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I just checked out the info on a watercolor tutorial (by Pat) listed in an earlier thread. I waould love to try this. Do I need an aquapainter? Are they sold in stores (called this or something else)?
I love the look and feel very challenged by watercolor techniques. I guess I should just take the plunge and try.
I have also wanted a mister - bought one and water comes out in drops rather than a mist. Right now it would work better for me to buy in a store - we are on the move in our rv and it is harder to order things. (Space is a problem, too, but that is another issue!)
Thanks for any help some one can give. I have been loving the techniques/tips threads going lately. Great ideas.
I Love love love mine! You can get a soft look by squeezing the pad and using the ink. A more vivid look by putting a drop of reinker inside the lid of the pad. You can use watercolor pencils and crayons to a much better effect than blender pens. I have seen them at craft stores, but they are the same price as SU. I love my SU ones and have used them SO much that I am on my second set....mostly cause my 2 yo chewed one up when he was about 16 mos.
I've found that watercolor techniques take some getting used to and DO require proper tools if you want certain effects.
I bought a water-brush pen at Michael's,.. when I first started trying to use inks (from the lids of pads) to watercolor and was SORELY disappointed with the results. I ended up giving that pen to my kids and purchasing one from CTMH (hey...! At the time I didn't know about SU). The one I purchased from them was better. I just got my SU demo kit, though, and THOSE pens seem to work even better than CTMH's variant. So...I'm unsure if there's really a difference, or if I'm just getting better at the technique, but I do think the quality of materials matters.
Also, I have a friend who's been experimenting with watercolor pencils and she's finding that the SU waterbrush/aquapainter works better for her than the one she bought at Wally-World.
__________________ "Just because it's unexplicated does not make it unexplicable." - HOUSE
I never cared for the blender pens, but I love my aquapainter! I use it ALL the time and not just for watercoloring, although that's it's main job I also use it to seal envelopes (they just taste yucky to me!), wet mulberry paper and curl cardstock. Oh, and I also use it with my perfect pearls--works great!
Yes, you really do! I just got mine about a week ago. Before I used blender pens and watercolor pencils, but now that I have all 48 ink pads I will be using my aquapainters for almost all of my stamping! Treat yourself! It's worth it!
I am asking myself this same question. I use brushes and a cup of water. I like having different sizes and shapes of brushes.....what can I do with an Aquapainter that I can't do with brushes and water????? And......how do you clean the brush??
I was wondering about the aquapainter too (it's kinda pricey, so I wanted to try before I bought it). I had a chance at a recent stamping class, and I have to say that I prefer a selection of regular watercolour paint brushes. I know lots of people just love it, and it has some convenience features, but I know I don't need one. Artists have been using paint brushes for centuries. They work great.
Misters: I'm not sure what you want, but for misters I use either a plant mister that I bought at a gardening shop, or I reuse hair product bottles. Either way, I get a super-fine mist. (But maybe I misunderstood your question)
__________________ ~ Children nowadays are tyrants. They contradict their parents, gobble their food and tyrannize their teachers ~ (attributed to Socrates 470-399 BC)
I started a thread on this about a month ago. I like to watercolor but wasn't convinced I needed a AquaPainter. SU's were too expensive and I didn't need 2, so I bought one at Michael's with a coupon and it was under $5. It works just fine but frankly, I don't see any advantage over regular paintbrushes. It doesn't work any better or produce greater results. I clean it by running water over the brush.
Aquapainters are very handy and I love mine. I think they're very convenient and for those of us who aren't very skilled with paintbrush & water, it's easy to control the amount of water used. I have a bunch of paintbrushes but the AP is a bit easier for me to use.
I have found the best mister to be an old cheap hair spray bottle. Buy a 78� bottle of hair spray to spray on chalks and Pearl Ex and then buy another and empty it and wash it out well. Fill it with water. It gives a nice very fine mist. I have gotten squirt bottles that have gotten a fine mist, but they tend to leak from the squeeze trigger at that tightness so I went to hair spray bottles.
__________________ Michelle
Docorate of De-Edumacation, Lawd, How Cum granted by Rainsong
"What's life if not doing things for other people?" Martin Gray
Thanks again to all who gave advice and opinions. I'll try the hair spray bottle for a mister. And will have to figure out whether to try an aquapainter.
Paula thanks for mentioning your previous thread. I should have searched first. I was without the internet for a while and missed that one. I did go back and read what was said then. And double thanks to those who were nice enough to reply to both. You are so great at sharing.
just to chime in and, I guess, go against some of the recommendations that you've been receiving, I definitely think you should get a brush with a water reservoir. until sweetstamping mentioned the price, I didn't realize the aquapainters were so expensive. I got mine (aquash water brush by pentel) at my local art store for less than $3 and LOVE it. I love it so much that I think that if my art store would to shut its doors forever and I could only get another one from SU for the aforementioned $16.95, I'd do it. that being said, I'm glad I don't have to pay that much. ;)
I've recently gotten into watercolor pencils and twinkling H2Os and the water brush has made using them so much easier than just with regular paintbrushes, the tH2Os especially! the water comes down by capillary action so I don't run into over loading water problems that I had before while the continual supply of water makes it easier to draw out and lighten the color in a continual line. and for the tH2Os, having the brush be always slightly wet lets me pick up only as much color as I want with each stroke. as you can probably tell, I really love this tool!
here is a link for a page that talks about water brushes click here
for a water bottle with a fine misting spray, I use the bottle from sore throat spray. it took a while for the menthol smell to go away but the mist is so perfect I didn't mind it for long. I used the regular kind with trigger handle but as was previously mentioned, the drops are pretty large and clumsy to use for misting effects.
I like to portability of it...but I think I'll stick with brushes and water for now. I haven't had any accidents and this way I can use a variety of brushes and spend my money on the millions of other things on my wish list!!
i think it's easier than water and a brush. a little less headache too. so i will probably be doing more watercoloring in my stamping. is it a must have??? nah
Your thread made me go and get out my aqua painters that I got to round up an order to $150. I think I'm in love.
Yes, water and a brush is just fine but I love the amount of water, just right. I also like that I have no clean up and no possiblility of spilling water on my area (I'm a clutz!) To clean the aqua painter I just wiped it several times on my scrap pad.
Now I'm thinking of filling the other one with either the solution for blender pens (glycerine will give the solution stability) or with the future floor polish (for sheen).
I think I would do the Mikes coupon though. I cannot see the dif between the SU ones and the ones in the store. Hey, I may pick up a third one and do all of the above!!!! I got a coupon burning a hole in my wallet now!
i cheated on my SU demo and purchased an aquapainter at the "M" word (michael's) use your coupon! and i love mine , i suggest you try it, you'll like it i promise!
__________________ ;) peace , love , and jelly beans...
Do I need an Aquapainter?
