There are 3 tutorials in this group:
Lesson #2
Demonstration with Oil Paint
Demonstration with Acrylic Paint

In these tutorials I demonstrate, in various ways, how to see and find the proportions of objects, and then draw them with a brush.

Understanding proportion, how to see proportions, is a fundamental skill for drawing and painting in a realistic style. 
Hidden shapes are implied shapes rather than actual seen shapes, and these hidden shapes help you to see and find proportions and the actual shapes of objects.
Both these aspects are part of learning composition and wanting to place your subject into the picture plane (your canvas or paper). 

This is a very powerful skill to learn and I hope the demonstrations with explanations are clear and help you in your practice. 

Textures - this journal is mostly about variety of textures. I started with a piece of hessian sack material (very loose weave), plus a piece of muslin cotton cloth that I had dyed, and then I went through my existing stash and pulled out as many textures as possible to make this an interesting-to-the-touch journal. I could have added more, but I wanted it to still be a fun writing journal (it's already bumpy enough, and so I included a writing board)

Textures Journal has one signature with 80 pages front and back, plus tags,  journaling cards and notepads. It is  9" tall x 6-1/2" wide x 2" thick 

For a flip-through of this journal please copy and paste the following link into a new browser: https://youtu.be/MZeTuv7HVP

This is a mini album, writing journal, tag book, place to play, add memorabilia and photos, fun project, that I hope you will try for yourself.

Full tutorial for these mini album journals made with 12" x 12" scrapbook card stock. It is built from the outside-into the center (unlike other journal types). It can also be made to other sizes, which I hope my instructions will make clear. This is a versatile design concept that can easily be adapted to almost any size card stock.

Watch video on Youtube

As always, available journals are in my Etsy shop:  https://www.etsy.com/shop/KimVictoriaArtist

As of this post I have started uploading how to paint in oils and acrylics for beginners to intermediate artists, aspiring artists.

I have a different approach from a lot of teachers that I hope helps people learn painting faster. You have to watch to know what I mean.

If this interests you then please visit my Youtube Channel:
Youtube.com/@KimVictoria-Artist

Go to Playlists - Painting Classes

Cheers!
Kim

In this article, and the YouTube video, I want to share with you exactly what materials you need to get started in oil painting and/or acrylic painting, and what materials you don't need, at least not in the beginning.

Watch the video on Youtube

In the video I demonstrate how to get started with your materials; how to get familiar with them and their unique properties. I want you to start to get a "feel" for what the medium can do. ("Medium" is a term for the material of oil or acrylic paints, and also for additives appropriate for each paint type.)

I never want to overwhelm or discourage anyone. On the contrary my goal is to make learning to paint as easy as possible, and present in a way that you can grow quickly in your understanding and abilities.

I appreciate your interest in learning to paint.
Kim Victoria

    •    1 16'x20" newsprint pad (or 9" x 12")
    •    1 tube each of a yellow, a red, a blue, a white, and either a black or burnt sienna
    •    1 #6 filbert bristle paint brush (or use what you have) (1 each #2, #4, #6, #8 will keep you going for years)
    •    Citrus thinner or odorless paint thinner in a little glass jar with lid, or solvent can, for thinning oil paints
    •    Water in plastic tub (such as a cottage cheese container) for acrylic paints
    •    plastic styrofoam plates or plastic lids for mixing (palette or palette pad)
    •    rags denim or thick cotton are best
    •    nitrile or latex gloves if you prefer to protect your hands
    •    Optional table or stand-up easel (not necessary for learning)

First of all PLEASE do NOT purchase one of those cheap oil and/or acrylic painting "kits" from a big-box store. The brushes become useless almost immediately and the whole thing is a waste of money if you really want to learn how to paint. There ARE quality painting sets available and I will provide a resource list for where you might look for those; but you really only need a few things to start that can take you a long way.

I will be using these simple materials for my demonstrations at first.

OIL OR ACRYLIC PAINTS: 3 primaries: 1 red, 1 yellow, 1 blue, white, & black
    Burnt Sienna, Yellow Ochre are useful additions but not necessary

OIL OR ACRYLIC BRUSHES: You brush is the most important tool you have. Be sure to purchase only quality brushes, otherwise you will always be struggling to achieve your desired result.
 •    #6 Filbert Bristle Brush synthetic or natural (primarily for oil paint). Get a quality one; you can do and learn a lot with just this one brush because it acts as a flat and a round
•     Optional: #4 and #8 Filbert Bristle Brush of quality, and a #2 if you like details (but you won't need this right away).
•     For acrylic paints I prefer white nylon brushes as they are designed for use with acrylics; in the sizes stated.
•     NOTE: How do you know if you are buying a quality brush?
If you buy a brush from a dollar-type store it is definitely a cheap brush, which will splay after the first use and the bristles will fall out all the time. Cheap brushes are useful for applying glues or pastes or maybe for really young children that are just smearing paint around and don't care.
You can get inexpensive quality brushes. $15 - $20 for a good synthetic brush is common (2025). A quality brush can serve you for years if kept clean. The more you paint the quicker the bristles will wear down, but then you are getting all the value from the brush, and will be ready to get a new one.

NEWSPRINT PAPER PAD: Newsprint is cheap, not precious, only for practice, and because you cannot sell what you do or give it away you will practice more and, therefore, progress faster. I also like that it is neutral in color, light tan, so it is less intimidating than pure white paper, an issue for many people. However, you certainly can use a cheap, white, sketchpad.

I recommend that you use one paper pad consistently for practice, at first, date your pages in order, and keep them all. By looking at your progress page by page you will be encouraged by how quickly you are learning through practice. When you look back a few months on you will be delighted with yourself and how you've progressed, and that alone will help you keep going strong.

A 12" X 18" size pad is good because you will benefit by having more space to experience the movement of painting. There is also more room for multiple experiments. Using a 9" X 12" size pad just means you will go through paper faster.

PALETTE: a styrofoam plate or rigid plastic sheet makes a great starter palette. I've also used the lid from yogurt or cottage cheese for acrylics. These don't absorb any of the paint, are reusable, and disposable.

THINNERS: Are not essential but desirable. I will be demonstrating with thinner. Get Eco Hose Citrus Thinner, Citrusolv, Odorless Paint Thinner, or Odorless Turpentine. Put a small amount from the can into a small jar with tight-fitting lid. These are for oil paints.

For acrylic paints just have a tub of water at all times. I use the container from yogurt or cottage cheese for water. Always keep your acrylic brushes in water when not in use to prevent the paint from drying on the brush and ruining it.

RAGS: Old stuff. Old denim jeans cut up are the best I've ever used for oil painting especially but also for acrylics. Mostly for acrylics I use my husbands old, thick, cotton socks (washed, of course). Thick cotton fabrics are best (old T-shirts too), but if you want to use paper towels get thick ones, like shop towels. You can also get bags of rags at the hardware store that work okay (but not as good as old denim). Synthetic fabrics are useless as paint rags.

TABLE COVERING: A cheap plastic tablecloth is sufficient to protect your workspace and it's reusable.

CLEAN UP:
    Acrylic paints clean up with any soap and water.  TIP: Leave a clean lather of soap in the bristles after washing, shape the brush, leave to dry with soap on, then just rinse it out before painting. This will help to preserve the shape and integrity of the brush. Only do this for acrylic painting brushes (or watercolors), never oils.

    Oil paints can be wrung out with your rag and cleaned with soap and water too. If you want to have a jar with solvent for cleaning oil paint that is an option, and can be useful for the first wash and then use soap and water. Cleaning with solvent is desirable if you plan to go back to painting with that brush right away. I clean my brushes at the end of the day with Fels Naptha soap that I keep in a plastic tub used just for cleaning oil brushes. You can really work the bristles on that bar of soap to get them clean. You can also use a strong dish detergent since it is formulated to cut grease and oil.

    If acrylic paint is left to dry on brushes they are ruined and must be discarded. Always keep acrylic paint-filled brushes in water between use.

    If oil paint is left to dry on brushes you might be able to restore them with a brush cleaner from the hardware store (I've done it). Fortunately, oil paint takes much longer to dry on bristles giving you some leeway of time before clean up. You can go all day without cleaning your oil paint brushes, no problem, just don't leave them overnight - okay?

    Do your best to clean brushes thoroughly, right down to the ferrule (metal part that holds the bristles). A stiff nylon scrub brush from the hardware store can help. Clean quality brushes can last for years.

OPTIONAL EXTRAS: 
    Table-top easel - if you get one make sure it has non-slip feet and that it is big enough to hold your paper pad and future small canvases.

    Hair dryer for acrylic paint - acrylics are fast-drying but you might want to speed up the drying even more. Not for oils.

    Props and/or photographs - You already have lots of subject matter for painting: kitchen items, vases, toys, office items, decorative pieces, jars, cans, rocks from the garden, photos of local or travel scenes, etc. Look around at the things you already enjoy having in your life and use those as models for practice. I will be demonstrating with lots of different things that, I hope, will inspire you. Pets and people are a challenge you may or may not want to try yet.

The nature of oil paints - what you need to know about this specific medium.

        "Fat Over Lean" principle for oil paint
The "fat" is the oil. "Lean" is when you add thinner. Lean paint dries quickly; the thinner evaporates giving you a base layer for your painting. Lean paint is great for laying out a composition and being able to move forward in the painting process because it dries so fast.

Once you have applied pure tube oil paint over a lean layer you don't want to "lean-out" your paint for any upper layers.

Oil paint from the tube is already "fat" with oil, but you can make it fatter by adding more oil such as pure linseed oil, stand oil, walnut oil, copal, or a medium mix. "Fat" layers dry the slowest.

If you were to paint a lean mixture over a fat layer the lean layer would dry first and would eventually crack apart as the fat under layer dries slowly. It might even flake off. So that is why you want to be conscious to only paint fat over lean.

There are mediums, such as alkyd medium, that speed up the drying of oil paint. I found them unpleasant smelling and stopped using them. Do your research before getting any.

You can complete an oil painting in one session when you keep this in mind, and it will be archival.

        Experience lean oil paint
Thin one oil paint color to a watery consistency on your plastic palette, draw lines, scrub mass shapes, simply fill up a page with marks to experience this consistency.

Fill up the page with your experiments and experiences before turning to another page.

        Holding the brush properly
Long handled brushes are designed that way so you can hold the brush far away from the bristles. You need to see what you are doing on the paper or canvas so the long handle gives you the ability to have some distance between your eyes and the surface.
You can hold the brush in a variety of ways to achieve different effects of application, or because you are more comfortable holding the brush in a particular way.

Remind yourself to pull the brush not push it. To draw means to pull. Painting is the action of drawing with a brush. If you physically can, remind yourself to pull with your whole arm, all the way to your shoulder.

        Experience the brush
Thin some more paint, use a fresh piece of paper, and experiment holding the brush in different ways to make marks. Notice how you automatically hold the brush and challenge yourself to hold it differently while painting. Notice how it feels and the marks you make. Remember to pull with your arm - how does that feel? Notice your hand - how tight or light are you holding the brush? Try changing the feel of the brush in your hand. Use more paper if you need to. Give yourself plenty of opportunity to experience the brush in a new way.

The nature of acrylic paints - what you need to know about this specific medium.

        "Fat Over Lean" principle for acrylic paints?
I have read a lot of information about acrylics and experimented with them in a variety of ways. Acrylics are a versatile medium. 

You can paint with acrylics somewhat like watercolor by adding a lot of water to acrylic paint and make it quite "lean." 

I've read that it isn't a good idea to add a lot of water to acrylic paints for all layers in a painting because the water thins out the polymers that hold the paint together, which makes the paint film "weak." I don't know how true that is but the advice was to add an acrylic medium, not water, for layers above, or subsequent to, the lean, watery layer. In essence, by adding a medium to the paint you are making it "fatter." 

There are a lot of choices for acrylic mediums: gels, pastes, matte, gloss, fabric, pouring, and more. So you can have a lot of fun with acrylics.

Do some research so your painting has good structure and longevity.
 
        Experience lean acrylic paint
Thin one color of acrylic paint with water and experience holding the brush and making marks on your paper as described above. Just fill up the paper, and maybe another page, with marks to get familiar with the brush and the paint.

Fill up the page with your experiments and experiences before turning to another page.

***************************************************
In Lesson #1 on Youtube "Apples & Pear" you will practice seeing and painting shapes: shapes of the objects, shapes of the lights, and shapes of the darks.

See the video for this article and subscribe so you are notified when I post new ones.  LINK

I appreciate you!
Kim Victoria

In this Youtube playlist I am presenting how to paint videos based on my years of personal painting, and my teaching experience.
(Go to intro and Playlist)

Joyful painting, playful painting, practical aspects about painting such as simple facts about the materials, realism, abstraction, how to develop your personal style and all sorts of things. If interest is shown I will keep on keeping on to the best of my ability.

I am sharing my knowledge and experiences gleaned from over 60 years of creativity, creativity blocks, breakthroughs and experiments.

My goal in these videos is to present painting in the most friendly and accessible way I possibly can to anyone interested in growing as a painter.

I am already offering many creativity experiments in my other playlists
so this playlist provides a way to share what I couldn't share back before Youtube existed and I was teaching live classes in painting. I know more now.

I will present a variety of styles of painting to stretch your imagination and abilities, and to provide inspiration across different interests. I am a very inquisitive artist, love to experiment, and I invite you to expand your creativity as a painter or even as a journal-maker and user, because you will find journaling painting as part of this painting adventure.

Each lesson in this video playlist series focuses on one simple exercise for your practice experience.

IMPORTANT point: I've had many students come to a class with the idea and perhaps expectation that painting is just one thing to learn, AND they expect too much of themselves, and give up before giving painting a real chance to bring them joy. Painting is NOT one thing, it is many things all rolled together. 

Painting is: brushes, substrates, media, additives, palettes, knives, mixtures, colors, composition, application, values, edges, subjects, styles, choices, personal tastes, lines, directions, planes, masses, textures, repetitions, gradations, and so much more. And you don't need to learn all of that, at least not right away, and depending on what you want to do.

Most of all painting is doing it. Just paint. Just do it. 
And I hope to make it easy for you.

In video Painting Materials Simplifies I present the simplest kit of materials you need to get started in either oil or acrylic painting, AND how to start using those materials right away to get familiar with them. You can skip videos anytime you want.

I use all kinds of media, yet I am primarily an oil painter. There are artists presenting great videos on acrylic painting who are more qualified than I for that medium, so I focus mostly on Oil Painting, yet there are many aspects of oil painting that work well with acrylics. Also, I sometimes use acrylics as an underpainting, which I demonstrate in upcoming videos.

I prefer oil paint for my realistic paintings because it stays open and movable, for hours. I prefer acrylic paint for experimental, abstract, mixed media, and craft applications. I do paint realistic with acrylics but don't find that as satisfying, yet I like to challenge myself to experience different things. The important thing is for YOU to experiment and find what YOU prefer. If you can and want to, try both media and see what works for you.

Each video presents a simple exercise to practice so that you can develop your ability to see like an artist. More than anything else, when you develop your ability to see in a way you don't normally look at the world you will find painting easy. I'll be talking a lot about this.

I call my method of teaching the See Like A Fine Artist Method

So let's get started.
Join me for the materials video or move on if you already have what you need and would like to hear and see what I have to offer.

Thank you for your interest, watching to the end, and for exploring your own creativity.

Wishing You Joyful Painting
Kim Victoria

Watch on YouTube

A2 and A4 size PDF with Rectangular and Square Card Layer Templates for you to cut and use. These window or mask templates are featured in my "Art Play - Scribble Part 3" video on YouTube. 

You can use these templates for card-making, junk journal making, reference/decision making, and even as windows to isolate a view in plein air painting or drawing.

Easy to print and use - I recommend printer-friendly card stock, white or gray or any color if you also want to use these AS layers or windows in your creativity. Be sure to print the correct document for your printer size: A2 or A4

Direct link:  ko-fi.com/s/30d83755c0https://ko-fi.com/s/30d83755c0

I put in the better part of a week making this attractive journal. It would make a great gift for anyone who loves the sea, beaches, our blue planet, and who loves to write.

This is a very chunky writing journal, also for drawing, adding photos, memorabilia, a dream journal, all the usual goodies, yet it is mostly a writing journal.

Ocean Blue has three signatures (full of hand-dyed blue papers) with a total of 156 pages front and back, plus 5 notepads, and 50 tags, Journaling cards, and more. It is  9-1/2" tall x 6-1/2" wide x 3" thick (yes it IS chunky).

> > > See the flip-through of this journal < < <

I sell my journals in my Etsy shop:  https://www.etsy.com/shop/KimVictoriaArtist

I am making several videos for using paper bags as a base for junk journal art. Check out my channel for all of them; simply type "paper bag" on the Question line when on my channel: Youtube.com/@KimVictoria-Artist

The inspiration for making these paper bag journals came from the art groups I participate with who want to learn how I make these sorts of things. I thoroughly enjoy this art group because we take turns teaching or facilitating learning different arts and crafts. One week is collage, next is needle felting, followed by watercolor, assemblage, zines, candle jars, making a faux rock poster, paint pouring - an ongoing exploration of creativity. Everyone is having fun with this project and adding their own aesthetic of creativity.