Walnut Oil- our safe friend

[Morgan Weistling]

I recently received free samples of some oils that are made with walnut oil instead of linseed oil. They also make a walnut oil that replaces all other solvents. This is NOT a solvent and truly safe. No citrus or solvents of any kind. I have done two paintings with it so far and LOVE it. But I work wet into wet so the longer drying time is in my favor. It cleans my brushes as well as the natural turpenoid that I have been using, too.

If you would like to find out more they have a website you can check out. I am sure they would send you a free sample to try if you have questions. They are a small company and only work with mom and pop type art stores so you can't find the stuff online with the bigger stores.

Winsor and Newton has recently decided to pick on them and try to crush them by telling people that walnut oil will go rancid quicker than linseed. Tests performed prove the opposite, though. Besides, that is a non-issue anyway, unless you are going to drink it.

Try it for yourself if your are concerned about your health.

http://www.mgraham.com/

morgan

[Rochelle Brown]

Morgan,

Thanks for pointing out a reliable product and company. It is worth looking into.

[Leslie Ficcaglia]

I had this recent exchange with Diana Graham after she contacted someone on a painter's list I belong to and mentioned their products.

At 12:57 PM 5/12/2003 -0400, I wrote:

A member of our painters' list shared your recent email with us about nontoxic oils, and I'm wondering whether one couldn't use standard oils and just thin with your medium to get the same lack of toxicity. Or are your oil paints made with a different formulation from, say, Rembrandt or Old Holland?

Hi Leslie,

Thanks for asking. Yes, our color is different in several ways. Rather than using linseed oil we chose walnut oil to grind our color as it yellows and cracks less. We recently did strength tests between ours and the ones you mentioned and ours contains higher pigment loads. If you compare prices, ours is more economical. We have arranged with many of our dealers to offer 40% off retail value to artists so you can support your local stores, get a great price and not pay freight from the mail order houses. In selecting pigments, we considered safety. Our cadmiums are non-soluble and biologically unavailable and our cobalt is certified as safe enough to be used as a colorant for food packaging. Our color is made here in Oregon so if you or other artists have questions, you can speak directly to the people who actually make the product. Being artists ourselves, we are more aware of the importance of the working properties of our products and I believe we pay far more attention to consumer suggestions. In fact, due to demand, we are introducing 25 new oil colors this summer.

Our non-toxic, solvent free walnut oil medium is compatible with other artists oil products. Clean your brushes with walnut oil and then mild detergent to rid your studio of solvents. Even if you do not chose to try our color, it is a good idea to stop using turps and thinners.
Let me know if there is anything more I can do.

Diana G

I haven't tried them yet although I do have a source for their products (http://www.artpurveyors.com/). They offer plain walnut oil as well as an alkyd walnut oil-based medium. I already use plain walnut oil as a medium but I do use paint thinned with turps in the beginning of each painting when I'm blocking it in. Do let us know how you like their formulations as you continue to use them. Have you tried their alkyd medium as well?