Harvia’s KIP-60-B1 Sauna Heater from Almost Heaven Saunas

My Review of Harvia’s KIP-60-B1 Sauna Heater from Almost Heaven Saunas.

As a first generation Finn, I take my saunas very seriously. I’ve been around saunas all my life and built several from scratch. None have been from a kit. I had an old Sears’s sauna heater where the heating elements had gone out after about forty years of service. It too was a replacement from an earlier heater that had an external control rather than one on the unit. It was impossible to replace all three elements as only two were available so I had to replace the entire unit with the same size; 6kw, 240v single phase heater. I’m retired and living on a fixed income, so I had to follow my budget and decided to go with the KIP-60-B1. According to the info on Almost Heaven Saunas web site it seemed to be a perfect replacement so I purchased it November 6, 2016. I received it within a few days and had it hooked up by the 12^th. Nothing really matched my old set up as it was originally mounted to a concrete wall, not even the electrical hook up was in the same location but it was no big deal for me as a retired kitchen and bath re-modeler always expecting the unexpected during a job. Keep in mind that warranties begin on the date of purchase and not on the date of installation. So if it takes two weeks to get to your house and then another two weeks before you install it, you already lost four weeks of your warranty.

I had replaced some of my old igneous stones earlier in the year which I had purchased specifically for saunas. You can’t use just any old stones because the heat and water will make soft stones explode. It’s very important to make sure that you have the right hard stones suitable for sauna heaters whether electric or otherwise. That being said, I didn’t need to purchase stones for the heater and used the new ones I had recently acquired. I also had some which I had picked up from Lake Superior shores on a earlier trip. They were perfect size and just the right kind of stones that works well with sauna heaters. I installed the purchased stones loosely in place as directed in the installation booklet and had plenty of stones left over.

The capacity for stones was smaller than what I had. The entire unit was actually smaller than my original. I figured that it was more efficient and as long as the kw size was the same, there shouldn’t be a problem. After getting the heater all set up it was time to fire it up for the first time and burn off the protective coating off the elements as per directions. Things went well and after about a half hour or so the unit shut off. It was now ready for use. The next day which was my normal day for a sauna, I fired it up and within about an hour it was already up to 140° F. I like my saunas between 180° -190° F so I fired it up again for another hour but the heater shuts down around 170°F. My original heater would have gotten it up to the 190° F mark according to my new thermostat purchased last summer, running with 1 elements (2 were burned out) in about an hour and a half.

I use my sauna once a week. Today’s date is, December 5, 2016 and have only used it a few times. It still won’t heat my sauna to the temp I want. The maximum I get out of it after running it for two hours is about 170° F. My sauna room is only 194 cubic feet and a 6 kw heater is more than enough to heat up that size considering the max for the unit is about 300 cu.ft. Theoretically it should have heated it up to 190°F within an hour. To get it higher, I need to turn the unit on again. After doing some study of the unit running time, I find that the elements are on for only a short while and not the full hour as one would expect. All other heaters I’ve installed have worked for an entire hour. Yes, the heat control thermostat is set to max and the timer has been tried several different ways making sure that it is on and working for an entire hour. If the timer is running at 60hz, it should run for an entire hour however, if it's only a 50 hz timer, about 45 minutes is all one is to expect even though it has a 60 minute timer. I find the quality of the rock guard less than satisfactory as it is already showing areas of wear even though the unit has only been used a few times. If I take some very fine steel wool and rub the spots on the guard, it will look new again.

As a serous sauna user, I cannot recommend this heater for other experienced users. It's Harvia's low end unit and as far as I'm concerned a piece of junk not worth the money they ask for. As for beginners not looking for the usual Finnish quality one would expect with other heaters, it may work out for you, after all the price is at the low end of all the heaters I've researched.

 Up date: December 20, 2016

I've contacted Almost Heaven Saunas where they have been trying to resolve the issue and have been co-operative. Apparently I'm not the only one with the same problem. I've been having to move the sensor probe in different spots on my wood wall making more holes than Swiss cheese. I even talked with the tech guy at the factory and the conclusion was made that the timer was faulty. A new one would be sent out once they get some in stock, however, I don't think that it's going to happen. As of yet, I've received nothing from them.

My recent problem has been that the high limit control kicks off the unit and trips the breaker at the sub panel once it gets to about 170°F. I contacted Almost Heaven Saunas to tell them about the new issue and once again I've been asked to move the sensor probe leaving it exposed contradicting their installation manual, another joke leaving out some important details. When I get more issues or results, I will post them right here until this thing gets resolved. In the meantime, if you are looking for a heater spend a few extra bucks if you can afford it and don't buy a Harvia, it's not worth the head aches!

KIP-60-B1 installed

KIP-60-B1 installed in my sauna

KIP-60-B1

new sauna thermometer

a sauna door I built from cedar

my old Sears 6Kw heater I had to replace

Update: Dec.24,2016

Finally after 6 weeks of nonsense, I got the sauna to the temperature I was seeking, 190°F. I ended up moving sensor over another 12", leaving the cover off, exposing the sensor and installing it horizontally instead of vertically. The timer made by Hanko is garbage and used by just about all other sauna heater companies here in North America. Apparently, the timers work off an electric motor and is not accurate. Their hour is just under 50 minutes instead of 60 minutes stated on the timer and the manual. A timer running off a 60Hz motor runs for 60 minutes while only 50 minutes on a 50Hz. With that being said, these timers, at least the one on mine, is the wrong one used here in the US. Since the timer is off approx 10 minutes each hour and you pre set the timer to turn on the sauna 8 hours in advance, the heater will kick on a lot earlier (1:20) before you anticipated and therefore, well, you figure it out.

new position of the sensor

I moved the sensor so that it is 24" from the heater and 20" from the ceiling horizontal and left off the cover. The sensor above is an old one from an external control unit from the very first heater...it was easier just to leave it.

For more on the Kip B1 Sauna heater can be found here: More on the Kip B-1

Delta Ventilation Fan 70F by breez

My Review of Delta Ventilation Fan 70F by breez.

I needed a ventilation fan for my art studio to clear out some of the non toxic odors caused by non toxic paints. I stopped in at my local Menards to see what they had available. There were only two that were just fans; others had lights and heaters which I did not need. I was familiar with Broan as I had installed hundreds of them as a kitchen and bath remodeler but not with the breez by Delta. I wanted something fairly quiet and instead of the twelve/thirteen dollar Broan which I knew was going to be loud, I decided to spend the fifty bucks for the 70F by breez since the Sones were at the lower level 2. 0. The height was also only four inches which fit into a tight space perfectly. I already had an electric whip which I had used for a track light and disconnected it because of the heat output of the lamps. It didn’t take me long to mount the unit, connect the power and run the vent to an existing unused outlet and then test it. Well it ran and it seemed to be okay but since the ceiling was still open, I couldn’t hear whether it was noisy or not until I closed it up. In the past you could never tell exactly how loud fans are until they are set and closed up where ever they may be installed.

I closed up the ceiling and turned on the fan. I expected to hear a little normal hum but I did not expect a high whining sound coming from the motor. As time went on, it got louder along with the hum. It was driving me nuts. My first thought was to check the output outside to see if the damper was working. It was. There was plenty of air coming out. I took the ceiling apart to inspect the ducting and to make sure that the unit was mounted securely. Everything checked out and was as it was supposed to be. My only conclusion was that the fan is a piece of crap just like most of Delta products I’ve used in the past. I’m taking it back to Menards and getting me a Broan from elsewhere. Broan has a 70cfm fan comparable to this one for a few more bucks. At least I know what I’m getting.

My review on Turpenoid Natural.

Yes I know, there are hundreds of reviews about this stuff but if you’re like me, a skeptic I wouldn’t believe everything that’s out there. I've been lied to too many times from not only manufacturers but by shops pushing their products only to find they are toxic or don't do what they are supposed to do. The only way you’re going to know if this is right for you is to try it. The art industry is as bad as the drug industry here in the U.S as they gouge the public needing their meds. Even though it costs pennies to make, the manufacturers want to make as high profit as they can due to greed. I see no difference in the manufacturers and sellers of art supplies. I have been a musician for about six decades and I have never encountered the greed there is in the art industry. I was always able to afford whatever I needed in the way of supplies for my music. Whether it was a cleaner, strings, tuners, reeds manuscript paper, books or whatever, they were always affordable and readily available. In the art world, I have to jump thru several hoops just to get the oil paints and other supplies I need at an affordable price. I’m retired and living on a fixed income so I always have to budget and only get what is absolutely necessary for the moment.

I’ve been wanting to try Turpenoid Natural for a while but it’s just too damn expensive. A 32 ounce bottle goes for $1.25 an ounce or $40 at Michael's. Comparatively, the same amount of Walnut oil which does a great job cleaning brushes as well goes for $0.50 an ounce or about $16. So to go with Walnut oil is no brainer. The only problem with Walnut oil is that unless you wash your brushes in soap and water at the end of the session, a sticky residue will develop on the brushes and will eventually dry them out rendering them useless. I received one of those coupons from Michael’s for fifty percent off any one regular priced item. I know the scam involved with these coupon deals. The prices are inflated making you think that you are actually getting a deal using the coupons where in fact the price is pretty close to where it is supposed to be. Even at $0.62 an ounce is outrages for what the stuff really is….a citrus cleaner, and their profit is still up there. Since I had the urge to try some, I went ahead and put down my twenty bucks for the stuff and tried it.

It did what it was supposed to do without toxic chemicals so they say and the odor was tolerable for the time being. It had a strong odor of citrus. How the odor will affect me in the future, considering strong odors whether toxic or not bother me, is in limbo for now. I personally don't believe that Turpenoid Natural is non toxic and won't create harmful effects. History has proven itself that what may be a good idea today may kill you tomorrow. The cleaner hasn't been out there used by millions yet and who knows how it may affect your health.

In reading some other reviews claiming to clean dried out paint off vinyl floors and other amazing things, I found it a bit exaggerated. I have plenty of dried out paint areas on the floor and tested a couple of spots; one with turpenoid natural and another just using a scraper. The scraper won. I didn’t see much significance wasting something that’s almost as expensive as some pain killers on some paint on the floor.

I had some dried out paint brushes and soaked them in turpenoid natural for about an hour or so, rinsed them in water and they worked like new. Turpenoid Natural did ease my cleaning of dried out oil paints on my palette fairly quick. I simply brushed some on the dried out paint, let it sit for ten fifteen minutes and wiped it clean with a paper towel. What was left if any, I was able to scrape off easily with a scraper or a palette knife. A 32 ounce bottle won’t go too far unlike Odorless Turpenoid which can be used over and over again by simply removing the settled paint at the bottom of you cleaning bucket. Turpenoid Natural is a little more viscous and although oil particles settle to the bottom, after a while the stuff becomes cloudy with particles floating from top to bottom. Now it’s time to replace the stuff. One thing I might add is I had an aluminum screen at the bottom of my cleaning bucket where I scrape my brushes on had disintegrated while sitting in Turpenoid Natural. I thought that was a bit odd.

In wanting to try more of Turpenoid Natural, I wanted to see whether the stuff came in larger quantities so I did some research. Yes it does. It comes in gallons and half gallons. The best bet, cost wise, is a gallon. Recently I found it on sale at Jerry’s Art O Rama for under $0.40 an ounce or little over $50. Once again comparatively speaking, Walnut oil for the same amount would cost $64. I know that in the future I will be looking for the best price I can possibly find. Just keep your eyes open and when you see a deal on it go for it. But remember, the bigger the quantity, the cheaper it will cost by the ounce.

Those of you using Bob Ross paint brushes or similar where the hairs end up flaring out when coming in contact with water, there is a solution and the hairs can be brought back to normal. Don’t wash your brushes as often as one might with O.P.T. I wash mine once at the end of my paint session and then wrap the bristles tightly with a paper towel and apply masking tape around the edges to keep the paper towel taught. Once the brush dries out, it should be ready for use once again. I have to admit though that sometimes I will have to use a damp paper towel and wrap that around the bristles a second time which works like a charm.

In using the wet on wet technique, since there is an abundant amount of paint on the brushes, I needed to clean as much off as I could before cleaning them in the solution. If I don't, the stuff won't last more than a painting or two. Turpenoid Natural is a bit more viscous than the Odorless Turpenoid and the oil particles take a while for them to drop to the bottom of the bucket. Once the solution becomes totally cloudy and thicker, it's time to replace it.

For more art stuff visit me here:Markku-artist

Lake Superior trip

For many who have never experienced the great lakes, don’t know that often times these lakes are simply inland seas and often act like the oceans. The waves can easily reach over fifteen feet during a storm as I’ve seen and experienced both on Lakes Michigan and Superior. The scenery around lakes; upper Lake Michigan, Superior and Huron are wooded areas with spectacular water falls, rock formations, canyons and other breathtaking scenery.

Not too long ago I was taking a trip to Sault Ste Marie from Chicago via Duluth Minnesota and Thunder Bay Ontario. I’ve been driving for hours and had already stopped in Duluth for dinner. I’m not one for hanging around big cities and paying a premium for a night of sleep when more inexpensive places are not too far from town. My dinner was already more than what I expected to pay for a simple meal. I decided to keep driving; after all I had plenty of daylight, to enjoy the drive up the north coast of Lake Superior. I made several stops to enjoy and take some photos of the fantastic lake and wooded sceneries. It was getting darker and I could hear the rumbling of a storm approaching. I didn’t even look at my watch to see what time it was as it didn’t occur to me that night was close at hand and I needed to find a motel for the night. I should have known that in these parts of the woods when it gets dark, it really gets dark. It gets so dark at night that if the stars aren’t shining, you can’t see your hand in front of your face. It didn’t take long for it to get pitch black as it began pouring rain. Driving in the middle of the woods isn’t like driving in the city or suburbs where the roads are lit up and bright signs all around you. The only signs I could barely see were dark silhouettes and had no clue as to what they said since they weren’t next to the highway where my headlights might have made them readable. I’ve been to places where even motels don’t have lit signs, so one of those signs could have been for a motel, I’ll never know.

I kept driving for about an hour looking for a motel with no luck. Just ahead was a sign which I could make out. It was a state sign for a rest area just ahead. It was a place I had to stop at as the storm worsened and seeing in front of my vehicle became an issue. I figured that it may be a good place for me to make a pit stop and take a break until the pouring rain stopped. It was several hours later and early into the next day and still raining hard. I knew that I was stuck there and had to spend the rest of the night. At least it had an outhouse where I could take care of business and staying dry while at it. There’s nothing worse than having to play bear in the woods and in the rain. I found a nice spot to park but really couldn’t tell at that moment what was just beyond the trees in front of me. The storm had plenty of lightning which lit up the skies giving me a hint that the lake was just ahead beyond the trees. The thunder echoed as if I was on top some sort of canyon. Water is a good conductor of electricity and sound so I figured that the echoes bounced off the water and the trees giving me one hell of a stereo effect. It was a rough night as I hardly got any sleep. The storm went on all night long with heavy downpours and strong winds. There were times when my vehicle began moving from side to side. I kept wondering if there was a tornado near by. There wasn’t much of a radio signal either, just plenty of white noise on both A.M and F.M stations.

When the storm had passed, the air was pure, but a little chilly. I could see that the sun was just coming up behind those trees. I wanted to get out and go take a look at the sunrise. When I stepped out of my vehicle there were huge deep puddles everywhere. The trees were dripping with water but something beyond those trees ahead of me drew me closer. A sweatshirt was needed for the chilly morning so I threw it on and then headed for the lake. My feet were already soaking wet from the deep puddles and brushing against the low lying bushes and trees got the rest of me wet. On this trip, I had forgotten to pack my rain gear and boots so I just had to deal with the situation and change clothes later. It was an uncomfortable feeling but onward.

I only had to walk a short distance when I realized what had happened last night during the storm. There was one hell of a land slide where a huge chunk of what once was just ahead was now sitting in the water just below. I could see trees, bushes and bits and pieces of grassy areas as the huge waves recede. I could see a huge mass of missing land inches in front of me and then I felt and heard a rumble just beneath my feet. Oh shit! You probably never saw anyone move that quick in your life as me hightailing it out of there and back to my vehicle. It was a good thing I did because another ten feet or so dropped about twenty feet into Lake Superior within seconds. Yes, the spot I was standing on just a few seconds ago is now in the drink. Had I decided not to move, I may not be here writing this experience. Earlier, the lake was just beyond the trees and now the lake is at the edge of the parking lot of the rest area. I took a good glance at the now breathtaking views of the sunrise and the lake at that spot and decided I need to get the hell out of there.

the view I saw before leaving as portrayed by my painting

a cabin in the woods

I was heading south east on highway 41. I wasn’t too far from L’Anse Bay which is located at the bottom of Keweenaw Bay, Michigan. There was also an Indian reservation just to the left. I had discovered my Michigan Atlas/Gazetteer which shows the entire state in detail, like Google maps, in a compartment behind the back seats in my truck and decided to utilize it for the rest of my trek. The atlas showed about four waterfalls all nearby so I decided to check them out providing there weren’t a lot of tourists. None of them had anyone around as the falls weren’t that big of a deal anyway. At the fourth falls there was a small ranger station with no one around. There was also a trail leading into the woods with a sign, “hiking trail length 1.5 mi” and a map of the trail. It looked like the path went next to a river so I jumped at the chance of being able to take some pics.

Before hitting the trail, I changed as I’ve done in the past just to be on the safe side, and checked to see if my phone had a signal. It did. Okay I’m cool and ready to hit the trail. The trail meandered through the deep dark woods. There was little light coming through the forest canopy so it seemed much later in the day than it was and it seemed like it was twilight. I have to say that it felt a bit eerie walking by myself through the thick of the forest. I knew that it was bear and wolf country and was a bit apprehensive. I also knew that there was a good chance of me spotting a moose so fear aside, on wards.

To my amazement during this whole trip thus far, I’ve not encountered any biting flies nor mosquitoes even deep in the forest. They don’t come out until July and this is still June. I came at the right time. About .75 mi into my hike, I came to the river. It was actually a creek but at that point it had widened quite a bit making it look like a river. I took a few pics as I saw some ideas for a painting and then continued ahead. Not far ahead, I could see an area where two creeks come together making a wider area from that point down. Just before the merging of the creeks and across, I see an old shack. It had no electric or telephone wiring  going to it. It was pretty run down with an old worn out stair step with a broken down railing leading towards the front door. There was also an old dock at the bottom of the stairs which looked very unsafe. I thought that it would make a cool painting so I snapped a few pics. A light had turned on in the back and then another towards the front. Perhaps someone might have woke up and turned the light on in the bedroom, walked to the kitchen and turned that light on.

painting of a cabin in the woods

Since there wasn’t any electricity running to the house, maybe the guy used a lantern. Perhaps it was an old hunting/fishing cabin. I don’t know, I didn’t really think that much about it. Just then the lights went off in both rooms and I expected for someone to come out the front door. I waited with curiosity but no one came out. Well maybe there was a back door and he went out that way, I thought to myself and moved on taking a few more pics. A little over a mile, and around the bend, I see the ranger walking towards me. He stopped and we chatted for a few minutes. I asked him “so who’s living in that old shack across the creek?” He answered “what are you talking about, what shack?”  “The brown broken down shack across the creek with white trim, just down the trail about a few hundred yards or so. There’s some broken old steps and a fallen down railing. It also has a dock. I saw some lights turn on in the back and then towards the front,” I explained. He answered; “There’s no way anyone could be living there, that shack burned down over a decade ago and the owner lost his life in the fire.” “no way” I said, “I just saw the shack not five minutes ago.” The ranger goes, “yup that’s the house all right but how could you describe it so well, have you been here before?” I said “no”. We walked together to the area where I saw the shack. All I could see was some of the charred remains of it. Nature took over the rest. I thought that I would show the pics I took to the ranger but they weren’t  at all what I thought that I had taken pics of. They were just pics of trees across the creek.

He invited me over to his office by the entrance and said “I want to show you something.” What I saw was unbelievable. He had some photos of the shack hanging in the back room prior to the fire, as I described it to him.

try and explain this one

When I was a little boy growing up in Canada, anytime my parents said road trip, I was always the first one in the car ready to go. I knew from experience that a road trip was going to be something special, not one of those trips to a place with hundreds of tourists ready to ruin your trip. My mother loved to travel especially to places off the beaten track. That’s where the adventures begin and we experience the unusual happenings.

I remember one time going to Niagara Falls, definitely a tourist trap spot of all times and although we checked out the falls, we went to another cool place not too far from there, the Welland Canal located in a near by town called Sarnia. Not too many people get to see the big ocean going vessels go through a series of locks which take them from Lake Ontario to Lake Erie or vice a verse. Although I appreciated the falls and still remember the times, the trip to the canal made a bigger impact on me for the rest of my life. We were invited onto one of the ships and to experience part of the process from a different prospective. For many a year to come, this would be my philosophy in travel and followed it for many years. I had forgotten what’s really important to me, my philosophy in traveling and whenever I went on a fishing trip, I was always in a hurry to get to my destination. Having unusual experiences as a younger man getting from point A to point B was no longer my priority, getting there was. I missed a lot of experiences I might have had, had I kept up with my philosophy.

Once I began painting landscapes and nature scenes, the priorities of travel slowly came back to me. I no longer rush like everyone else to their destination, instead, I look for signs leading me to some really cool adventures. I would have never thought that I’d be looking for this at my age of 66. It all just happened as I was seeking for ideas for paint projects.

Earlier this summer while on a trek for ideas which took me around Lake Michigan and even to the southern shores of Lake Superior, I came upon some great adventures, just because I decided to get off the beaten track and see what else I can find. When one is in the north woods, one never knows what may be just around the bend or down an old logging road. I made it my priority to check out areas which might add to my collection of experiences.

I was headed towards Copper Harbor which is located at the top of Keweenaw Peninsula in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. I’m a Yooper at heart and have traveled to the U.P. for the last thirty eight years on fishing trips. I was somewhere between Hancock and Calumet where I had just experienced something really weird at a boat launch site. I didn’t realize that it was going to get even weirder once I got to Copper Harbor. I had taken an old beat up road from the main highway which was to take me to the launch site so I took it. After that strange happening, just about a mile or two after stopping to grab some lunch, I came across another road sign pointing down a paved road which would take me to another boat launch. I had no clue how far down it may be or if it was an access site for a lake or a river as the sign didn‘t say. Either way, I was sure that I would get some great photos and ideas for my paint projects so I decided to see where it took me. I might point out that I had no Michigan map as I never needed one before. I’ve always just followed my feeling and a compass.  According to the compass in my truck, I had just turned south.

I drove and drove for several miles looking for some sign for the access site. There was nothing at mile three nor were there any side roads along the way. Nothing in the way of a sign at mile five nor seven. At mile eight on the right I saw a sand/gravel road. I decided to follow it. I followed it for another five miles heading west. I came upon an access sight sign pointing to the right and made my turn. I was now headed north on a single lane dirt road that was overtaken by weeds. It was one of those winding roads that took me into the thick of the woods with the weeds swiping my side view mirrors. I drove for about 500 yards or so and saw the lake just ahead through the trees.

painting of the lake

When I got to the lake, I noticed that it wasn’t that big but it sure was pretty. There wasn’t a parking area so I just parked where I felt like. There wasn’t anyone around and when I got out of my truck, I couldn’t hear a sound, not even the birds. There was no wind rustling the leaves on the trees. It was dead silence. I thought that it was odd because usually one can at least hear birds or crickets. The weeds were pretty thick all around me, I was in my shorts, so I changed into my jeans, put on my boots, a long sleeve shirt in case of ticks and was ready for action. I noticed that the lake was down a steep hill with several tree tops and bushes in view. There was an island with some trees n the middle of the calm lake. There were no houses or any signs showing that anyone had been there in quite sometime. I pulled out my camera and took several photos.

For some odd reason I pulled out my cell phone to see if there was a signal in case of an emergency. Nope, it was In sleep mode to save on the battery. I thought that it might be a good idea to stay in view of my truck so I wouldn’t get lost in the area. It was a bit weird being in a desolate area by myself especially with dead silence all around me. I just figured that it was part of nature and left it at that. I soaked in the view and the silence for about an hour and headed on out. When I got back on the road I came in on, where I was now headed back east, about an eighth of a mile into my drive, there was another dirt road and a sign on my left which said; to hwy 41. This was the main hi-way which I was on earlier headed to Copper Harbor. I thought to myself “that’s just weird, I didn’t see that road nor the sign coming in.”

Since it was where I needed to go, I turned left, once again heading north according to the digital compass built into my dash. I drove on the road with no one in sight, just the thick of the forest all around me, for about three quarters of a mile, when I saw a paved road in the distance. My digital compass point was, still mind you, north. When I got to the paved road, after stopping I saw a sign pointing left to hwy 41. I decided to take another gander at my compass and now it’s telling me that I’m at the stop sign headed east. What? There were no turns and my compass showed that I was headed north just a few seconds ago, how is that possible?

I turned onto the road and looked at my compass. It showed I’m headed north again. Here’s where it gets even more weird. I could see hwy 41 in the distance less than a quarter of a mile and when I got to the intersection, I noticed that I was on the same road I took earlier looking for the boat launch site. The sign was missing. Wait, what? Did I not drive for miles headed south and then west to this lake and now in less than five minutes from there I’m back where I started from? Was I just hallucinating the whole thing? Maybe my camera had the answer so out it came and took a look to see what was on it. There they were, the pics I took of the lake.

When I got to Copper Harbor later in the day and after securing a motel room on Lake Superior, I decided to connect my lap top to their wi-fi, fire up my Google Earth program and see if I can find these two lakes. I was more curious about what transpired in this story since it was just too weird. I spent a few moments trying to find the two areas in question with no luck. I decided to check it out more later in detail, but right now, I wanted to enjoy the view with a couple of glasses of wine.
I never did find that particular lake, but I did find the road which took me several miles south where according to Google Earth, there was an airport and a small lake just east of the road. The little lake didn’t look like anything I saw and was much smaller. At the end of the road was Torch Lake.

An Honest to Goodness Review of the Cordoba C7-CE CD Guitar

I purchased the nylon/acoustic/electric guitar from Musician’s Friend back in 2014. Had I know that it was made in China, I would have never purchased it. From experience I know that most of the musical instruments made in China are cheap garbage and retailed at a much higher price than what they are actually worth. I don’t think that this guitar is worth what they’re asking for it. If you take it for what it is; an over priced but good looking and another made in China musical instrument, then you may like the Cordoba C7-CE CD Guitar.

When I received it, it was packaged very well and in one piece. I did have to adjust the neck as it was slightly warped probably due to the weather. I also needed to make some adjustments for easier fingering as the strings were way too high from the fret board. I’m not going to waste time and write out the specs on it as you can probably find them at musiciansfriend.com. I personally don’t like purchasing musical instruments through the internet because you never know what you’re going to get. Every instrument is different even if they look identical. Each instrument plays slightly differently with different nuances and one may not be suited to your playing. Even the tones can vary especially on an acoustic guitar. I prefer to play an instrument first before acquiring it to make sure that it’s going to work well with my style and expertise as a musician. There’s nothing like purchasing an instrument that’s just not going to work well for you. It’s just going to sit there after you spent some hard earned money.

The reason I purchased mine was because I needed to replace an old Yamaha G100A nylon string guitar that I had used for recording for many years. It would no longer stay in tune no matter what strings I put on. It would go out of tune while recording. There’s nothing worse than having to re-record parts because they are out of tune. When I saw a video of someone playing the Cordoba, which by the way sounds much better than the actual tone of the guitar I received, probably due to manipulation and expensive microphones, I figured that it would work for what I needed to record.

I must admit that I was pleasantly surprised after plugging it in to my custom made guitar amp. The tone on it was even better than I imagined after fiddling around with the controls mounted on the guitar. The pickups are extremely sensitive and pick up every little sound., even ones you don’t want. Playing it unplugged was okay but I wasn’t impressed by the tone quality that much. It’s as expected from a very thin guitar.

Just for kicks, shortly after it was in my hands, I tried recording a smooth jazz tune with it only to find out that the thing kept going out of tune. The tuners look impressive but still slip. I know that nylon strings have a tendency to go out of tune but this was ridiculous. It was no better than my old Yamaha. I replaced the strings with hard tension ones which not only did I get a better tone, they stayed in tune much longer.

I had recorded the instrument using its electronics and plugging it directly into my computer. It sounded like crap. I built my computer specifically for recording, mixing and mastering my music so I knew its capabilities. I’ve recorded my Goya semi acoustic/electric and other instruments for jazz and they came out great. It was not just one of those cheap PC’s purchased from Walmart.

I then tried recording the guitar using its acoustics only to end up with a lot of boom/low end. I used a cardioid directional mic, specifically for recording. I even tried using a direct line and a mic. with no luck. I tried recording it using an amplifier/mic and a direct feed from the amp with no luck. The sound I got from my amp was fairly decent but not what I was looking for in a recording for smooth jazz. I guess after being a musician for almost six decades, I’m a bit fussy regarding my sound.

It wasn’t until I decided to use an old trick I discovered years ago regarding cheap nylon acoustic guitars, that I finally found something close to what I was looking for in sound. I stuffed the hole with some old T shirts and then recorded it with a single cardioid mic about half way up the fingerboard.

Over all, I’d say, after a few years of playing on it, that it’s an okay guitar that can handle light playing. It’s great for beginners and intermediate players. For gigs, I’ll run It through my custom amp but only use it on six or seven tunes because it’s a pain in the ass having to retune it after every tune. I don’t have that problem with a better quality guitar in the same style. If you are a serious musician and need to do a lot of gigs or recordings with it, invest in your sound and get yourself a better one. Below you can find a few tunes I recorded using the Cordoba.

A Twilight Zone moment perhaps

I was on my trek thru the north woods when I came across a boat launch sign up ahead on the left. I slowed down as I wanted to check it out as I’ve done several times during my trip. Boat launch sites are access sites to either a lake or a river which tells me that it’s a good bet for some really nice landscape photos. The road to the launch site wasn’t really a road but just a narrow path hardly ever used. It was just wide enough for me to get through the thick of the forest. It seemed to me that this was a launch for perhaps canoes only, as the path was a bit rough for anything that had to be hauled on a trailer. There was no way for me to move over if another vehicle came from the direction I was headed for. It seemed to last forever as I slowly moved forward. There were no signs stating how far I had to got and turning around was not an option. Backing out may have been a bit tricky so I had to keep going ahead. I knew that the area had bears, wolves, deer and moose and expected to see some of the wildlife at anytime.

I came to an opening about a quarter of a mile into my drive and then the lake.

a painting of the lake

There wasn’t a traditional boat ramp or parking one would find on most lakes, which confirmed my feeling that this was a canoe launch area. I parked my truck and got out my camera. It was a beautiful spot In the middle of the forest seldom visited. I took several photos and then noticed a young man, perhaps in his mid teens sitting down by the water. I thought that it was odd considering I didn’t see anyone around when I pulled up or when I got out of the truck. There were no other vehicles nor a bicycle around. Perhaps he walked there from the highway.

I walked over to him and said “Isn’t that a beautiful and serene view?”He just sat there staring at the water and didn’t answer. I was going to walk away but something inside of me made me ask him “Are you okay?” He turned his head towards me and mumbled something, something I didn’t understand. I walked over to my truck and grabbed a lawn chair, a sandwich and a bottle of water out of a cooler and sat near him. I asked him if he would like to share a sandwich with me and a bottle of water. Once again he mumbled something which I didn’t understand and then walked over to him and handed him half of my sandwich and a bottle of water. The young man scarfed that thing down like there was no tomorrow. He was hungry. I gave him the other half of my sandwich also. He ate that just as quick and drank the bottle of water.

The young man sat there quietly for a few moments, looked at me, smiled,  got up and said “thanks”. He then walked to the edge of the forest and vanished. I thought to my self and even spoke out loud “that was weird!” I decided to stick around for several more minutes soaking in the view and enjoying the peace, beauty and solitude before heading out to find another launch site and somewhere where I could grab some lunch.

It took me about six hours from where I was to get to my destination. Normally the drive would have only been about two, but I wanted to stop by every access site even if it took me several miles off the beaten track. It was well worth it! When I finally got to my destination for the day, I was able to secure a motel room on the shores of Lake Superior. I was at the top of Keweenaw Peninsula, U.P. Michigan and a matter of a few feet from the water. The view was spectacular even from the room itself as it had large patio doors overlooking the lake.

view of Lake Superior from my motel room

There were chairs just outside and after settling in, I went out with a bottle of chilled wine, taken out of my cooler that was in my truck, a wine glass and sat down. I had brought them along for a special occasion such as this. I poured myself a glass of wine and began to place the bottle on the ground next to me when I heard someone say “yes, it is a beautiful and serene view !  When I picked up my head after placing the bottle of wine on the ground, you wouldn’t believe who I saw standing next to me. It was the young man I met earlier in the woods. He smiled, turned around and walked around the corner. I tried to catch up with him and when I turned the corner of the building all I saw was a couple of ducks walking away.

Bristle Magic-my review

If you’re like me, an artist, who is sensitive to strong odors or just want to get away from the toxic chemicals used as paint brush cleaners, finding a fairly inexpensive none toxic no odor brush cleaner is a challenge. Since my health, after using so called no odor yet toxic brush cleaners, declined rapidly, it became a priority to make my studio non toxic. In doing so, the first thing on the agenda was replacing the toxic brush cleaner ( Odorless Turpenoid) with something less hazardous to my health. If you go thru what I have gone thru for the last several months, it would be your priority as well. I have to say that it’s been hell.

After getting rid of the toxic brush cleaner, I’ve relied on either walnut oil or olive oil to keep my brushes clean. Walnut oil, a friend to oil paints and a great medium, has done a fantastic job, unfortunately it’s getting harder to find at grocery stores. If you use walnut oil on your brushes, don't let them sit around too long without washing them first with soap and water to get rid of the oil. The brushes will harden as the walnut oil dries. Yeah, I could  order some Turpenoid natural at double the cost of walnut oil... not. My other alternative has been olive oil. It’s dirt cheap and I find it around three bucks for a sixteen once bottle at Aldi’s. Olive oil does great job in cleaning brushes. The problem with it is that, like with Turpenoid natural, you need to remove all traces of it from the brush using soap and water. Unfortunately, all brushes don’t take to water kindly. Take Bob Ross brushes, made from hog bristles for example, once introduced to water the bristle begin to flare. They can be brought back to normal however, with a lot of work and plenty of time.

In my search for the perfect, affordable non toxic brush cleaner, I came across Bristle Magic. Bristle Magic is a paint brush cleaner and re-conditioner. It’s biodegradable, non-toxic, non-flammable and supposedly no fumes. Notice that I didn’t mention no-odor. Neither did the bottle. I had some questions regarding the stuff so I contacted the maker via their web site, even got a confirmation of them receiving it and a statement that they will contact me shortly. Never heard from them. It was up to me to locate someone that sold the stuff. I finally found a couple of sites that carried it.  A thirty two ounce bottle cost me about twenty three bucks which includes delivery cost. But don’t go out and order some for yourself quite yet. Keep reading and the decide if this is for you. This is my initial accounts of using Bristle Magic for the first time and is more of a first impression of the stuff. Your experience may differ from mine considering I’ve had to go thru de-tox for several weeks and still have some issues from using toxic brush cleaners and paints.

The first thing I did after opening the bottle, was to sniff it. Hmm, an odor and it was a familiar one, but just couldn’t place it. I poured enough into my brush cleaning system to cover the screen at the bottom. It also stated that you have to clean the brushes with soap and water after washing them in Bristle Magic. I already had my other cleaning systems ready to go. My paint palette had plenty of dried out oil paint from a painting I did a few days ago so the first thing I needed to do was to clean my glass paint palette. I took a brush, wet it in the solution and brushed it on to the dried out paints. I let it soak for about five minutes or so, took a wad of paper towels and began wiping. Not much was happening so I decided to scrape it using my knife.

It took me about fifteen minutes to clean my paint palette, about the same time as it would using walnut oil in the same manner. Okay so cleaning the palette was nothing to write home about and wasn’t any easier with this stuff. Maybe, it really worked wonders on brushes, after all the bottle says, “artists love this stuff”. The viscosity of this brush cleaner was about the same as the toxic cleaners so the paint should settle to the bottom rather than staying suspended as with walnut or olive oil. Both are much more viscous but eventually, the solids do settle to the bottom of my system. I placed some oil paints as usual on my glass palette and began painting using large brushes, as in wet on wet technique. However, I don’t use Bob Ross brushes except for the liner brush so swishing them In water won’t cause them harm.

After painting, I had a few brushes loaded with paint, wiped the excess on a paper towel and began washing them in Bristle Magic. I have to admit that it did a nice job cleaning my brushes although I had to wash them several times before they were totally clean, Walnut and olive oils did it much quicker in my opinion and I didn’t have to wash my brushes several times. By the time I got to my last large brush, the smell of this stuff was really starting to get to me. I started feeling nauseous and a head ache was coming on, perhaps a migraine, so I thought. It just turned out to be a head ache caused by the nasty smell of the stuff. The maker says that it smells like oil but to me it was something else. After a while, it came to me where I had smelled that odor in the past. Car wax has the same smell except you’re out doors and really don’t notice it. I took a whiff of some car wax I had laying around. The car wax was a little weaker as it was pretty old but had the similar smell. I had another recall of the same smell a few minutes later, so I began searching for the source. I found the old reliable Kiwi black shoe polish and opened it up and took a whiff. There it was, the same exact smell but Bristle Magic was much, much stronger. Low VOC is claimed on the bottle however voc‘s never the less. For some, any amount of voc’s can be harmful. Here are a couple of links. Find out for yourself.

http://cdn.dickblick.com/msds/DBH_05733XXXX.pdf

https://www.epa.gov/indoor-air-quality-iaq/volatile-organic-compounds-impact-indoor-air-quality

Well there went twenty three bucks down the drain as I’m sticking with my walnut or olive oils. They’re cheaper, no odor, non toxic and walnut oil can be used as a medium.

In all fairness to the company, I did have a good experience using the stuff. Forgetting to clean a 2" brush filled with colored gesso, the next morning I found it hard as a rock. I didn't want to just throw it away as it would have been a waste of money and a waste of a decent brush, so I thought I'd give Bristle Magic a try. I let it soak over night,then washed it. To my surprise my brush was like new. All that dried out clumped paint was gone. It actually did what it was supposed to on acrylic paints and gesso.

I found another 1½" brush that had some dried out oil paint by the ferule making my brush a bit stiffer than usual. Once again I let it soak over night and washed it with soap and water to remove the Bristle Magic. Sure enough, my brush was like new once again. Bristle Magic works like it's supposed to. Too bad it smells so damn awful!

Read my review on Turpenoid Natural next

For more art stuff visit me here:Markku-artist

 

Can I use the wet on wet technique with acrylic paints?

It’s a question that I’ve seen on the internet hundreds of times and yet no one has really explained their answer fully. I’ve seen plenty of no’s without any hope for a maybe. So just hold on to your horses and don’t give up quite yet.

Before I get into my discoveries on this matter I want to say that these are my personal findings after painting a lot of paintings. They have been found by trial and error. I paint daily about eight hours and often paint several paintings a day. I use both mediums, acrylics and oils and often times mix them. Yes the oils are over the acrylics after they have fully dried. I use acrylics for backgrounds cutting down on the toxicity levels not only in the brush cleaners but heavy metals such as cadmium, onyx oxide and cobalt among others in oil paints. So take this for what it’s worth. Read it all and then decide if you want to tackle this.

Using a wet canvas as with wet on wet oil painting where liquid white or liquid clear is used, there is nothing with acrylics to slow down the drying process in the same manner except for something like Liquitex Slo-Dri Blending Medium which is a retardant. But, it doesn’t quite  work the same way as the liquid/magic white or the liquid/magic clear. Trying to do the same technique as with oils is definitely a challenge.

Okay you made it this far, good for you! Keep going, don’t give up yet!

Perhaps if we changed the question slightly to “can we use an alternate method to wet on wet with acrylics?” then the answer would be yes. Let me explain a bit further. I think that the first thing to take a look at is why Bill Alexander re-introduce an old oil painting method and renamed it? His idea was to be able to finish a painting in one sitting as with acrylics, in many a case and be able to come back to it and make a few adjustments the next day if necessary. In traditional oil painting, before adding layers one needs to allow the paint to dry otherwise as Bob Ross states many a time, you will become a mud mixer. Bob Ross simply took it to another level and made it possible for the non artist to learn to paint without studying half your life.

When I first started painting I was using acrylics, painting abstracts. I got bored with it and wanted to do landscapes. I found Bill Alexander’s videos on You Tube and felt that this was the way to go. I didn’t feel comfortable with purchasing expensive oil paints, new brushes, easel and toxic brush cleaners so I wanted to stick to acrylic paints. So my challenge became, how was I going to adapt this method to acrylic paints? I wasn’t an artist, I was a professional jazz musician and a remodeler so challenges weren’t new to me. Whenever someone tells me that I can’t do something a certain way, it becomes a challenge and in most cases I find a way or an alternative with same or similar results.

Once I understood the properties of the oil paints and acrylics and how they work, I realized that instead of trying to keep my canvas wet, allowing them to dry before applying a new layer was the answer. Sometimes the drying process took too long so I helped it along using a blow dryer. I learned that using large brushes anywhere from one inch to four was still possible as with the wet on wet technique. I can paint the canvas or canvas board black or any other color I want to get a nice overall effect. As long as I use a transparent paint over the first coating, the color shows through. With transparent colors, I can add white to it as with wet on wet for a cool effect, but I have to be very quick as I have only about thirty seconds or less before it starts drying.

The problem with opaque acrylic paints in trying to add layers before they dry is, you become a mud mixer. The paints aren’t thick enough, even if you buy the professional ones that state heavy body. My solution to that was to add a thickening agent with the  paint such as a molding paste medium or similar to create texture. Acrylic paints dry flat and don’t show the brush marks as in oils, so in highlighted areas, I wanted to have texture which was done by adding a lot of medium to it, making the paint very thick. In this case instead of thinking that thin paint sticks to thick as with oils, the opposite became true using acrylics, as long as the paint underneath was dry.

There was only a little texture in this and brush strokes still didn’t show through. At least I can see the bumps created by the thicker paint which stick out adding a little depth. I could have tried just using the white molding paste first dabbing it with a small brush or knife, letting it dry and then adding my color to it, but I felt that it was just too much work involved and wasn‘t part of my experiment in using large brushes. You can try this yourself if you like.

I ended up painting about sixty acrylic paintings using large brushes before switching to oils. I also use numbers 2,4,8 fan brushes, 8,12 filberts, a number 0 liner brush and a plastic and metal paint knives. Some came out quite well while some didn’t. People loved them and asked to have them. I was flattered that someone would actually be proud to hang my artwork in their living or family room. Some have them in their bedrooms and hall ways. After switching over to oils to see how they work out, I find the wet on wet technique much easier and less challenging than with acrylics. With acrylics, you have to think and plan each move before applying the next layer although it is much easier fixing a mistake or a happy accident than it is with oils. The look of acrylic paintings isn’t the same as with oils and can be spotted easily enough as it has a lot to do with the brush stroke visibility in oils.

I still enjoy painting, using the large brushes with acrylics and every so often come back to them just for the challenge. I learned quite a bit learning the process with acrylics before getting involved with oils. I feel that it was a stepping stone to what I paint today and that includes portraits, birds, animals and still my favorite landscapes. Painting with acrylics especially using large brushes, takes much longer to finish than with oils. I painted a 9”x12” landscape the other day, which took me all day and started an 18”x24” landscape yesterday and just finished it today, late afternoon. Normally, I would have completed both of these paintings in about an hour using oils.

I would suggest giving large brushes a chance with acrylic painting for an alternative to the wet on wet. Just remember that each layer must dry completely before adding a new one otherwise you will become a mud mixer. Using large brushes in the same manner as with wet on wet is a bit more challenging and perhaps even frustrating for some in the beginning. I find it a thinking game and have fun just trying to figure out how to adapt a certain stroke used in wet on wet to acrylics. There’s no one out there to show me how to make it easier so it’s up to me to figure out the solution. The feeling is much greater after finishing a painting with acrylics than with oils because I had to figure out each step by myself. No copying here.

Here are a few of my earlier acrylic paintings using large brushes.

winter scene

hidden stream

learning from Bill Alexander

Black River

Black River

water falls at dawn

If you are still adamant and want to use the wet on wet technique using acrylics, you may want to try the Atelier interactive paints. Atelier Interactive is the only brand that can be used for controlled wet blending as well as standard techniques. Here's a link for their website http://atelieracrylic.com/products/atelier-interactive/ there are a few videos there as well,

8 essential things I’ve learned about the wet on wet technique no one tells you about.

I paint seven to eight hours a day, seven days a week and have been doing this for several months now. I am totally hooked on painting and like I was as musician, now I eat sleep and shit art.  Art can be even more expensive, as it already is, especially if you listen to other people’s advice who really haven‘t tried it themselves. It’s always easy to give advice but another to live by it.

As I muddle through this learning process in the art world, I’m finding out that many of the so called artists have no clue as to what they are talking about especially when it comes to the wet on wet technique or non toxic brush cleaning..  I’m retired and don’t have money to burn on expensive supplies suggested by someone who is just yapping at the mouth to sound important. Prices on painting supplies are inflated so that the sellers can play games with so called sales. Take a good look at some of these web sites selling art supplies and compare them with a few others. Have you noticed that the msrp (manufacturer suggested retail price) for the exact same thing varies from one site to the next? If those are actual suggested prices by the same manufacturer, then why are they all so different from each other? Those are all inflated prices making you think that the price they are offering is a good deal. Don’t believe it. It’s probably not even close to being what the item(s) are really worth or the actual msrp.

As for me, I’m going to find the least expensive route to enjoy painting. I’m not looking to make this thing my future nor am I going to go to school to major in art. I probably don’t have many years left of life so I’m going to enjoy the time what I have left thru art.

So, what have I learned after 125+ wet on wet paintings within ten months?

1. Don’t let anyone tell you what to paint or how to paint. Art is art no matter if it’s done with a sprayer, finger, knife, little brush or a big brush. Whether you paint cartoons, real life, portraits, animals, plants etc. makes no difference. You are the artist and as one have the license to paint whatever you want and whatever way you see fit on that piece of canvas.

I remember as a little boy in first grade, the teacher told us that we couldn’t listen to jazz. It wasn’t real music. I turned out to be a professional jazz musician for five decades.

2. Art is very personal and you are going to always have critics no matter how well or what style you paint. I’ve known other artists criticizing others in their style or the subject matter. Just like above with jazz, many will tell you that the wet on wet technique isn’t real art. The hell with them. It’s quite obvious to me that they do this to compensate for their own inadequacies in art. It’s an ego thing.

3. One does not need Bill Alexander or Bob Ross brushes to do the paintings.
There are 2 that I can’t do without and that is the no.6 Bob Ross fan brush. I haven’t been able to find anything comparable to it yet. Same goes for the script liner brush. All of the other brushes; round, filbert, 1”,2” and 21/2”, I’ve been able to find elsewhere and have no problems with them. The 1”,2” and 21/2” are bought from the local home improvement store’s paint department. They are simply stain and varnish sash/trim brushes and a hell of a lot less costly.

It has also been said that one can’t use synthetic brushes for this type of painting. Bull crap, I use polyester brushes along with my China bristle blend brushes successfully using non toxic cleaners.

4. When purchasing pre stretched canvases, why do I need double or triple primed ones or the intermediate level ones which cost two to three times more? If I’m just practicing the art form for the sake of learning and improving my strokes etc, it doesn’t make sense to spend all of that money on something that may be thrown out or burned later. Canvas panels work just fine even for the wet on wet technique. I make my own hard board paint panels for a little over a buck off a 24"x48" panel which costs about $3.79. And no let me repeat that...NO liquid white or liquid clear will not soak up into the cardboard. I've done a few tests and found both to be wet even after 72 hrs.

5. One does not need to paint the stretched canvas or hard-boards black using black gesso. If you are practicing the wet on wet technique why spend a lot of money on gesso when black acrylic paint will do the job. One 8 oz/236ml bottle of Apple Barrel black matte acrylic paint cost me $2.50 and the same size bottle of black gesso cost me about $12.50. In the earlier days of Bob Ross he used acrylic paint. You can also use acrylic white and gray paints for the background. I’ve never had a problem with liquid white or liquid clear drying up during a session.

I started using colored acrylic paints for some of my backgrounds, sky, hills, trees etc and use the oils for the fore ground and special effects minimizing some of the hazards. It works fine, just allow the acrylic paint to dry fully.Here a link to better understand about acrylics under oils: http://www.winsornewton.com/na/discover/tips-and-techniques/acrylic-colour/acrylics-as-underpainting-layers-us. I use a hair drier to speed up the process. Sometimes I’ll use liquid clear and sometimes nothing but transparent paint over the acrylics followed by liquid white to bring out the color. Remember that wet on wet is simply layering paints.

I first learned of the wet on wet concept using acrylic paints. In painting with acrylics it is much the same except you allow the paint to dry first. It’s okay. You can still get similar results. They won’t be identical because it’s a different medium but you can still use large brushes as with oils. Sometimes I mixed Slo-Dri blending medium into my acrylic paints to keep it wet and then placing another layer on top. It’s all about the brushes, knives and layers.

6. They will tell you that once you do wet on wet painting that you can’t improve yourself as an artist. FALSE! The wet on wet got me interested in painting and today I paint animals, birds and do portraits in addition to the wet on wet technique. I’ll even add animals and birds to my wet on wet paintings. I’ve never had a lesson.

7, Toxic brush cleaners such as odorless paint thinners, odorless mineral spirits, Turpenoid etc, has the potential of killing you or at the least creating some serious health issues. If it says to use in a well ventilated area, it’s toxic!

After about four months of painting and washing my brushes in odorless Turpenoid, daily, I began having some serious health problems not only respiratory but neurological ones. Currently I’m going through a detox program and my lungs are clearing up. I’m still having some neurological issues and I hope that will resolve itself in time.

They say that the paints aren’t toxic but some contain hazardous materials such as cadmium, cobalt,zinc oxide etc.which if touched by bare skin can go directly into your blood stream as in my case. I now wear vinyl gloves while painting. As the paints dry, they emit a strong odor which for me also helped create these serious health issues. I now place my wet completed art piece into a separate room for a few days to harden.

Many an artist, won’t have any issues using toxic brush cleaners/mediums and paints but there are many of us that will. Do what’s necessary so you won’t have similar issues I’m going through. They have been rough times which also have had an impact on my mental health. I’m thinking about changing my oils to the water mixable ones or walnut based instead of linseed oil but I first need to compare the overall costs. The other possibility is to use more acrylic paints and use oils for special effects and only for the fore front. We’ll see what transpires once I’m fully detoxed. In the mean time I’m back to using acrylics for now getting the paintings ready for oils since I already have plenty of heavy body acrylic paints.

8. Don't believe half of the advice given on the internet. Most of it is unfounded lacking credibility. There is plenty of advice out there for cleaning brushes using non toxic methods. I’ve tried several. Apparently those who gives this advice have never tried them or perhaps use them on small brushes. It’s easy just to throw out some b.s advice without testing it first. A buddy of mine, not an artist suggested I use canola oil.

The viscous oils I’ve tried do not work well with large brushes used for the wet on wet technique. I found myself spending a lot more time cleaning brushes than painting. There was one which used; one part vegetable oil, one part dish washing detergent and two parts of water/ shake well. Worked fine for small brushes, not for large especially where one uses a lot of paint and fills the brush fully as in wet on wet. This method also ruined my expensive Bob Ross brushes rendering them useless. I had some one and two inch BR brushes which I received in a kit for last Christmas.

Walnut oil worked very well, is oil paint friendly and can be used as a medium, but a small 16oz bottle can be pretty costly even from the supermarket. It‘s a bit too viscous. I find that the paint is mostly suspended up at the top of my cleaning bucket and is good for only a few paintings. It is reusable after the muck settles to the bottom after several days of non use. In the meantime, a new clean batch is needed. I will have to try to tweak this idea a bit more in the future.

I tried mineral oil, the stuff baby oil is made from. I picked up a 16oz bottle for only $1.88 at Walmart in the drug department. It’s used as a laxative. Once again it works fine for small brushes but not for large. Making sure that all of the oil is removed from the brushes is critical since mineral oil does not dry leaving your canvas tacky.

Next, I tried olive oil, which did a real nice job cleaning the brushes. I purchased a 16oz bottle at Aldi’s for a little over $3 but olive oil won’t dry either and you need to remove any trace of it off the brushes with soap and water.

Someone had mentioned Murphy’s Oil soap. It was inexpensive enough, non toxic and about $3 for 16oz. It’s fairly viscous and needs to be cut with water so I used two to one ratio, meaning two parts of water to one part of oil soap. Worked great for small brushes. It worked okay for larger brushes but not quite there yet. I had an idea to try the olive oil first followed by a bath in Murphy’s Oil soap and a final wash in clear warm water to remove any residue from both. I even dried my brushes on a paper towel after beating it dry on my brush beater. It worked just as well as the Turpenoid without the toxicity or the cost, but with just a few extra washes. For just a brush cleaner, I like it. Yeah I know, you’re thinking, why doesn’t he try Turpenoid Natural, right? The cost of the stuff is outrages, overpriced and inflated, no way in hell. Besides you still have to wash your brushes in water and it won’t go that far hence you are making Weber rich.

Safflower oil needs to be mixed half and half with linseed oil for it to work well. But the non boiled linseed oil is way too expensive. The boiled linseed oil will yellow your painting after a while if there is any residue.

Sunflower oil is also a possibility which I haven’t tried yet. The cost is up there with walnut oil. I may give it a try in the near future and will post my findings after I do.

For more art stuff visit me here:Markku-artist

over a hundred paintings in nine months

A little over nine months and almost 1,800 hours later I still find this painting thing obsessive. I suppose that it’s no different from any of the other ventures I’ve taken on in the past. Everything I do and have done, I do it with passion. It’s a good thing I’m fully retired now and have plenty of time to devote to art. It’s also a good thing my wife is not against me spending so much time painting. She painted when young and perhaps sees some talent in me and does not mind.  Artists are a dime a dozen but like in music good musicians are far and in between. I’m not talking about bands per se but individuals. Most just aren’t dedicated enough and willing to sacrifice their time to become great.

Beginner artists like wanna be musicians get tired of lack of recognition and creativity and oftentimes end up quitting because they haven’t really learned anything new to add to their repertoire. Bob Ross videos can only take you so far if that’s all you want to do, don’t really pay attention to his ramblings and won‘t take it to the next level. I learn something new with each painting and use it in the next. I just finished my 106th painting. The last ten have been portraits. In doing portraits I find toddlers and the elderly the most challenging. I just finished a painting of an elderly woman which took me over three weeks and four re do’s before getting her to look like herself. A toddler, I did as my first, took me almost three weeks, but the second one only a week while the third, a day. I’m thinking that it’s the learning curve and expect the next elderly portrait to go a lot smoother. Portraits in between the two ,have all gone fairly smooth and finished them within a few days, a week at the most.

I started watching the old Bob Ross videos on You Tube again, not that I want to copy his stuff but, to learn something new. If you actually pay close attention, somewhere in between his ramblings, he teaches something. Each time I watch his videos, I pick up something new and apply it to what ever I might be doing. I’ve watched about forty something of his videos thus far. Other artists say that you can’t use his technique in other styles. No, you may not be able to use a two inch brush to create a portrait on a standard size canvas, but you sure as hell can use the liquid clear, liquid white or liquid black in there the same way. I even use black acrylic gesso and then paint the skin area of the portrait a khaki or lite mocha color followed by liquid clear after the pour on type matte finish, acrylic paint is totally dry. It’s a little more prep involved but the results are outstanding. I love the black canvas effect. Using the fan brush to create the look of hair goes a long way in making it look realistic.

Sure I could go out and take some lessons, but I think that would only stifle my creativity. There are way too many rules to remember and guidelines to follow. Nope not me, can’t learn that way. Like in music, fishing and other ventures, I just get out and do it although I was formally trained as a musician ,which, I had to just forget to become creative.

oil painting with aurora borealis

another oil painting with aurora borealis

yet another oil painting with aurora borealis

oil painting of a toddler

another oil painting of a toddler

yet another oil painting of a toddler

an oil painting of a 70 yr old friend on black canvas taking it off a photo. It was an experiment with facial color tones

an oil painting of a nephew on black canvas

an oil painting of an elderly neighbor woman on black canvas. I was experimenting with shadows

All of the above were painted on black canvas. I used a black acrylic gesso to make a white canvas black. Sometimes I had to use a white gesso followed by black acrylic paint. The problem with just mixing black paint with the white gesso is that often times as I use a pour on acrylic black paint, the mix becomes clumpy before I can get it on the canvas as the area I paint in is very dry and acrylic paints dry extra fast. Yes, I've only been painting for 37 weeks.