We R Art

“Introduction to Genesis Heat-Set Oils”

Products, Brushes, Surfaces & Final Finish

About Genesis Heat-Set Oils

Genesis Heat Set Oils are a brand new concept in paint! They are a polymer-based product and have all of the pluses of traditional oils with none of the minuses. They are rich in color and are proven to be light fast, no problem with your colors fading over time. They are non-toxic and odorless. Because it’s not absolutely necessary to use solvents to thin the paint or to clean your brushes they are a blessing for those who tend to develop allergies using traditional oils. 

The one property of these wonderful paints is that they will NEVER air dry! This is the one most important difference between Genesis and acrylics or oils. This means that you can play and work your painting for as long as you want until you are completely satisfied with your project.  Application and blending is so easy with these wonderful paints.

Another benefit of this property is that there’s no waste using Genesis. You can set up your palette and not worry about the paint drying out if you have to leave your painting unfinished for ANY length of time. If you don’t have time to clean your brushes, there’s no worry about the paint drying and ruining your brush. Think of how many times the phone rings or the kid’s need your attention and you’ve had to clean your brush before stopping to take care of them. What a wonderful feeling to know that your brushes will be fine when you return to your project.

Another property that is important to understand about Genesis Heat-Set oils is that they are “Thixotropic”. This simply means that they will stiffen up when not being worked with your brush. All you need to do to prepare the paint is to use a good pliable palette knife (I prefer a metal one) and ‘cream’ the paint by working it in a squish, squish motion. Push it back into a small pile and it’s ready to use and just as creamy as any tube oil. Your paint will also stiffen up after being applied to the surface so if there’s an area where you haven’t worked for a while and you need it to be creamy for adding more color to be blended you can either work over the area with a stiff brush or apply a small amount of Genesis “Glazing Gel” to the area and proceed to layer and blend your color.

This Thixatropic feature is great because it means your paint won’t accidentally drop off your palette if you happen to tip it during transport. I also means that you don’t have to dry and area to do simple color dragging to add additional lights or darks to your painting. This would be similar to a dry brush technique when using acrylics.

Suitable Palette Surfaces

I use a Wingate disposable palette for my Genesis paints. When I want to store it,

I cover it with “Heavy Duty” aluminum foil (This just keeps the dust from settling on the paint and also keeps me from getting the paint on things I don’t want it on. (I tend to lay my hand in open palettes <grin>.)

You may also use a sheet of glass as your palette. I prefer to have the glass cut to fit inside of the Masterson’s Palette Seal. This was developed for use with traditional oils so it has a blue tight fitting lid that can be “burped” to remove air from inside the palette. Be sure to have the edges of your glass sanded by a professional glass company to avoid cutting your fingers when you lift the palette. Have them sand one corner off completely. This way you will be able to lift the palette when needed.

It would be wise to use a container of some sort to store your palette in, that has sides about 1” deep. This will help to keep your arm and hands out of your paint as you are working and will act as a support for the lid or aluminum dust cover between painting sessions.

To clean your palette when needed, lift all paint and place on a clean keeper then use a bit of Turpenoid or Turpenoid Natural on a paper towel to remove any lingering paint. 

One little tip: if you have just a small amount of paint mix left over and don’t want to bother to save it….scrape all of these little bits of color and as much of the lingering bits of paint into one pile and mix well. You will end up with various shades of brownish gray/green paint that is perfect to use as a toner when you are making up a new palette. This can become the “Mother Color” that you would add to every mix for your latest work thus making all of the colors “work” together and reducing the intensity so that your colors are more “natural.” Keep in mind that most colors in nature are not as bright or intense as what we get from the jars of paint. 

I like to store my excess mixes in baby food jars. I keep the greens in one jar, the reds in one jar and so on. The Genesis paint is thick enough to actually cling to the sides of the jar in separate little blobs of color. Put the lid on to keep out dust and what have you. The clear sides of the jars will make it easy to see what colors you have saved and how much of each there is. When you are ready to use the paints again, just use your metal palette knife to remove the paint blobs and place them on your palette. 

Keep in mind that this stored paint will seem very dry and stiff when you first place it on the palette. This could be true of new color straight from the jar also. Just use your metal palette knife to “cream” your paints and they will return to a nice creamy consistency. If the paint still feels a bit dry, add just a small touch of the Genesis Thinning Medium to your paint and cream it again. Be careful, a little Thinning Medium goes a long way and you must never use more than 40% Thinning Medium to your blob of paint.  

Drying Genesis Heat-Set Oils 

Now when you are satisfied or would like to work in a new layer, all you need to do is heat the project to set the paint. This can be done very easily using a heat gun or even your kitchen oven. The most important thing is to get the paint heated all the way through to at least 265 degrees F.  A hair dryer will NOT get hot enough to set the paint.

You can purchase a heat gun made for Genesis or use an embossing gun if you have one on hand. Just be absolutely sure that the paint has reached the proper temperature.  

When using the heat gun you will need to take in to account how thick the paint layer is in order to figure how much time to apply the heat. Approximately 10 to 20 seconds per ¼” thickness of paint should be sufficient to dry it all the way through. The same holds true when drying the project in your oven. Keep in mind how thick the paint layer is and adjust the timing accordingly. If you aren’t sure if it’s totally set, allow the painting to cool then use your finger or a towel to gently rub in an inconspicuous area, if you get any color off the project then re-heat. It won’t take you long to be able to judge how long to heat set your project. One thing to remember when using the heat gun, it will only dry an area of about 3” in diameter. Fanning the gun around will not get the paint heated through. You will want to hold the gun steadily about 2 to 3 inches from the surface and count, 1001, 1002, 1003 etc. until you reach the number of seconds you have determined it will take to dry the paint. I normally err on the side of caution and count to at least 1020. Now move the gun approx. 2 to 3 inches and repeat until you have covered the entire area you wish to dry. 

 In my kitchen oven I will place my project on an old cookie sheet and then into a cool oven. Turn the oven on and set it to 265 degrees F. and let it come up to temp. Then I will allow the piece to ‘bake” for about 15 minutes. Turn off the oven and allow the piece to cool down naturally, before removing the project.  In most cases, this will be more than sufficient to get your project completely dried. 

Heat Guns will wear out in time. Especially the low priced versions.

The heating and cooling down process will weaken and cause the heat coils
to become brittle over time. The higher priced guns tend to last longer but
they too will wear out in time and of course the more time the gun is running
the faster it will wear out.

There are a few things you can do to prolong the life of your heat gun....

1. Always allow the gun to run in the Cool setting before turning it off. This
will keep the heat coils from being so brittle from the high heat.

2. Never bang the heat gun against hard surfaces. This would break the coils.
Pad the gun when carrying it in your painting kit to classes.

3. Use something soft to pad where you lay your heat gun down. Again to
prevent the accidental breaking of the heat coils. I use and old tea towel from
my kitchen.

Appropriate Surfaces for Genesis 

Surfaces need to be chosen with care. They will need to be able to withstand the high temperatures required to set your paint. My favorite surfaces include hard woods, composite woods, tempered Masonite, Glass that has been properly prepped, Porcelain and Metal. You will want to be a little leery of painting on any soft wood such as pine. Softer woods tend to retain sap and resin and the heating process can cause the sap to rise to the surface. In addition, the high heat could cause the wood to warp. 

A good grade of birch plywood is also suitable to use as long as you use the heat gun to dry your paint. The oven method could cause the layers to separate.

You can use the Genesis paints on furniture but you will want to be careful and not allow the heat to soften any glued areas. Try not to paint the design in areas on the furniture where there is a joint. Be sure to choose furniture that is made from good hard woods so that the problems mentioned above are avoided.  

Preparing your surface for Genesis 

You will want to prepare your surface before applying Genesis. First, check for any imperfections that need correcting. Thing such as dents, dings and gouges in wood should be filled with high quality wood filler, allowed to dry and then sanded smooth. Remove any dust created in the sanding process. 

The best primer to use is Gesso. Apply it with a soft roller. Let dry and then sand lightly to get a nice smooth surface. I usually apply several coats of Gesso in order to be sure I have good coverage. Once your Gesso is well dried, sanded and dusted if necessary you’re ready to paint. 

Many artists then roll on regular bottle acrylics for the base color. If you choose to use this method, be sure that the acrylic is completely dry before beginning to paint with Genesis. Water is a no-no when using Genesis Heat-Set Oils.   It would be a good idea to use a hair dryer on the acrylic paint just to remove any moisture that may have been absorbed by the acrylic base coat. If you put away your project for any length of time, repeat this before resuming painting over the acrylic paint. 

Another prep method I have used is to mix DecoArt MultiPurpose Sealer with and equal amount of DecoArt Americana Acrylic color and base my project surface. I then let this dry very well and follow with one additional layer of just Americana Acrylic. You will want to do a small test of your color choice as some colors; especially greens will discolor your lighter Genesis Mixes when you heat them. Prep a small scrap surface then apply a layer of Genesis Titanium White and heat set as usual. If no discoloration occurs then you will know that this acrylic color is safe to use for your project. 

Mediums that are suitable to use with Genesis 

Genesis produces several mediums to use with the paints in order to achieve special effects.  

1. Glazing Medium (old formula)

Use the Glazing Medium to achieve transparent washes or for any glazing techniques. With this medium, you must use a ratio of  40% medium to 60% paint. No more than 40% glaze to 60% paint. If the ratio has more Glazing Medium in it the paint will not heat-set!  

One great thing that this formula is good for is to clean your brushes between color changes. It will help to dilute the paint in your brush and makes it easier to wipe out well before going into a new color. This means not having to use water and soap to clean your brush then wait for it to dry completely. Remember, you will NEVER want to have any water in your brush when working with Genesis Heat-Set Oils!

2. Glazing Gel

The new Glazing Gel formula is wonderful and will help to make your paints transparent to do glazing techniques. I use this quite often while painting especially to add accents, tints and glazes of color toward the final stages of my painting. 

3. Thinning Medium

Use the Thinning Medium to do strokework, linework or any technique that needs a thin consistency to the paint. This mediums works very well so be sure to add a little at a time until you reach the desired consistency of your paint. Use no more than 40% Thinning Medium in ratio to your paint blob. (Same as the Glazing Medium above.) 

You may also thin your Genesis paint with odorless turpentine substitutes, mineral spirits, or alcohol. I like to use “Turpenoid” or “Turpenoid Natural.” There’s no need to worry about the paint to thinner ratio, just be sure to allow a little time for the thinner to evaporate from the paint before heat setting. 

4. Thick Medium

If you want your paint thicker to do techniques like impasto and such, use the Thick Medium. This will make the paint transparent but you do not have to worry about the ratio of paint to medium when heat setting your project.

Varnishes suited to use over Genesis

Genesis does not need to be varnished unless you want to. I personally always varnish, out of long standing habit and my desire to keep dust and other air pollutants from getting on my painting projects. This is an optional step that you will have to decide to do or not do.

Genesis produces two suitable varnishes you can use. The “Permanent Heat Set Varnish” which is a very heavy bodied varnish that leaves brush strokes or you may use the “Air Dry Removable Varnish” which is applied like any varnish you are accustomed to. This is removable using ammonia or glass cleaner; again, the choice would be according to your preference.

My all time favorite to use is the Final Coat Acrylic Varnish.
Original or Low-Gloss Acrylic Varnish. So easy to apply and a beautiful finish every time! One tip on using any acrylic based varnish over a well dried Genesis project is that the first layer will seem to bead up and make “spots” on your surface. Don’t panic! Let the first layer dry well and reapply two or three more layers. It will even out very nicely and you will have a beautiful finish.

Brushes 

You may use any synthetic or natural hair brush with Genesis Heat Set Oils.

You will want brushes that can handle the consistency of the paint and the occasional rough usage common with oil paint. I tend to do quite a bit of scrubbing my paint in and so I choose brushes that will hold up a bit longer to this rough handling.

 I love to use my Bette Byrd Brights, Filberts and Rounds. Lowe Cornell’s Jackie Shaw Liners are wonderful for detail work. Ann Kingslan and Royal Langnickel have a set of 14 brushes made exclusively for use with the Genesis paints.  

Clean Up

Clean up isn’t such a big deal using the Genesis Heat-Set Oils. Since the paints never dry, simply cover your palette if you wish. Wash your brushes with any good dish soap such as Dawn, Murphy’s Oil Soap or any good degreasing liquid soap. Be sure to rinse very well and allow the brushes to completely dry before using them again in the Genesis paints. (Remember, water is a very definite no-no with Genesis!)

Or my favorite, don’t bother to clean the brushes. The paints aren’t going to dry in them and cause them to be ruined. Just wipe them well before beginning to paint again. This will cause the paint to soften up and remove any excess color you don’t need.

You may also use Mineral Spirits or Turpenoid to clean your brushes and follow with a soap and water cleaning. This is my preferred method of cleaning which I only do when I have completed a project or wish to use a brush in a very light color

Next week we will discuss the Genesis Color System, Mixing and Color Definitions.
This will a big discussion and you will learn a great deal.
Watch for the announcement in our Newsletter then ----You may view page 2 at

http://home.att.net/~we-r-art/IntroductionToGenesis2.htm

Hope to see you in the chat room at We R Art very soon!

Hugs,

Brenda S. Rickman

©2004

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