Problems with Daniel Smith?!

[Charlie O’Shields]

Thanks! hehe… I do wish I were a genius! Yeah, looks like checking the notify box is the key to getting an email response on replies. In theory, subscribing to the topic should work, but doesn’t always seem to send one.

[Sandra Strait]

Another thought on the update via email thing.  I was just checking my gmail trash (not the spam folder) and found a bunch of responses that came when Charlie liked one of my replies to his daily post.  Not sure why suddenly some of the responses, but not all of them are being put in the trash folder.  If you haven’t you might want to check your trash/spam folders to make sure this isn’t where yours are going.

[Debra “Kate” Powell]

I assumed that was true about the small companies….  Makes sense.

[Charlie O’Shields]

Working with WordPress.com on some issues with regard to the site. We’ve gotten a lot of traffic lately and it’s causing some issues with their hosting. Trying to optimize and figure out what’s going on. Thanks for your patience as we get it all figured out!

[Sandra Strait]

Thanks Charlie! I really appreciate all the work you do. And in the end, the whole WordPress system will be better for having dealt with the issues here.

[Charlie O’Shields]

Thanks, Sandra! 😃💕 Yeah, there’s definitely something bizarre happening. Things have improved, but the site goes down each evening. I’m confident the smart WordPress.com developers will help me figure it out all! 😃

[Debra “Kate” Powell]

I do check the notify box and am not getting emails.  I didn’t want to drive you crazy with it but since the discussion is there….  And yes, the WP peeps are good and you hit them with a monster site…

[Charlie O’Shields]

I’ll have to do more digging into the email to see if I can replicate it. I just got your comment via email, so let me know if you receive this one. (and yeah, this is kind of a monster of a site for this platform, but things seem to be running much better now overall, so that’s great!).

[Rachel Herold]

Kate Powell, thank you for your excellent write up. I didn’t know DS had sold.

I haven’t had any trouble with air pockets and gummy messes yet but I guess I’ve been lucky! Or just don’t use large enough quantities of DS paint yet as to have run into it.

I’m very glad you put other recommendations in your post. I’ve seen the review of the Da Vinci paints, but I thought the da Vinci paints were student quality, I’m guessing Da Vinci makes different quality lines?

thanks,

Rachel

[Tonya L]

Hi, Rachel. I can answer your question about Da Vinci. All of their watercolors are artist quality. Could you be thinking about Van Gogh? Two artist inspired brands! 🙂 I’m very familiar with Da Vinci and use them almost exclusively, so I can vouch for the high quality. I’ve not tried Van Gogh but heard they are good for a student grade. Hope this helps!

[Rachel Herold]

Ah yes! Thank you Tonya, I was indeed thinking of the VanGogh paints.

I ordered Charlie’s shiny trio so I am excited to try them out, especially if my primary brand, DS, continues to have issues.

Rachel

[Tonya L]

I think that even if DS continues to work great for you, you may really take to Da Vinci. The cost was a huge factor for me – DV is so value oriented! But I also like how they are very eco minded and are a small, independently owned business. I like supporting local, even if it’s not MY local. ha! 🙂 Regardless of all of that stuff, they make fabulous paint which is really what it’s all about. I loved the paints long before I knew anything about the company. Keep me posted on how you like the Trio. We had so much fun working on that project. Love Charlie’s choices!

[Debra “Kate” Powell]

Tonya sorry for the late reply.  I have older DS paints and have not noticed this plastic peel thang…

Interesting!  I would not like that at all!

I too am not fond of WN paints and tried them… Not sure why, though a couple of colors I use, and they are duller colors.

I love DV watercolors… And love DS Primateks.  I also love many Holbien colors, MGraham colors, Sennelier colors.

Another thing to think about is about small paint makers.  I enjoy trying them, but find inconsistencies in paint quality within the same companies.  Also, they do not usually tell us their ratings.  Most of all, I want tubes — I hate an overfull pan!

[Tonya L]

No problem, Kate! WN paints are very luminous and soft. I can see why some painters love them, but yes, I prefer bolder choices.

I’ve not tried super small paint makers. I kind of consider them “boutique” watercolor paints. Looks lovely in a store window but very exclusive and extremely high priced. And yes, I have no idea what’s in that stuff! 🙂

I’m with you on DV, Sennelier, MG (if they didn’t stay soupy in my palette). All of those brands paint differently but good choices!

Thanks for your comment, my friend!

[Jane Blundell]

I’ve been using Daniel Smith watercolours for 23 years now – since soon after they started making watercolours (which was in 1993). I make up palettes for my students and myself and have bought hundreds, if not thousands, of tubes over the 23 years.

What I have noticed is that there are some heavier pigments that must be shaken well. These tend to be the more granulating and more opaque colours – Goethite, Buff titanium, cerulean chromium, Indian red, Potters Pink and some others. They need to be really shaken up and then you take the cap off carefully to let in some air and shake again. If there is any loose gum Arabic, stick a toothpick in and gently stir the paint, then shake again. It’s a bit of a fiddle I know, but it makes a difference. It doesn’t worry me – they only use pigment and gum Arabic so there is not artificial binder to hold the paints together. Once I squeeze out the paint into a pan or palette, I stir it again to make sure it is all mixed perfectly and wedged well into the space.

I did a tour of the factory and they weigh the tubes at random – not every one – so yes some may slip through that have an air pocket. I’ve had a few of those over the years but not enough to worry me.

I’ve also used Da Vinci for a number of years – their 37ml tubes are fantastic value and really great if you get through a lot of paint. I think they are about the most consistent paints available – I’ve only had 2 go ‘wrong’ with them in all my time – but they don’t have all the colours that I use in DS, nor can I quite make the same shade of grey that I can with DS so I have a mix of both brands in my student palettes. Their Benzimida Orange Deep is GORGEOUS. We are lucky to have access to so many great watercolour brands. Schmincke is another favourite – they also have a lovely Transparent Orange, and a much better range since they reworked their range last year.

I’ve tested pretty much every watercolour available and continue to use DS. But yes – as a company grows mistakes can happen. Hopefully you can get replacement tubes where there is a problem.

I hope these couple of tips might help.