Handmade Watercolor FAQs
Are your Handmade Watercolors lightfast?
Yes! Our line of watercolors is a professional grade, lightfast, quality artists’ material. For a variety of reasons, we have made a point of only using natural Earth, Ochre, Mayan, and Mineral artist’s pigments. One of these reasons is the proven lightfastness. These are the same pigments that were used in cave paintings tens of thousands of years ago and throughout Art History. They have stood the test of time. We believe that artists deserve to have complete confidence in their materials.
Are your Handmade Watercolors Non-Toxic?
Yes and no. They have not been rated 'non-toxic' by any outside entity. Our colors are absolutely not intended for children and should be used only as intended. If used as intended, for the purpose of watercolor painting, our colors are perfectly safe. We make a point to only work with pigments that are rated either non-toxic or with very low toxicity. This is only of many reasons why we choose to work with Earths, Ochres, Minerals, and natural pigments in general (as opposed to modern synthetics, such as Cadmiums). This is also why you do not see the beautiful, yet toxic color Cinnabar among our offerings. As artists and craftspeople, we have no wish to expose ourselves to hazardous substances. If we were ever to sell a color or product that required special handling or labeling, we would label and describe accordingly.
Are your Handmade Watercolors Vegan?
That really depends on your own personal definition of veganism. Our binder does contain local organic honey. It is the only "animal product" (again, depending on your definition) that we use.
I have a technical question / question about the handling characteristics of a specific color?
Please consult our 'Meet the Colors' page under our Handmade Watercolors tab on the main navigation bar or browse through the other pages listed under the Handmade Watercolors tab. Information about color density, pigment behavior, opacity vs. transparency, tinting strength, value range, etc. is all listed in detail in those areas.
I would like to order one of your Limited Edition colors. When will it be available again?
Our Limited Edition colors are not produced or offered on any set schedule. Like our other colors, they are made in small batches. Unlike our other colors, we only make different Limited Edition colors "sometimes". We might fall in love with a color, for example: Azurite, and make it over and over again. There are other colors we might offer only a few times before we move on. As with the rest of our products, we will announce via our usual channels: Instagram, our website, and Facebook, when these colors will become available.
But what about Turquoise?! When will [insert specific Limited Edition Color name here] be available??
Please see above :)
When will you have individual colors available again?
We have our individual pans of color available once a month in a Shop Update that we announce through our monthly email newsletter. You can sign up to receive it below, just scroll to the bottom!
What are Mayan colors?
Mayan colors are made in the same way that Mayan Blue was historically made. Mayan Blue was made and used by the ancient Mayan Civilizations on murals still visible today. They discovered a way to bind the fugitive natural dye Indigo to a mineral and therefore created a lightfast blue pigment. Lightfast blue pigments were historically highly prized because they were extremely rare - Lapis Lazuli being the brightest and most sought after (and as expensive as gold, as it still is today). Mayan colors are made in the same way as Mayan Blue, through a process by which a natural dye is bound to a mineral base forming a permanent pigment.
Why are your paints so expensive? Sheesh!
While we realize that our price tags may seem steep to some, we have taken great pains to price every single item fairly and accurately. We not only create our paints by hand using labor-intensive traditional methods, but we also use the highest quality ingredients.