Artists usually doctor their oil paint to make them dry faster. By decreasing drying times, paintings can be reworked sooner and completed faster. Siccative agents, such as lead, also enhance the handling qualities of oil paint. There are times though when you need to slow drying times. When I am working on a large painting with areas that cannot be finished in a single day, premixed tones can dry before the painting is finished. To prevent mixed tones from drying too soon, I add a few drops of oil of cloves to the paint. This keeps the paint fresh for several days. I also place my palette into a sealed container designed for this purpose.
