This week I launched my new range of handmade watercolour paints…Yay!
What is teRra?
TeRra means “the earth”, which for me embodies the spirit and the soul of this teRra range that I so wanted to create.
This range consists of a series of ceramic palettes, water jars, brush rests, and accessories for artists. The palettes are filled with my own handmade watercolour paints.
A few years ago when first I started making ceramic artist tools there was this little voice in the back of my mind saying “oh maybe you could make the paints as well”. I did my best to ignore it! …but after I designed the teRra range of palettes I knew it was time to dabble in paint making as well.
So I began to imagine what these mysterious paints would be like, what did I wish for them? I knew that each one had to have its own individual character, a strong personality. They had to be bold and colourful, I wanted “interesting” paints. When I paint with watercolours these are the kind of colours and paints that I gravitate towards, the ones that flow and move in compelling ways, where you see the intrinsic nature of the pigment come to life.
These paints had to be the best artist quality, so I chose my pigments carefully, after lots of research, to ensure that they would all be lightfast, and generally transparent. Granulating pigments also feature heavily in my range.
As I began to combine the pigments, playing with different combinations, I almost always included at least one granulating pigment in each “colour” that I made. Some colours granulate a lot, and some are more subtle. Then there are those that separate into two or more colours as the water caries them, they literally dance across the paper! Some create wonderful blooms, and others really allow the pigment to shine. Regardless of the characteristics, each one has its unique quirky charm and character. Just like us, each one is special.
The teRra series of paints is made up of 15 core colours. Three each of: yellows, reds, blues, purples and greens.
Each colour is made up of 2 pigments, and occasionally 3 pigments where I thought it was necessary to achieve the colour I wanted. All pigments are lightfast. Each swatch card lists the pigments used. For more information on the pigments themselves the Handprint website is a great resource if you want to look up each pigment and its properties. Most of the 15 are granulating and transparent colours.
The TeRa range of handmade paints are made using the highest quality lightfast pigments, sourced from reputable professional art suppliers. I only use the finest quality artist grade ingredients in my formulations, which includes pure Gum Arabic and vegetable glycerine as the binder. Gum arabic is the sap from the acacia tree; it is used as a natural binding agent for most professional grade watercolour paints. The natural preservative I use is essential Oil of Cloves. Some of my colours have a tiny touch of synthetic ox gall to improve the flow. I do not use honey or any other fillers or additives. These paints are vegan friendly.
Each colour is made in the traditional manner, hand-mulled on a glass slab until smooth, in small batches, ensuring I get the best out of each pigment. Every pigment has its own requirements and they each take a different blend of binder ingredients to achieve the right consistency. Each colour is poured into the ceramic palette wells in layers and left for several days so each layer can dry. It takes several weeks to make each set of paints.
For more information and what is available you can visit my teRra shop page here.