Olive oil for cleaning brushes?

[Valerie Warner]

You're cute, Marcus!
No, problem. Situation under control.

Thanks for the great cartoon! I'm going to see if I can print it out and put it on my studio wall.

[Marcus Lim]

Glad to be "of service"...lol

[Kimber Scott]

I had a painting teacher who insisted we all paint with acrylics because he was "allergic" to turpentine.

"What about odorless turpentine?"

"Nope. It still stinks."

As I have been trying to learn to paint in oils, nuances and all, I didn't want to have to interupt the process to learn to paint in acrylic. Not knowing about being able to use oils - walnut, or olive - to clean my brushes until just this moment, I set out to the art supply store hoping to find something to solve my dilemna. What I found was "Eco-House Natural Chemistry Products - NeutralThin Odourless Thinner - A Healthy Home Product - Hypo-allergenic Formula."

This stuff really is odorless and it cleans my brushes really well. In fact, it restored a couple brushes I thought for sure were dead. My teacher did not have any problems with it and being as my studio is in my house, I love it that I'm no longer stinking up the place.

It is flammable. The label says, "Odourless, low-toxicity thinner and brush cleaner for thinning and clean-up of oil-based paints, oils and waxes. 100% volatile.

Suitable as a painting medium ingredient for most artist's oil paints, except products containing damar resin. Mixable with Eco-House # 915 Natural Orange Terpene Solvent in any ratio. Also excellent for degreasing metal parts.

Low risk of allergic reaction. Use only in areas with adequate ventillation. Do not discard in septic or sewer system, but filter and reuse until totally evaporated. Photodegradable.

Combustible at 122 degrees F, or 50 degrees C.

Ingredients: Isoparaffinic hydrocarbons with less than 0.01 % aromatics (a proprietary blend of highly purified, volatile mineral oils.)

http://www.eco-house.com"

[Valerie Warner]

Hi,

I was interested in this topic when I thought that I had to have turps to paint in oils. I then found Marvin Mattelson's class (which is still very available) and I attended a one week workshop in Atlanta. I have not used turps in my painting since. I use cold pressed linseed oil or that Walnut Oil medium from Graham as mediums. I use about 30 - 40 brushes all beautifully held in a 3 tiered brush holder that has each value marked for each brush. It makes it where I don't wash the brushes when changing values or colors etc like I do when turp is readlily available. I found when I use turp I get lazy, wash, wipe, clean, wipe all day and I'm surrounded with the fumes, odorless or not. Now, I'm fume free until the very end of the day when I quickly wash them in turps and dispose of the wrags immediately, and properly.

A note: in grade school I was deemed a student with an extremely high IQ then came high school art and turps. Then, people thought I was on drugs, or smoking something. The "brain fog" came again when I started painting full time again. I've been turp free for 3 or 4 months now and my husband commented a couple nights ago that I was no longer soo flakey. BIG STUFF, Thanks to Marvin's wonderrful class and methods he shares so beautifully. He showed me after a week of painting that I really could do this, turp free stuff.