Blending oil paints on a small scale.

[Redfinger]

Hey all, long time since my last post!! Any way I have been working with oils for a while now. Used them for weathering, highlighting, shading and have had some fun. I am really looking to up my game with my oil work and looking for a little advice on blending.

First off here are a few examples of some work I have done with oils;

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Usually what I do is basecoat in my acrylic color of choice, then use oils to enhance the shadow and highlight. This is done by putting a small amount of my shade or highlight color down, and then using a large flat brush to dry brush and blend it in. This technique works I have found really well on large flat surfaces. The problem comes when I am wanting to create highlights and shadows on small areas like faces, muscles or panels. Here is an example of type of shading I am talking about

He places his highlight and his shadow, and says "blend"...I am wondering if he is adding a little spirits to his brush, or if he is just using a dry brush method similar to what I described above.

Also, the other oil question I had was in regards to mixing colors. I have the basic colors, red, blue, yellow, green, burnt umber, raw umber, black and white. I have been reading articles on mixing colors using black, white and the 3 primary colors but I am having a hard time with flesh tones. Any suggestions on mixing the skin tone colors for highlights and shadows?

Thanks in advance guys!!

Ashton

 

[freakinacage]

tbh I have always struggled getting good blends on small areas with oils. I find it's either a crap blend or over blended so it's all the same colour! He seems to be feathering the blending in. Light touches with a fine brush that slowly and subtly merge the colours

 

[Chrispy]

Yep- oils are great for blending and retaining their colors. Only problem I had (which was user error) was that I had put them on a wet palette paper insert, and when they kept drying out I would mixing them again and paper fibers got into them. For some reason, things blended on a canvas or mini look tons better than if you'd pre-mixed all the colors.

 

[Ludilla]

Hi Ashton

I have used oil for weathering or any other effect on my models.
Oil colors are awesome! ^_^

Use oil colors on 28mm models to paint skin...it's quite more difficult.
Video showed a 54mm or 75mm model, on this scale you can better manage oil colors.

I can write you my oil color palette... put them on the plate as show in the video.
From left to right:
Ivory Black, Raw Umber, Burnt Sienna, Naples Yellow Light, Titanium White
Center:
Gold Madder Lake, Cobalt Violet Deep
Bottom:
Cobalt blue (or green) for eyes in big scale...not 28mm!

Colors are "Ferrario" - Van Dyck Serie
http://www.ferrariospa.com/lineaProdotto.php?idCat=547

Probably W&N has some little difference in them tones... ;-)

Use White Spirit just to clean brush...

Put on your model light an shadow and then use a middle tone color blending the other two.
You must use a very (very!!) little quantity of color and press with brush blending the colors.
That video show you carefully how to do it.


Francesca

 

[shakes]

Does anyone know what state his brush is in when he blends the colors together? As in is he using a dry brush or a brush dipped in solvent?

Cheers, Shakes.

 

[Ludilla]

Hi Shakes

He is using a dry brush when he blends the color thgether.

Cheers, Francesca.

 

[shakes]

Thanks Francesca!

 

[whiteraven2008]

I have to say, the video was one of the most instructive for me that I've seen. It's helped me out enormously to understand the process and I can now picture it more clearly than ever!

 

[boubi]

Yes, it is a good video, wish to have more like this!
Then one rule I got, don't use solvent when blending oil, just to clean the brush, and always dry the brush well before blending the rest.

 

[Wombat85]

One thing that becomes necessary is to redo the highlights and lowlights a second time after you blend when doing small areas. I do i on 15mm faces so it can be done at a smaller scale. Take a little of you highlight/lowlight and the blend it over the dried blend in the darkest/lightest area. This will give you the high end contrasts you want.

Also it my opinion that cleaning your brush in solvent so often is a waste, just rub it dry then clean at the end of the session.

 

[boubi]

Also it my opinion that cleaning your brush in solvent so often is a waste, just rub it dry then clean at the end of the session.

True, I also did like this recently and it is working well, the colors are not mixing together, and on top of it it is much faster... Because cleaning then drying the brush takes some time, compared to working with your colors quickly between each others without cleaning your brush with solvent is much faster.

 

[Redfinger]

Thanks for all the information guys!!