How To: Make your own oil paints

Learn how to make your own oil paints.

Making your own oil paints is a lot like growing your own vegetables – homemade is always better than store-bought.

You Will Need

* Pigments
* Linseed oil
* Rubber gloves
* A safety respirator or mask
* Safety glasses or goggles
* A sheet of glass or marble at least a quarter-inch thick
* A grinding slab
* A Muller
* A palette knife or spatula
* Cleaning solution
* Empty paint tubes
* Labels
* Marker
* A clock or one-hour timer
* Canvas-stretching pliers
* And airtight jars

WARNING: Making oil paints will put you in direct contact with fumes that may be harmful. Do the following with a mask and in a well-ventilated area.

Step 1. Put on safety gear
Step 2. Put pigment on grinding slab
Step 3. Add small amount of linseed oil
Step 4. Mix pigment and linseed oil
Step 5. Improve consistency
Step 6. Move the mixture to middle
Step 7. Note the time
Step 8. Pack the paint into tubes
Step 9. Seal the tubes with pliers
Step 10. Label each tube
Step 11. Clean grinding slab
Step 12. Store in airtight jars
Step 13. Use as needed

WARNING: A lot of pigments used in manufacturing paints are surprisingly poisonous. Raw pigment powder is very fine and easily inhaled by accident.

FACT: Commercially manufactured oil paints contain stabilizers, preservatives, and other substances that help extend the paints' shelf lives but can adversely affect the quality of the paint.