Wet panel carrier!

One problem when painting out doors is how the hell do you transport your fresh panels to the safety of your studio, without smooshing, brushing, dropping, sticking or mucking them up? And if you are out for a day, what if you wanted multiple panels with you for different vistas?

The main issue I found with most commercially available carriers was that they are static, they accommodate one or a few set sizes. Its Annoying when you have a ton of different sized panels, (specifically if you find a nice frame in an antique shop , and want a panel to fit it)




So Ive been playing about with making my own, Macguyver-ish lightweight carrier, and after butchering my french easel (very satisfying by the way) I got some nice brass bolts, screws and hinges, and rummaging about finding various strips of wood around the studio, I made this. A dynamic wet panel carrier that will accommodate any sizes up to 35x43 cm (thats 14x17 " for you yanks).



There are 3 "slots". The middle one is static for one large panel. The outer two are adjustable. With 2 screws on each side I can fasten up to four panels of any size not exceeding the box dimensions, allowing me to carry up to 5 panels at once. I can also fit a stretched canvas in there if I leave the middle slot empty, and still bring panels with me on the opposite side. The width of my panels are 3 or 4 mm. (Birch plywood of course!)



I hope this was helpful for anyone else getting annoyed with keeping their work safe.

Argh! The GLARE!

After getting thoroughly annoyed at sunlight glinting off my shiny chrome ferrules on the paintbrush, I decided to do something about it.



Bring out sandpaper, enamel paint and a disposable brush. Sand the ferrule and paint on the black matte enamel paint, taking great care not to get paint on the bristles. Let themn thoroughly dry for 4 days, and paint pleine air glare free! Process needs to be repeated every few months, and some of the enamel paint will come off in little flecks, but Im fine with that, as long as I dont get that retina-burning sun reflection when Im out.




"Less farting about, more painting!" some would say, and you'd probably be right.

Lead primed Plywood

Nate the mule brought down a sheet of Birch plywood from Gothenburg, cut in to more manageable 12x16 inch panels, and we had a grand old day sanding and priming (Actually Gus and Nate did the sanding and priming, I think I came up with some sort of excuse)

After sanding they were primed with 2 coats of regular gelatin from the department store. This is an age old primer, and much the same as hide glue, according to Nate.



After that they got a thin layer of Michael Hardings Cremnitz white, mixed with 15% calcium carbonate for some added tooth and linseed oil to make it easier to apply. Application was done with a soft sponge.



They were then put in the racks and dried for about 2 weeks,



then I put on the second coat, to make up for not sanding the boards. They will now be left to dry for about a month. Dont sand in between these coats unless you have adequate protection. Lead dust is no good inhaling.


Cant wait to give them a try!