No, I haven’t lifted my boycott against Old Holland. But a comment on this related post sent me looking at my dwindling stock of Old Holland supplies–things I bought pre-boycott.
This photo shows my bottle of Old Holland Oil Painting medium. The ingredients are nowhere found on the label. Based on smell it contains linseed oil, OMS, and turpentine. They market this medium as ‘quick drying.’ They also make another linseed oil medium called ‘Quick Drying.’ Very confusing. Perhaps they are the same thing.
When I tried this, I had high hopes because it’s very clear and shouldn’t darken the colors. It doesn’t contain resins or driers and yet is remarkably quick drying, as my experience with it proved. It’s too quick to dry becoming tacky and difficult to handle almost immediately. I stopped using it before my boycott.
For those starting in oils, a medium similar to Old Holland’s is easy to make with supplies readily available. Oil: 1, turpentine: 1, OMS:1. Just mix the ingredients and shake. You can make it fresh every day. You might try experimenting with the portions, maybe something like–oil:2, turpentine:1, OMS:1. Try to get a good colorless oil.
