Most are from lake pigments, with a few earth pigments in the mix.
From the top left, reading right:
Top row: Red roses, iron oxide, greens from florist waste, cranberries
Middle row: Red roses (again,) red cabbage, kyanite, lemons
Botton row: Spinach and corriander, just spinach, beets, agate grindings (from my rock tumbler)
These are just the ones I managed to get potted and dried, I have a whole box of mixed paints waiting on another order of watercolour pots.
They all look a bit different in consistency in part because I’ve tried a few different formulas of watercolour mix, and because they’re made from different things. Cranberries and red cabbage always end up a bit “sticky.”
My latest formula for watercolours is:
- 300g Gum Arabic Solution (gum arabic powder and water)
- 280g Glycerine
- 20g Clear honey
- 20 Drops clove oil (antibacterial - paints will mold)
I mix into pigment at a 1:1 ratio by weight.
Very interesting, do any of these rot or degrade over time?
All plant based pigments are fugitive, they will fade and discolour, while most earth based pigments are more permanent in ideal conditions. I use a UV blocking archival spray on anything I want to keep to help preserve it a bit longer. A painting should never be left in direct sunlight anyway.
The clove oil and drying prevents rot, but I’ve definitely had a few bottles go moldy because I didn’t use enough oil. I just re-mix them and let the mold be more pigment. Once they’re dry they won’t grow mold.