by Toni Watts | Mar 13, 2014 | Blog, Materials and Techniques
Cennino Cennini, in his wonderful text Il Libro dell’Arte, describes verdigris as being ‘manufactured by alchemy, from copper and vinegar’. So I thought I would try my own bit of kitchen windowsill alchemy. I...
by Toni Watts | Feb 7, 2014 | Blog, Materials and Techniques
I had a fantastic week in London last week, extracting natural pigments from various plants and stones. These are the pigments that would have been used in the past, before our synthetic colours were discovered as by-products of the industrial revolution. The...
by Toni Watts | Dec 28, 2013 | Blog, Materials and Techniques
Carmine red pigment… At Christmas, rather than buying commercial Christmas crackers, we make our own. Each member of the family is charged with buying a gift for one of the others – an enjoyable challenge to find something ‘just right’...
