will go back to the one which feels most comfortable in their hand. You will get a feel for your favorite type of brush the more you paint. There are certain brushes which will give you a particular flow to the paint. You will either like this or you
won't. Until you practice with them, you will never know.

The style of the brush can make all the difference when it comes to painting. A fan brush is the perfect instrument to add leaves to distant trees. A liner brush will allow you to paint in the perfect tree limbs on dead trees or winter trees. It can become overwhelming when trying to determine which brushes to buy. There are
brush sets which give you a good selection to start with and are also inexpensive. You may just want to start with two or three good brushes until you further your experience with painting on canvas.

You will definitely want to buy a fan brush, a liner brush, and a flat brush. You will also want to have an angle brush. Each one of these brushes can give you a certain stroke which makes it easier to paint certain things. One brush can be used to create flower petals, while another makes spectacular shrubs. The angle brush can create a perfect beard in quick time.

You should have a blank canvas available to just practice brush strokes. You will learn how to make each stroke so the effects are beautiful. Do not get discouraged if you do not get it right the first time. With practice comes familiarity. The more familiar you are with a brush, the better of a tool it becomes. One technique which works well to help become familiar with how a brush handles is to try painting a picture only using one brush. You will quickly become familiar with what the brush can do and what it will not do. This is an old trick used by some art teachers to help the student understand the limitations of each brush.

Princeton Artist Brushes

 
Canvas Printing

Printing on canvas is incredibly versatile and a great way to create a ready-to-hang image or artwork. Every canvas that we print  is protected with a UV coated acrylic finish to guard the print from dust, moisture and fading. Do you want your canvas stretched on bars or non-stretched? Framed or unframed? Customize the work to make it truly your own.

 
Art Prints – How are they made?

Image
Photography by Laurie Barone-Shafer
Nowadays just about anyone can take a good quality photographs with a digital camera. Or take a few hundred pictures and the chances are few will be good, and even one or two outstanding.

Here are a few tips, tricks and techniques on how to make art print poster ready photographs and print ready digital files. Don’t get overwhelmed, there is a lot of information here, but a lot of it is just intuitive. Well, a bit of patience will always help.

First thing – Photo Size

If you taking a digital photo of you family or friend the largest size you would print is usually 5 by 7 inches, maybe 8 by 10 at the most. Even small size digital photographs (2MB or less) are ‘good enough’ to create a decent print. But if you want to create prints that are 16 by 20, 20 by 24 inches or larger you need more pixels (in pixels 20 by 24 inches photo is actually about 40 times larger than 3 by 4 inches photo assuming they have the same resolution).

 
Learning to Paint Watercolors

Watercolor is an easy, fun medium for creating art.  Color theory, composition and design can be explored freely with watercolor paint, paper, and brushes.  Several techniques may be used with watercolors for varying effects including painting wet on wet, wet on dry, layering washes, and more.

Watercolor paper comes in cold press, hot press, and rough.  Rough paper has the most texture, and its hills and valleys can result in interesting effects when paint is added.  Hot press is the smoothest and has the finest texture.  Cold press has a moderate amount of texture and is the paper most commonly chosen by watercolor artists.

Watercolor paper comes in several weights ranging from 90 lb. to 300 lb. based on the pounds per ream of paper.  Most artists prefer to use at least 140 lb. paper.  Papers vary somewhat between manufacturers, so sampling different papers is advisable.  Paper can be purchased in pads, in blocks or in large sheets.  The large sheets are usually the most economical and can be torn into whatever size is desired.

 
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