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  • #990776
    Cypress11
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        I am in the military stationed overseas and I have been trying to continue oil painting, but it is difficult without using paint thinner or any liquid hazardous materials that can’t be shipped online. Is there any substitute to thin and clean oil and oil brushes aside from paint thinner that isn’t hazardous? I’ve been using the turp natural to clean the brushes as best I can, but it won’t thin the oil paint well at all. Any ideas??

        #1185153
        yellow_oxide
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            One possible option is to just not clean your brushes. It may require a couple of brushes so you can have one that’s just for yellows, and another just for blues, etc, but as long as you keep using the brushes without letting them sit around long enough between painting sessions to dry then they should stay wet forever. I did that once with a brush that I kept using for a couple of months and it never dried out. Some types of brushes might not work as well with this.

            If possible, you might want to try a paint that is more oily already when squeezed from the tube if you want the paint to flow more without thinning it.

            #1185146
            Freesail
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                Master’s Brush Cleaner Amazing stuff.

                Solvent = Leaner Oil = Fatter Drawing is the basis of art. A bad painter cannot draw. But one who draws well can always paint. (Arshile Gorky)
                #1185139
                Anonymous

                    Aside from the alternative of acrylics, it is also possible to use traditional oil paints without solvents and cleanup with soap and water too. Choosing water mixable oil paints makes this even much easier to do.

                    #1185147
                    Crystal1
                    Default

                        Walnut oil. I use it as my medium, and you can also use it to clean brushes. That will work fine with traditional oils and I’ve done it. I now use it with water mixable oils, that are even easier to clean up. Best of luck to you.

                        #1185158
                        Cypress11
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                            thank you Crystal1. I looked into the Walnut Oil and it’s not flagged on the MSDS. I have just 1 liter of solvent left and I might as well stick with walnut oil. The soap and water technique is very strenuous with oils and would damage my natural hair brushes. I use a lot of glazing techniques that Walnut oil would probably work perfect for.

                            #1185135
                            JamieWG
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                                Walnut oil is a much better alternative than Turpenoid Natural, which doesn’t dry and should not get into your paint film! Lots of artists use just walnut oil and no solvents. As Sid said, H2O oils are also an option.

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                                #1185137
                                Don Ketchek
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                                    Do some internet searches on solvent free oil painting and you should get lots of information. The simplest alternative would be using Water Mixable Oils. But I have been painting solvent free in oils for a couple years now with no problems. You can use any typical oil painting oil (walnut, linseed, safflower) to thin your paints. When using oil alone (without solvent) you do have to be mindful of adding too much, but even when glazing you are usually better off using the minimum amount of medium as possible. You can thin out the paint when glazing simply by brushing it out. You can use paint straight from the tube, too.

                                    To clean your brushes while painting many folks use only a rag or paper towel. In this case, it is a good idea to have a few brushes – often using some only for your light colors and others for your darks.

                                    To clean up at the end you can use only soap and water. The key is making sure you don’t let paint dry in the brushes. Masters Soap is an excellent soap to use. When I use the Masters Soap I don’t need any solvent at all to clean.

                                    Will it take some getting used to to switch to solvent free painting – sure it will! Especially if you use solvent in your first layer to wash in a lean first layer – that you can’t really do solvent free – unless you switch to the WMOs.

                                    Good luck!

                                    Don

                                    #1185140
                                    Anonymous

                                        Walnut oil. I use it as my medium, and you can also use it to clean brushes.

                                        The soap and water technique is very strenuous with oils and would damage my natural hair brushes.

                                        :confused: You can’t properly clean brushes with just oil, unless you leave the brushes forever soaking in the oil, you still have to wash any drying oil out of your brushes with soap and water. WMO paints will alleviate the strain of washing out your brushes more than any non-water soluble oil. There is water mixable safflower oil available too. You can also mix water mixable linseed with water mixable safflower oil (half and half) and you will very closely approximate a blend that is similar to walnut oil in performance.
                                        I don’t think there is a water mixable walnut oil available, but I may be wrong.

                                        #1185148
                                        mariposa-art
                                        Default

                                            I’ve been using Turpenoid Natural for swishing my brushes, in between using different colors, as well as when I’m done painting for the day. I dry off my “washed” brush on a paper towel, sometimes then “rinsing” it in an open jar of Linseed oil or other oil, and then continue painting. As far as I can tell I only get trace amounts of Turpenoid Natural in my paint mixtures, if that. While many reviews (and the manufacturer) say you can mix Turp. Nat in your paints, I prefer not to do that. If you mix in “too much,” your painting never dries! :eek:

                                            If I wanted to get extra paranoid with Turpenoid Natural, I could reserve it for the final brush-rinsing of the day, and not use it during the painting session at all. It’s a fine brush-washer fluid and is non-toxic. (I should add that I also wash my brushes with some other soap-and-water brush washer, like Master’s, after I’ve finished painting for the day. Turp. Nat. helps get out most of the paint from the brushes, so I spend less time cleaning them with soap and water.)

                                            Gamsol has no flammable warning, if that is of any help to you. It is a mild odorless mineral spirit. It’s not “non-toxic” but I don’t think it has any shipping restriction. http://www.dickblick.com/products/gamblin-gamsol-odorless-mineral-spirits/

                                            #1185143
                                            llawrence
                                            Default

                                                I’ve now taken to using poppy oil. At the end of the painting day I just squooge the bristles around in a little puddle of poppy oil on the palette, get them good and soaked, and then set them flat across the top of my paints tote. They stay wet for a week at least, even a week and a half. When I’m ready to use them again, I just squeeze the poppy oil out onto a rag and get going.

                                                The very slow-drying poppy oil works for me, because there are some periods when I can paint every day, but others where I can’t get back to the easel for a while.

                                                Scrubbing the brushes out in soap and water was working too – but this way is much easier. Cleanup is still my least favorite part of the job, but it’s not quite as rotten now. :)

                                                #1185154
                                                evan3585
                                                Default

                                                    I use Lava soap. I have OMS but rarely even use it anymore. Lava soap is powerful stuff in my opinion. Its got kind of a sand grid to it so if your worried about ruining your brushes it might not be the best thing to use. I just make sure not to rub too hard and make sure the soap and brushes are wet when rubbing onto the soap bar.
                                                    Here is a post I did on it and also others have made suggestions there that might help you out. Link

                                                    #1185133
                                                    T.A

                                                        I am in the military stationed overseas and I have been trying to continue oil painting, but it is difficult without using paint thinner or any liquid hazardous materials that can’t be shipped online. Is there any substitute to thin and clean oil and oil brushes aside from paint thinner that isn’t hazardous? I’ve been using the turp natural to clean the brushes as best I can, but it won’t thin the oil paint well at all. Any ideas??

                                                        Hello,
                                                        For cleaning your brushes, nothing more than a bar of soap and warm water is needed, and it works very well. No need at all for turps, etc.
                                                        Simply wipe the excess paint off your brush, then lather up your brush with the bar of soap and work it into the palm of your hand…rinse and repeat until the lather is white and clean…rinse, shake out the excess water, shape the bristles with your fingers, and leave to dry.

                                                        For thinning, a drying oil, (linseed, walnut, poppy), of your choice.
                                                        Linseed is the most widely used.

                                                        Hope this helps. :)

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                                                        #1185159
                                                        Cypress11
                                                        Default

                                                            I have quite a selection of h20 oil and while they work decently, I only go to them from time to time because there’s not a big selection to work with. I’m a huge fan of Rembrandt oils and can’t see myself painting without them, plus the viscosity is much better than the water soluble oil. I will try the brush master’s for the brushes. I have a bottle of unopened m. graham walnut oil that I will give a shot. I’m not a big fan of thicker mediums such as linseed and copal.

                                                            #1185145
                                                            lovin art
                                                            Default

                                                                When I’m on location painting I use the water and masters to just mix with my paint brush to stop it getting stiff but I do have the odd occasion where I’ve not had the chance to get to them , and wham like the next day they are hard as and the masters is great for bring back to life very hard to clean brushes you just leave it on for abit to penetrate the oils and wham ……she’s all goodness again ,I’ve found it keeps my brushes in top condition and I’m not using to much of the strong knock ur socks off kinda stuff ……:D why am I the only one smiling on a thread talking about cleaning brushes !!! :D lol

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