Encaustic Blog

Years ago I purchased some oil sticks to play with, not having any idea that they would lead me here, to share my encaustic experimentation with you. Searching for information about using R&F pigment sticks with encaustic, I found All Things Encaustic and I was delighted to connect with Ruth who is from Toronto---I am also in Canada, just a little distance away in Westport. Plaster as a Suitable Surface for Encaustic Recently I have been working with plaster on jute or burlap before adding layers of wax. In this post, I share my experimental work and process . As I ...
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Unlock your Creativity | Start Copying As I explore creativity in my own life, I have been reading Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You about Being Creative by Austin Kleon. In this book, Kleon isn't suggesting that we plagiarize or break the law, but he does give us permission to look at the work of others for inspiration and education. "All creative work builds on what came before. Nothing is completely original."(pg.7) We learn by copying. Educate yourself by copying the work of your favourite artists. Discover what they were thinking, start to see things from their perspective. Surround ...
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Encaustic Irony and Rust Thought Bubble…Now rust would be an interesting conversation in an encaustic painting! First hurdle. How do I get this intriguing organic substance for my art without wrestling a rusty piece of iron from the scrap yard into my home studio? Alchemy! Big Box Hardware, here I come. A little aisle surfing and steel wool caught my eye and leapt into the cart! Next hurdle. Break through the protective coating used on steel to prevent rust. Some iron products even have a thin coating of wax. As an encaustic artist, I appreciated the ‘iron’y ...
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Some time ago I discovered Debbie Lyddon's Marshscape Collage series on Pinterest. Since then I have often returned to look at Lyddon's website and blog. I have used fabric as collage in encaustic painting but now I was thinking textile art first. I began looking for a new way to bring together textiles and encaustic wax painting. What is Encaustiflex? Encaustiflex is a new microfiber material, a rip-proof, paper-like product developed by Leslie Giuliani specifically for Encaustic monotypes. Encaustiflex makes it possible for an artist to hand or machine sew their encaustic paintings!!! Thanks to Leslie for sending me a free sample to review here and ...
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Before you begin to paint with encaustic, you'll need to pick-up encaustic art supplies and set-up a studio space. Once you have all the supplies you need in-hand, come back here to learn how to paint with encaustic. 5-step Encaustic painting process 1. Select and prepare a substrate Start with a suitable substrate, you may wish to read about choosing and preparing substrates before you continue.... Before you begin to paint you may wish to use painter's tape to cover the sides of your panel. When you're finished the piece you can remove the tape and decide how ...
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When you've finished a work of art you will want to sign it. The question of how to sign encaustic art comes up on forums and in Facebook groups often. Here I've pulled together some ways I've tried or seen other artists use on their encaustic paintings. 6 ways to sign encaustic art 1. Incise into the wax You can etch your initials or signature into the wax with a sharp tool. Then you can fill the wax with oil paint and wipe off the excess. This is what I did when I first started painting with encaustic. But now when ...
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Here are three simple products that are terrific for cleaning and organizing your encaustic griddle or palette. 1. Use metal clips for palette cups Metal palette cups used for encaustic painting get hot. But thankfully, metal craft clips allow you to easily move the cups around without burning your fingers. Some artists use binder clips or wooden clothes pins. I find that the binder clips can themselves heat up---becoming too hot to hold. Wooden clothes pins will work for awhile, but be careful as they tend to fall apart unexpectedly and you may end up spilling a ...
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