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where do you buy gamsol & exactly how do you use it?
Hi, I was wondering if all you wonderful ladies in the know could please tell me where to buy the gamsol everyone talks about and exactly how to use it? I love using my watercolor pencils and also "paint" lots of inks off lids with my aquabrush. But I still don't understand how you use the gamsol, and have not been able to find it in any of the stores in my area. Thanks!
Hi, I was wondering if all you wonderful ladies in the know could please tell me where to buy the gamsol everyone talks about and exactly how to use it? I love using my watercolor pencils and also "paint" lots of inks off lids with my aquabrush. But I still don't understand how you use the gamsol, and have not been able to find it in any of the stores in my area. Thanks!
Sue
Sue -
I'm having the same problem - Michael's and A.C. Moore didn't carry it.
Hopefully someone can tell us where we might be able to find it....
I bought mine online at Dick Blicks. It's a wonderful product. There are some imitations out there but when I did a little research I found out Gamsol is the purest and recommended by art teachers not only for the quality of the art but because it is less harmful. Although it is oderless there are still a small amount of fumes so don't sit it right under your nose when working with it.
You will also need the little rolled paper stumps (sometimes called tortillions). I found mine at Michaels on the same aisle as the colored pencils. Get the paper stump wet with the Gamsol and you can spread and blend your colored pencil like you've never seen. It's so cool! I am a terrible artist but with Gamsol I look good!
Gamsol is inexpensive but you will end up paying about as much in shipping.
Another little tip is to buy the bingo bottles with the sponge caps (oriental trading company-online) and put the Gamsol in them. It's an easy way to use the Gamsol and a good way to store it.
I too, had trouble finding Gamsol at AC Moore, Michael's etc. Then I asked about the mineral spirits and was led to the Odorless Turpenoid. It is a substitute for Gamsol. I don't know if it is as good as Gamsol as I've never tried Gamsol but the Turpenoid works great for me. Good luck! It is lots of fun!!! Now I've been looking for stamps that would be good for the MCP technique. New appreciation for animal and cutesy stamps!
__________________ ~ Wendy ~ *AVATAR--That's my DD's cute feet at the beach when she was 18 months old! She's 5 now!Where did the time go???
I ordered my Gamsol and paper stumps (okay, and a ton of other stuff) from Jerry's Artarama. Their Web site is http://www.jerrysartarama.com/ . Right now they're having a huge sale... some watercolor paint brushes are under a dollar, the paper stumps are like $2 for 6. Fabulous selection, good prices!
The owner of my very good local stamp store told me that it's only available at big art supply stores. I, too, ordered on-line from Jerry's Artarama. It was the cheapest I could find on-line, and it came promptly. Except for the fact that the paper doesn't get wet and misshapen (as it does sometimes when I use my waterpen and watercolor pencils), I can't really see much difference. Maybe my technique isn't the best, though.
KLF - are you using Prismacolor pencils? Some people are using watercolor pencils and that's not right. It has to be a regular pencil. Prismacolor is artist grade soft lead and the Gamasol will give you a VERY different look than watercolor - very intense color.
I purchased Mona Lisa odorless mineral spirits at an art supply store. It was $2.99 for a small bottle. I seem to remember reading about this brand somewhere on this site. I did some coloring with my new prismacolor pencils last night and it worked great with the stumps. I could not find the bingo bottle mentioned, so I found a small plastic bottle with a flip lid, like you have for shampoo, and it works fine. I just put a small amount on a little bit of sponge (which is on a plate) and put my stump on it. Worked great.
*Remember this is for colored pencils and not for watercolor pencils. You can use a blender pen or aquapainter for the watercolor pencils but not mineral spirits.
__________________ �Truth isn't mean. It's truth." ~ Andrew Breitbart (1969-2012)
you can use any kind of refined, oderless turpanoid fluid. Gamsol is just the brand name. I have a gallon jug of the turpanoid I bought when I was in college for oil painting. I know I paid less than $10 for it at the time. If you are having trouble finding it at you craft store, try your hardware or paint store. But most palces *do* carry the equivelant to Gamsol, even if they don't carry that particular brand.
You will really really love those prisma color pencils once you start "painting" with them. Enjoy.
I thought that I read somewhere on here that someone found Gamsol at their Michaels. Maybe some carry and some don't? It could have been another brand too. I should try and find where I read it. I was going to check today. If seems that any brand will work. I wonder if Gamsol really makes a difference?
I just received my Prismacolor pencils on Thursday and gave it a try with the paint thinner that I have. It is very old and is supposed to be odorless (it does have a strong odor). I would like to try the Gamsol and see if it makes a difference.
I was just dipping the stump in the paint thinner and it was getting a little messed up. I will try the above mentioned techniques.
I will eventually master this technique. LOVE the pencils!!
Cindy
Thanks, everyone, for the infomation! I just placed an online order with DickBlick....24 Prismacolor Pencils, 16 oz Gamsol, and 1 dozen stumps for $34.93 (including shipping). The pencils and the stumps were a little cheaper than Jerrysartarama, the gamsol a little higher, but shipping was much less! Thanks also on the heads up about not using Gamsol with watercolor pencils...that is exactly what I was going to do :( So NOW I should be set for both!!
bemidjibelle,
How much did you pay for the Prismacolor pencils? There is another thread with some special codes for ordering them thru Viking.com and you can get the 120 pencil set for $59.98 and there was a $20 off coupon if you spent $50. That comes down to $39.98 for the 120 pencil set. AWESOME deal!!
If you are interested in the details, let me know.
Cindy
Cindy,
I sent you a pm. Thanks again for the info. I ended up canceling the pencil part of my order with DickBlick and ordering the 48 pencils from Viking. Gosh, I am so happy to find so many nice people on this site! You are all so much help!
Sue,
You're welcome. I am glad it all worked out. Now you have more money to spend on other fun stuff!!
This site IS great and everyone is soooo helpful.
Cindy
The more I read about this technique, the more I have to have them. I've always wanted more intense color than watercolor pencils, but I've already spent too much money on stuff I haven't even used, yet. Oh, well, now that I've subscribed to this thread, I'll keep it around for when we win the Lotto. :rolleyes:
bemidjibelle,
How much did you pay for the Prismacolor pencils? There is another thread with some special codes for ordering them thru Viking.com and you can get the 120 pencil set for $59.98 and there was a $20 off coupon if you spent $50. That comes down to $39.98 for the 120 pencil set. AWESOME deal!!
If you are interested in the details, let me know.
Cindy
Yes, can you give me the details?? Thanks, Michael
Just a reminder... you're asking about the post from 2005. Viking.com is part of Office Depot now (I believe their Prismas are now well over $100 for 120). Dick Blick has them for $80 for 120, or $100 for 132. If you order $100 worth of merchandise you get $10 off right now. They also carry paper stumps and Gamsol.
Yup....Viking (sadly) is now gone......I fortunately had gotten in on the $59 120 pencil deal with the $20 off! Best purchase I've ever made. As for the gamsol.....here are stores that sell it
You can get stumps at jerrysartarama.com but their shipping is pretty high. I'll be doing a stump share in the fall if you want to be on the notification list.
You can also use Mona Lisa OMS from M's. I've used both Gamsol and the Mona Lisa and they are quite similar.
If you do plan on getting something from dickblick.com, let me know. I have a way that may save you an additional $5 off!
__________________ Ann Here is my oily blog! CLICK HERE Certified Copic Instructor - Local ClassesI love cars, stamping and essential oils!
Yup....Viking (sadly) is now gone......I fortunately had gotten in on the $59 120 pencil deal with the $20 off! Best purchase I've ever made. As for the gamsol.....here are stores that sell it
You can get stumps at jerrysartarama.com but their shipping is pretty high. I'll be doing a stump share in the fall if you want to be on the notification list.
You can also use Mona Lisa OMS from M's. I've used both Gamsol and the Mona Lisa and they are quite similar.
If you do plan on getting something from dickblick.com, let me know. I have a way that may save you an additional $5 off!
I know this post hasn't been active for a while, but I need some gamsol. How do I save $5 at dickblick.com?
__________________ ~Susan He will cover you with His feathers, And under His wings you will find refuge. (Psalm 91:4)
I use clear Johnson's baby oil to blend the Prismacolor pencils. It's the original formula not the gel type.
Works the same as gamsol and no fire risk or health risk from breathing in the chemicals. Make sure you read the Material Safety Data Sheet if you decide to use Gamsol.
bemidjibelle,
How much did you pay for the Prismacolor pencils? There is another thread with some special codes for ordering them thru Viking.com and you can get the 120 pencil set for $59.98 and there was a $20 off coupon if you spent $50. That comes down to $39.98 for the 120 pencil set. AWESOME deal!!
If you are interested in the details, let me know.
Cindy
Hello Cindy,
I am intrigued with the idea of trying the gamasol technique, and would be very grateful for the coupon information on the Viking.com prismacolor pencils set of 120. Thanks so much for sharing this information!
Is mona lisa also artist grade? I've used the baby oil and I bought turpenoid natural but they just don't work like the OMS. I just hate the thought of the chemicals I'm being exposed to.
__________________ ~Susan He will cover you with His feathers, And under His wings you will find refuge. (Psalm 91:4)
The 16oz can looks pretty big. Do you use it out of the can...or transfer it maybe to something like manicurists use to dispense nail polish remover--with the push thing on the top? Thanks!
The 16oz can looks pretty big. Do you use it out of the can...or transfer it maybe to something like manicurists use to dispense nail polish remover--with the push thing on the top? Thanks!
I purchased a dauber bottle from M's in the art (like painting) aisle. It was knee high or lower. It is about 6 inches high and holds 4 oz. The screw on cap covers a sponge that is 'charged' with the liquid by inverting the bottle and pressing the sponge on a flat surface. I have also inverted the bottle and just used the stump to depress the little plunger that it inside.
And for you susieq.........I did finally get a chance to use baby oil instead of gamsol.....do so when I was flying and wanted to color. It worked....kind of. It blended but not as effectively as the Gamsol.
__________________ Ann Here is my oily blog! CLICK HERE Certified Copic Instructor - Local ClassesI love cars, stamping and essential oils!
I got my Gamsol at Binder's Art Supply; in fact, they had the small bottles of it, with the dabber top, at the register for free; this was last summer.
As for my large set of Prismacolor pencils, I got mine at Michaels with a 40% off coupon.
The 16oz can looks pretty big. Do you use it out of the can...or transfer it maybe to something like manicurists use to dispense nail polish remover--with the push thing on the top? Thanks!
Lisa, Mikes has the smaller white, plastic bottles of Mona Lisa OMS. It is artist grade and has her picture and says paint thinner on the front. If you look on the back, it says 100% odorless mineral spirits.
Click HERE for GinaK's video tutorial on Magic Colored Pencil technique. She carries those flip-top glass bottles in her store.. www.ginakdesigns.com
I lay my lightest color down 1st, use stump, then proceed w/ my next lightest color, ending w/ darkest color.... simply, cuz I'm bad to touch the other colors w/ my stump thus smearing an unwanted color into my work. HTH!
May God bless, Sandi
__________________ StormyElf'd '07Humble Ink Smears If at first you don't succeed, talk to God! Then, go put on your big girl panties!
Last edited by SouthernStorm; 01-18-2009 at 07:48 PM..
Reason: addin' stuff
Gamsol, Mona Lisa, these are brand names. The product is odorless mineral spirits. Walmart sells odorless mineral spirits (OMS), the same thing, in their craft section, half pint bottles, $1.99. They call it odorless mineral spirits. I've seen it in every Walmart's store I've been in. Any art store will also have ordorless mineral spirits too, so don't just search for a particular brand. OMS is an essential in oil painting, so it's everywhere. Finding the "right" blending stumps to spread the color is more of a problem. Blending stumps made in China are the most prevalent and they just work so terribly, you'll not like the result. Blending stumps made in Taiwan are not so tightly rolled and worked beautifully. Taiwanese stumps are harder to find. I buy mine from GinaK. They are the best. I've tried the Creative Mark stumps made in China and they are just not as good as the Taiwanese stumps. So, while you're finding OMS, also locate the right blending stumps or this technique will not live up to expectations.
I'm afraid to try the Gamsol because of my asthma and I've tried the baby oil with prismacolors but nothing seemed to happen. Is there a tutorial anywhere on this technique?
Also, our local Michael's has prismacolor pencils for $1 this week. No coupon needed.
Yes, I saw that! I picked up Chartreuse and then kept second guessing if I had it....and didn't get it. I got to the car and thought, that was stoooopid. It's a $1! Ya shoulda just picked it up. ...and, of course, I don't have it. I usually carry a little swatch sheet of the colors i have, and I didn't have it with me. LOL. Hope I get back there this week
I'll let ya know if I smell anything. I'm pretty sensitive. Two of my siblings have asthma, but my breathing problems never got full-blown to asthma. I do still use an HEPA filter in each room, to be preventative, which helps considerably with fumes/smells etc.. Letcha know.
Yes, I saw that! I picked up Chartreuse and then kept second guessing if I had it....and didn't get it. I got to the car and thought, that was stoooopid. It's a $1! Ya shoulda just picked it up. ...and, of course, I don't have it. I usually carry a little swatch sheet of the colors i have, and I didn't have it with me. LOL. Hope I get back there this week
I'll let ya know if I smell anything. I'm pretty sensitive. Two of my siblings have asthma, but my breathing problems never got full-blown to asthma. I do still use an HEPA filter in each room, to be preventative, which helps considerably with fumes/smells etc.. Letcha know.
Maybe someone will chime in on the fumes.
Since I use a dauber bottle there is so little of the liquid exposed to the air that I rarely smell anything and smells bother me normally.
__________________ Ann Here is my oily blog! CLICK HERE Certified Copic Instructor - Local ClassesI love cars, stamping and essential oils!
You can also get the Prismacolor pencils at Hobby Lobby with their 40% off coupons, I have a small set (24) hoping to get the bigger set soon. I got my OMS and stumps from 7kidscollegefund and they have the stumps from Taiwan.
where do you buy gamsol & exactly how do you use it?
:-)
