Home Forums Explore Subjects Plein Air Which plein air watercolor palettepaintbox?

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  • #990303
    indraneel
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        I’m having trouble finding/deciding a portable watercolor palette, so wanted to find out, what do you use when painting outdoors? Also, please leave a comment whether you sit or stand and if your palette is something not in the poll list. Also, if you mostly paint rather wet or dry.

        Also, pictures !!! if you have any

        I have to say, I do have a holbein 250 (pic here: https://www.wetcanvas.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=789644&stc=1&d=1351518123, and I’m somewhat scared of damaging/losing it outdoors, so looking for an alternative. Also, I’m in India and unable to find the small 8×8 inch 20 well folding palette here (out of stock at the rare few places that used to stock it), so if anyone in India knows where to get one, please let me know.

        #1174636

        I have two Daler Rowney palettes, one larger than the other and I like colours from each, but not all, of them… I’m quite disappointed with my Sakura Koi palette, I’m afraid… I like the setup itself, but the pigments leave something to be desired.

        All of them are small and light and pack very easily in my small carry bag… each of them have room to include a water brush.

        Char --

        CharMing Art -- "Where the spirit does not work with the hand, there is no art." Leonardo DaVinci

        #1174663
        Davkin
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            I use the Martin Mijello;

            http://www.dickblick.com/products/martin-universal-design-mijello-airtight-leak-proof-palettes/?clickTracking=true

            Don’t beleive the airtight claim though. The paints will dry slower with the lid closed but they still dry soon enough. I use Holbein colors in it from tubes, just add a little more every time I go out. I only use it for applying color to my sketchbook though, I’ve never done any real paintings with it.

            David

            David

            #1174626
            ingegerd
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                #1174638
                Aderynglas
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                    I use thjis for my palette. miniature pocket set

                    And carry a cheap enamel plate for mixing :thumbsup: The brush in the set is sable and beautiful to use, so I take a small bottle of water and a small plastic tumbler.

                    I sit or stand to paint depending on the situation

                    #1174671
                    libby2
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                        I use a white plastic folding palette from the craft store that’s OK. I’ve used the same one that Davekin has http://www.dickblick.com/products/martin-universal-design-mijello-airtight-leak-proof-palettes/ and I loved it. When in Boston last month I planned on getting one at Blick’s but they didn’t have it in the store :( so I’ll get it when I have enough to order online. That thing is fab.

                        _______
                        Libby my blog

                        #1174627
                        ingegerd
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                            and I’m somewhat scared of damaging/losing it outdoors,

                            Since you are worried that you might loose your palette you could try using a icecube tray to put your paints in and a plastic or paper plate for mixing the colours on.

                            This photo is from an occation when I was testing what I could do with some realy chep stuff I have. The paints are Marie’s tubepaints that I bought so visiting young relatives would have something to use and they was put in to the ice tray many years ago so they wouldn’t dry in the tubes. I didn’t have a plate at hand so I used my normal paintbox for mixing.

                            #1174623
                            Studio-1-F
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                                Cheap white metal folding palette box with Schmincke Horadam Aquarelle whole and half pans (and a few DSmith tube paints in pans), each pan held in by a magnet.

                                The folded box fits into the right side pocket of the Cubix “Round Zip Pen Case”. A few pens and the waterbrush fit in the left-hand pouch.

                                If I need more water, I have a 2-oz Nalgene jar with a magnet on the bottom. It can nest in one of the palette lid’s mixing areas.

                                Jan

                                +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

                                #1174647
                                indraneel
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                                    Very nice setups, please add more replies, especially to the poll. I acquired a sakura box and am figuring out how to modify it for big brushes and to attach a water container (to sketch while standing).

                                    Ingegerd: that’s an awesome bike setup! The ice tray and paper plate idea is great, I am looking for a pill box now. Maybe I’ll replace the paper plate with a cheap students’ palette to allow some puddle control.

                                    Jan: Beautiful pictures and nice tip about the magnets. Did you stick the magnets to the bottom of the pans, or did you put them in?

                                    The metal field box seems to be highly favored, and considering that it’s a time tested design and does not come in a wide array of shapes like the plastic field boxes do, I’m a bit intrigued. What is special about it, and also why is it so expensive (even the empty box)?

                                    I thought more people would use the 8x8inch plastic folding palette, so I’m a bit surprised, since it looks closest to the holbein 250.

                                    It seems, there are two plein air setups; one for on the go small sketches, and another for larger maybe up to half sheet pieces. Does anyone use somewhat larger brushes (size 10 or 12) for small on the go sketches? Do half pans work?

                                    #1174628
                                    ingegerd
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                                        The thing I like about my box is that I can use both whole and half pans and also pans of different brands, using pans makes it easy to change colours in the box. Since the pans sits on a removable tray it can be lifted out and the bottom of the box can be used as a mixing area, this also makes it easy to clean the box.

                                        #1174629
                                        ingegerd
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                                            In some parts of the world it’s possible to have a palette made.
                                            https://www.wetcanvas.com/forums/showthread.php?t=745371

                                            #1174648
                                            indraneel
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                                                :lol: I have seen that thread. The only person here who can work that precisely and doesn’t need a sample first is the jeweler. He charges Rs 250 ($5) per gram of gold, so I’m debating whether to ask him to make me a brass box… or I could just buy some brass sheet… attempting to make a CY paintbox myself does not seem like a bad idea anymore. :evil:

                                                #1174624
                                                Studio-1-F
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                                                    Jan: Beautiful pictures and nice tip about the magnets. Did you stick the magnets to the bottom of the pans, or did you put them in?

                                                    Yes, I buy flexible magnetic strips and cut out little squares. I glue these to the bottom of each pan. The box is steel. I can re-arrange easily. The only caveat is that, with a big box, all the little magnets can get a bit heavy, depending upon how sensitive you are to weight.

                                                    The biggest brush I’ve used regularly with the pans is a fairly stiff #6 Filbert. (I like to pick up a lotta pigment.) I don’t think a soft watercolor #12 Round would work well in the pans for me. I do too much scraping and digging.

                                                    Just my opinion.

                                                    Jan

                                                    #1174630
                                                    ingegerd
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                                                        You can use large brushes when using pans, even half pans but I would recomend you use a smaller brush when picking up and mixing the paint. I use a small flat synthetic brush .

                                                        Here you can get a glimpse of the brushes I took on a trip last summer.

                                                        https://www.wetcanvas.com/forums/showpost.php?p=17318912&postcount=147

                                                        #1174670
                                                        Cyntada
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                                                            For a great many years I used this folding plastic palette:

                                                            But this year I finally had enough of scraping paint out of the wells whenever I needed to change the colors. It’s still my studio palette (because I love it so!), but for field work, I’ve attached whole and half pans to this Artbin nib holder with poster tack. Still deciding if this will be my permanent travel setup, but so far it is working. I miss the thumb-hole on the other palette though.

                                                            This is my original plein-aire kit:

                                                            it shows the plastic folding palette, my first handmade sketchbook 5.5″ x 7.5″, and assorted tools. The whole kit, zipped closed, was about 6″ x 8″.

                                                            Nowadays my hardbound handmade books are just over 6″ x 9″ and the nib box is slightly larger than the folding palette, so everything lives in a children’s plastic art case. It’s about 7.5″ x 10.5″ plus the molded handle. Still so easy to carry, holds more tools than I routinely use, and there’s even room for a 2 oz bottle with extra water for the brush pens. I paint more with it, because it is so easy to carry I just take it everywhere and can take advantage of random moments to sketch.

                                                            Since you asked, I paint sitting, although that is influenced by my cranky leg and back that do not like me to stand for any particular length of time. :angel:

                                                            Sounds like certain supplies are hard to come by in India… making your own stuff is indeed an option. Whole and half pans can be attached to almost any container that can handle some water drips. If dry you could even store them in a little pouch, but that’s obviously a problem if you need to move along while everything is wet! And any tiny little container could be a “pan”. (I even considered Lego bricks, but got tired of chipping the little grippers out of the inside of the blocks.) If you have a nice flat metal or plastic box you wish was a palette, some silicone sealant can be used to make wells. You can see some of those in the plastic palette above. A bit sloppy, but it works!

                                                            CK =)
                                                            I take great comfort in knowing that my genuine typos will probably be blamed on some device's autocorrect. :angel:
                                                            DIY art supplies, sketches, and more: cyntada.com / @cyntada
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