Are you an artist who likes working from a wooden palette, but come clean-up your mixing ground gets neglected and the old oil paint becomes hard? Or perhaps you're starting out and looking for tips on how to make your palette sustainable, then we hope this blog can bring you some care tips for your painting pal The Wooden Palette.
Okay, let's begin with the question "When am I supposed to remove the oil paint from my palette?". The quick answer is, ideally, before it dries. If you're working on a glass palette, you won't have to worry about it as much, but if you're working on wood, oil paint can be difficult to remove once dried.
Clean only the new colours you mixed during that session after each session. These are the areas that will dry the fastest over night. This will allow you to experiment with different combinations.
You should prepare your wooden palette thoroughly before using it so that you may start oil painting on it without it absorbing oil colour. To do this, sand the palette to make it smooth, then dip a lint-free cloth in linseed oil and wipe it over it. Remove any remaining oil with a lint-free towel and set aside to dry (this should take a few days). Do not allow the paint to dry.
Remove the paint with the side of your palette knife while it's still wet. Then, using a paper towel or lint-free cloth, wipe the palette clean.
Apply a layer of odourless mineral spirit (Gamsol) or turpentine on your palette if it has dried paint adhering to it. Allow it to soak for 5 minutes before wiping it clean with a paper towel. You may need to use a flat razor to carefully remove any stubborn fragments of paint. If the palette discolours over time, do not stress this is natural for the wood to change as it ages.
Next, get ready to dispose of the oil paint waste. You don't have to be on Greta Thunberg's level to understand that pouring solvents or oil paint down the drain is not a good idea.
This could poison the water supply. It's also a fire hazard to leave oil-soaked rags or paper towels out in the open. As a result, you should appropriately dispose of oil paint waste. To store the waste until you can travel to your local waste disposal unit, you'll need airtight containers.
Remember to keep it closed at all times unless you're filling it with extra waste. When it's full, take it to a hazardous waste facility or contact your local council to find out where you can get rid of it.
*Tip: You can reuse solvent by decanting it into a new container; you won't need to buy new solvent every time you clean.
Comments