Posts Tagged: favorites
Favorites: Jerry’s Artarama art supply online store
It can be difficult these days to find decent art supplies at good prices. It seems like the selection of artist-quality art supplies in the major craft stores like Michaels and Hobby Lobby is always getting smaller, with the focus shifting to cheaper student-quality or craft/hobby supplies. In some ways, it’s understandable—the stores have to carry what sells. But quality is important!
Several years back, I tried out some professional, artist-quality paint brushes. Wow! I had been using decent but still student-quality brushes. The difference was definitely noticeable in the way they handled and their resilience. I was hooked! I’m definitely convinced now about the benefit of using those more expensive, higher quality art materials.
Photo by Deeana Creates from Pexels
So, since it was getting difficult to find the higher quality in the stores within a reasonable distance (there aren’t really any ‘true’ art supply stores near where I live currently) , I moved my search online. My favorite of the online stores that I’ve found so far is Jerry’s Artarama. They have a wide selection of products covering a wide range of quality. There’s something for everyone. They also have a number of brands that appear to be exclusive to them. Now, frequently ‘store brand’ art supplies are of… questionable quality. I haven’t found that to be the case with Jerry’s. I’ve used a number of their own brand products and have been pleasantly surprised at the quality, especially considering their very reasonable prices.
The shipping at Jerry’s isn’t too expensive and their free shipping minimum purchase is quite reasonable (currently $35). I’ve also always been impressed with the way my orders have been packaged—I’ve never had anything arrive damaged, and I’ve ordered some pretty fragile items. I can’t really comment on their customer service though, as I’ve never had any need to contact them about an order. Their website has a very useful blog, art contests and a variety of free art lesson videos. So, next time you are searching for quality art supplies at reasonable prices, give Jerry’s Artarama a try.
Have you tried Jerry’s Artarama? What are your favorite sources for art supplies?
The Search for the Perfect Palette
In a painting class I took in college we had these wooden carts with glass tops for storing our supplies. The glass top acted as your palette, so you could sit or stand and work and didn’t have to hold your palette in your hand. I’ve never personally been a fan of hand-held palettes. Partially because so many of them are cut to hold in your left hand, so the angle is wrong for a lefty like me to use it with your right hand but also because I tend to get pretty… involved in my painting. At times, I even forgo brushes and use my fingers to get just the right effect (I guess I never quite grew out of the whole childhood finger painting thing?). So I find it awkward and difficult to use a handheld palette. I Loved those glass-topped carts. They were old and ratty from years of abuse by art students, but the glass still worked great.
Photo by Lisa Fotios from Pexels
Once I was out “in the real world” I realized just how poorly the typical artist’s palettes worked for me. They were the wrong size or the wrong shape. They never had quite enough room. They were impossible to clean. I needed something better. I missed those carts with their glass tops.
Aha! A quest! After a great deal of searching, I discovered the perfect solution: Amaco Classic Glass Palettes. It’s a rectangular glass palette, just like the tops of those carts, but I could put it anywhere I wanted. No bulky cabinet attached! It comes in two sizes of rectangular palette as well as a more traditional oval hand held style. I got the smaller size, since at the time I was living in an apartment without a dedicated studio space. My kitchen breakfast nook served multiple roles: kitchen table, computer desk, art workspace. I needed something that wouldn’t overhang the edges of the tabletop and was small enough to stash somewhere else after a painting session. Recently, I’ve been considering getting the larger size, since I now have a dedicated studio space. It never hurts to have more room for mixing colors!
Anyway, this thing is great. It has a nice, smooth surface that’s perfect for mixing paints. It’s not absorbent so it doesn’t stain or discolor and cleans up easily. I use it solely with oils, though acrylics are supposed to peel off easily. Wet oil paint just wipes off and dried paint can be scraped off with a razor blade. On the downside, it Is glass, so it’s heavy and fragile. Since I paint indoors in my studio, that’s not really an issue for me, though caution is warranted. It’s best to keep it out of reach of pets, small children, or clumsy roommates!
What about you–have you found Your perfect palette?