3 Tools You Didn't Know You Needed for Oil Painting

Hi fellow Artists! Today I am sharing three totally essential oil painting tools that you may not have even realized you needed, but will never be able to live without once you have used them!

(And I even include a fourth one at the end that you could literally implement today for free!)

The Goods:

(Here are a few affiliate links to the items I'm sharing today. Any purchase here helps to support my channel at no extra cost to you - thank you!!)

Tube Wringers:

Metal:https://bit.ly/3lDCo7O

Plastic: https://bit.ly/3EkuDu8

Mahl Sticks:

Metal: https://bit.ly/3SbXPZW

Wood: https://bit.ly/3IkwyAa

Chamois so you can make your own: https://bit.ly/3KjpoOX

Neutral Lights:

Table Clamp: https://bit.ly/3kaNJMl

Standing: https://bit.ly/3EmoLQZ

(and there’s more through these links if you peek around!)

2.19.2023

Open an Instagram Art Shop for FREE!

How much would you love to be able to have your customers purchase right from your art page on Instagram?! And how about a free, easy to set up website that goes along with it?? Score!!

If you aren't already selling your art online then this video is a total necessity. You only need three things to get started: an Instagram business page for your artwork, an email address, and a laptop (because I think this process would be a bit tricky to do on a phone screen).

Check my brand new Instagram page and website below for a little inspo on how to set up shoppable posts and make an easy website for your artwork too. You can even get a little deeper with your website by adding 'About', 'Home' and 'Contact' pages!

https://www.instagram.com/sockmonsterposse/

https://www.sockmonsterposse.com

Here are the websites I reference in the video:

Happy selling!

https://squareup.com/signup/us?lang_code=en-US

https://www.godaddy.com/domains

9.5.2021

How to Deal with Procrastination as an Artist

...and not let it kill your productivity! Dealing with procrastination as an artist can feel really defeating. It's like, 'I love what I do, so why is it so hard to make myself do it?!'

Oftentimes we tend to procrastinate when the task at hand seems either really boring, or scarily daunting, so today I'm going to give you some real tips you can start applying to your own art and art biz practice to not only be more productive, but to give yourself a little self-care in the process.

Don’t let yourself live like this hilarious quote… get good at LIMITING your procrastination :)

“Do I struggle with procrastination? Nope I am really good at it.”

Tips for dealing with procrastination as an artist include:

• Listen to your body and give yourself permission for a little downtime before getting right to work. Sometimes we can procrastinate because we are tired and our brains just don’t feel like functioning at full throttle so it will make us lethargic and prone to watching or scrolling because those are sedentary, mind-numbing activities. If you really need to, take a 20-30 minute nap first and then you’ll feel refreshed to work.

• Conversely, maybe a 20-30 walk will help you wake up a bit more. Getting your blood flowing and your body moving with some deep breaths of fresh air is an excellent way to wake up - and don’t miss this opportunity for brainstorming! You’re much better off saving the music for later to use this refreshing time at hand to think about, plan, and get inspired for your next project.

• Get rid of visual distractions. Put away anything like games or toys, or even laundry or other chores that make it too easy to walk away from some of the more boring tasks we have to do for our small businesses. Sometimes even leaving your house with your laptop to sit at a coffee shop or park bench is a fantastic way to give yourself only the one task at hand to deal with - this is a trick I use often to help me concentrate on writing for blogs, newsletters, and emails.

• Learn to tell the difference between educating yourself and procrastinating. It can be easy to watch a million YouTube videos or take a million classes, but at a certain point you need to go ahead and get your hands dirty. The best way to learn is by hands-on practice, so in life, in general, you should never stop learning. However don’t let instruction take the place of actual application.

• Write a list! Have a list of what you need to get done, then break it into smaller, more manageable tasks that you list out on your daily planner. (Check out the video for tips on how I use a list to turn ginormous daunting projects into bite-size pieces that are far less intimidating to complete.

• Do the easy small tasks that you can first. The momentum of checking things off the list will encourage you to keep going. Always realize that any big task can be broken down into much smaller steps

• Break your work time into small manageable chunks. Sometimes I set a timer for only 45 minutes and give myself a 20 minute break after that much work. Surprisingly two or three sessions like this in a day will yield far greater work than you could have imagined!

• Sometimes it helps to have a goal written up someplace where you will see it all of the time. Attaching something to your cork board or a piece of painters tape across the top of your laptop reminding you of your biggest goal can be a huge inspiration in the fight against procrastination.

Let me know in the comments here or on YouTube if you would be interested in a video about how to effectively write and manage your ‘To Do’ list!

Resources:

How to Paint a Skull in Oil

Yes, this Puma Skull 3D oil painting is for sale here.

4.11.2021

How to Write an About Me Page for Artists

Do you have your 'About Me' page set up on your website yet? Do you know that it's different than your bio or artist statement? Well don't worry at all because your Birdie is going to to break down your About Me page into easy bite-sized chunks that will make it an absolute breeze to write.

Your Bio is more of a professional write up, your About Me is more about you as a human and artist, and your Artist Statement is more about a specific body of work. None of these should be too long, nor are they too difficult to write if you just follow a few simple guidelines

Want to read my own Bio + About Me? https://www.caleighbirdart.com/about

Here's my Bio video and my Artist Statement video and even a whole playlist about writing about your art!

If you need any one-on-one help, remember I’m here for art + art biz mentoring via Zoom :)

2.7.2021

How to Write an Artist Bio

Did you know that your Artist Bio, your About Me page, and your Artist Statement are three totally different things? Yikes, right?!!?

Don't worry about a thing! Today we are going to talk about exactly what needs to go in your artist bio, either for your own website, or for when you/your art get featured somewhere. It should be short and sweet and contain all the interesting bits about your (professional) history as an artist.

Check out my How to Write an Artist Statement video here.

And next week I'll have How to Write an About Me Page

Check out this playlist for even more great advice on how to write about your art.

Yep, I’m available for art mentoring via Zoom! I'm happy to help fellow up-and-coming artists with anything from drawing or painting technique to small art business advice, as well as with perfecting your portfolio or thesis. See how I can help you here!

1.31.2021

The Complete Guide to Oil Painting is Here!!

It’s here! It’s finally here!!

The Complete Guide to Oil Painting has finally arrived in full to my YouTube channel, my Skillshare classroom and as a Workshop on my website! There are oodles of places you can watch it… even for FREE!

That’s right, you can watch this series as a playlist on YouTube or as a totally free course on my Skillshare, or you can download the series off my website for a small fee so that you can have it with you ready to work from whether or not you have internet access.

Enjoy this intro video today, then pop down below for links to all the places to see it in full!

And if you find yourself needing any new art supplies, using my special link helps to support the creation of my videos at no extra cost to you - thank you!!

1.24.2021

Expanded Oil Painting Palette :: Complete Guide to Oil Painting

As you get more familiar with oil painting, you will probably notice that you can't quite mix every color you need with the limited palette I introduced to you in this Basic 5 Color Palette video.

Today I'm sharing with you a second round of oil paints that I find very useful to have around. While you get more proficient as a painter you will surely find even more colors you need, however by then you will really feel comfortable around the art store.

My Oil Painting Basics Complete Guide debuts here and completely for free on my Skillshare Sunday January 24th! Here's the YT Playlist so far (Sorry about the delay! I wanted to have it ready for you before Xmas but moving 3 states away for an exciting new artsy job delayed thigs just a bit:)

Supplies

If you need any supplies, using my special links helps to support this channel at no extra cost to you so thank you very much!

Alizarin Crimson

Cadmium Red

Cadmium Orange

Cadmium Yellow

Lemon Yellow

Yellow Ochre

Burnt Sienna

Raw Umber

Magenta

Ultramarine Blue

Cobalt Blue

Cerulean Blue

Iron Oxide Green: (can’t find) +\- Chromium Oxide Green

Payne's Grey

Titanium White

1.17.2021

How to Clean Up After Oil Painting

Do you know how to properly clean up and dispose of old paint and rags once you've finished oil painting? Cleaning up is one of the more nerve-wracking components of oil painting for many newbies since it deals with chemicals that could pose a potential danger to you and your studio.

Have no fear though, your Birdie is going to break down exactly how to safely and effectively clean up your brushes, your paint palette, and even how to clean out your turpenoid jar when the time comes.

Make sure you catch my 'Complete Guide to Oil Painting' for TONS more great info!

1.10.2021

Guided Sunflower Painting Demo

Are you ready for a complete, step-by-step, stroke-by-stroke oil painting demo to REALLY learn how it's done? Do you have a little extra time this holiday season?

Marvelous!

Then grab your 5 color simple palette (the one I went over in this video) and print up a color copy of this royalty-free image on my blog here:

If you need any of these paint colors please consider using my special links below. Each purchase helps to support my YouTube channel without any additional cost to you. Thanks!

Titanium White: https://bit.ly/2Uqiugo

Cadmium Yellow: https://bit.ly/30e3iWh

Alizarin Crimson: https://bit.ly/2S9HO8t

Ultramarine Blue: https://bit.ly/308ydmU

Raw Umber: https://bit.ly/2xrsAF5

12.27.2020