PAINTS

I love to hunt out a superb product! Our trade war has inspired me on to dig deeper, and closer to home in my quest for perfect products. I have NOT been disappointed!

Closest to home, I have found the remarkable 100% Canadian paint company, Beam Paints, in Ontario. This "artisan" paint company looks rustic, but behind the inviting artisan look is very careful crafting and extensive testing for all the right things: workability, colour permanence and health friendliness. These paints are AP rated yet are remarkably lovely to use, and reap spectacular results. They manufacture watercolours and gouache. I also carry Winsor Newton Professional, from England.

I have flushed out some amazing acrylics! Nobel, a Quebec company, manufactures Nobel Professional Grade Acrylics meet the same criteria. They are uniform in consistency, pigmentation levels, and have better slip than their much pricier renowned counterpart, Golden. Nobel's product is a deal! And they perform perfectly, and have the non-toxic AP safety rating.

For oil paints, I have had to go slightly further afield for products that meet my standards of excellent. Rembrandt Oil Colours (parent company: Royal Talens out of England), has manufactured oil paint for a century or more in Amsterdam and continues to do so. All products that I have chosen are permanently durable, will not fade or yellow, have great workability and so importantly - they are all non-toxic and VOC free. With these paints, you can achieve the most spectacular colours - any colour in the rainbow, WITHOUT the use of a single toxin. You can also do it with the complete thumbs up from the art conservation community. For archival reasons and working properties, I still go state-side for the only white I recommend for oils: Gamblin FastDry Titanium white. It is alkyd (therefore faster drying), has superior film strength, highest tinting strength, and is non-yellowing.