www.penciltopics.co.uk

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THIS SECTION ALSO CONTAINS PAGES COVERING :

WORKING the SURFACE

WORKING THE SURFACE

SECTION B

 

SOLVENTS

 

 

There  are a number of options for dissolving and moving the pigment about on the paper - quite apart from the obvious option of water with watercolour pencils.  I am intending to place a small separate topic here about this, which will be completed during the Summer of 2011 and the latter part of this year.

 

Usable solvents include the familiar ‘Zest-It’ which is a non toxic and non inflammable solvent based on Limonene.

This is a solvent sourced from citrus material ( often the rinds of oranges and lemons used for fruit juice production ) and not only acts to dissolve the waxes in Coloured Pencils, but also acts as a de-greaser and glue remover.

It is probably the safest solvent on general sale and can be purchased over the Internet from the UK suppliers and shipped overseas without problems.  It is non-flammable and environmentally friendly

 

Odourless turpentine thinners such as those sold for oil painting will also work but may leave more of a permanent oily mark on a paper surface.

 

In the USA and also sometimes available in Europe, the solvent ‘Gamsol’ can be used. This is a mineral based odourless solvent from a petroleum base that has a higher flash point than turpentine and is generally sold as an oil painting thinner.

 

Turpentine Substitute - also sold as Turpenoid - is another option.

 

There may well be other solvents suitable for CP use and sold throughout the world, let me know of any not listed and give details of known benefits and problems if you can.

 

 

PENDING COMPLETION OF THIS TOPIC

 

Please bear in mind the need to ALWAYS work in a well ventilated area if you are using any solvent.

 

Use small volumes of liquid until you have assessed the effect of what you are using.

 

Store any solvents you are keeping in a cool place

 

Dispose of any fabric that is soaked in the liquid carefully  -  bear in mind there will be cautionary notes on any container that will need reading and understanding.  Some flammable solvents left on material and shut in a container may build up an explosive ability.

 

Keep solvents off your skin

 

If you use limited amounts of solvent on a felt pad, don’t dip the pad in solvent, control the amount of liquid by transferring liquid to the pad with a brush.

 

Avoid wetting the support too much unless you are sure the solvent will not stain it.

 

Solvent can take quite a long time to dry off the picture surface

WORKING METHODS - for moving the medium about  :  SOLVENTS  Dissolving the wax and pigment  :

BLENDERS and BURNISHERS     and     Other ways of MANAGING THE PIGMENT

PLEASE NOTE ......

 

THIS SECTION

IS STILL ‘WORK IN PROGRESS’

..... parts of these pages will be re-arranged and put into a more logical progression and more information added.