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I was in Mikes the other day and the store I went to said they had no clue what Gamsol was and offered me some kind of mineral spirits. I declined because I was not sure if it was the same thing so I went ahead and bought the stumps and thought I would check on here because I always seem to find the right answers on here from all of you talented people. Can anyone help me?
Location: Michael's/Joann's/Hobby Lobby; depends on who has the best sales!!
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I bought my gamsol at an art supply store; Dick Blick's. During my search for gamsol I went to Mike's and Joann's and the sales people acted like I was crazy asking for this "foreign" substance!!! LOL!! I've been told that you can use other mineral spirits and get the same results but like you I held out for the "real stuff". HTH!!!
Gamsol is a brand name for odorless mineral spirits. Mike's sells Mona Lisa odorless mineral spirits in the art supply department. Its easy to spot, there's a picture of the Mona Lisa on the front. I ordered Gamsol brand from dickblick.com and, honestly, I like the Mona Lisa better. I've been having problems with my black ink smearing when I use Gamsol.
Turpenoid or Turpenoid Natural, both sold at Michaels can also be used the same way as Gamsol. The only problem is you have to (or should) buy a dauber dispenser .... makes it easier to use!!
Any sort of odorless mineral spirits will work. Michaels and Hobby Lobby both carry them, though not the Gamsol brand. Also, if you have an art supply store near, they'll carry it. I use a small Avon jar for mine. I put a cotton makeup remover pad in the bottom and pour in enough OMS to soak it thoroughly. The jar has a nice wide mouth so I can dip my stump into it and see how far it soaks up. Plus since there's only a tsp or two in it, I don't worry about it evaporating or tipping over a taller bottle. Works great!
I GOT MINE AT HOME DEPOT IS WHERE ALL THE PAINT THINNERS AND PAINT STUFF IS ITS WAS CALLED ODORLESS MINERAL SPIRIT IN A QUART SIZE TIN CONTAINER. IT WAS LIKE 5 BUCKS OR SO. MICHAELS HAD NO IDEA WHAT I WAS TALKING ABOUT. IT WAS HARD TO FIND BUT I FOUND IT WITH SOME RESEARCH.
Turpenoid or Turpenoid Natural, both sold at Michaels can also be used the same way as Gamsol. The only problem is you have to (or should) buy a dauber dispenser .... makes it easier to use!!
I tried to find it other places on the web and most were at least that expensive if not more. I did find some cheaper plastic ones but I don't know if it's ok to put OSM in plastic.
Any odorless mineral spirits works the same as Gamsol---also you can use baby oil with very similar results. I use the Mona Lisa brand from JoAnn's art dept.
Oh, by the way...I found out that it's the paper that's the key, not the type of mineral spirits...you need to experiment but Georgia Pacific white cardstock from walmart seems to works just fine for me...I did a lot of trial & error before I discovered that the paper was the key to success.
Where do you get Gamsol?
