Such being the principal materials from which the painter prepares his paint, we proceed to speak of the mode by which he mixes them. The colours are mostly purchased in that form which is called dry colours, that is, in coarse powder or small lumps; and they have to be reduced to fine powder before they are mixed with the oils, &c. If they contain gritty particles of sand, &c., the colour is put into a tub or pan, and water thrown upon it, and mixed up with it. The gritty particles soon fall to the bottom, and the remainder is poured into another vessel, where, in a short time, the colouring substance falls to the bottom, and can be obtained by pouring off the water; after which the powder is dried. But if the substance is one which will dissolve in water, or if it is not very gritty, it is ground up to powder in a dry state.
When the substance is reduced to fine powder, the painter begins to incorporate the oil with it. He has a grindstone of marble or porphyry, on which he places a small quantity of the dry colour, and moistens it with a little oil. With a large flattened pebble, called a muller, he then grinds up the powder with the oil, until both form a perfectly smooth paste. That portion is then removed by a palette knife, (which is a broad thin knife,) and placed in an earthen paint-pot. Another small portion of powder and oil is ground up in a similar manner, and put into the paint-pot; and so on, until a sufficient quantity has been obtained. When this is done, the pot contains paint, which is too thick for use; to liquefy it, therefore, a given quantity, which is determined by experience, of oil or turpentine, or a mixture of both, is added, until the paint has acquired a consistence—thick enough to prevent it from running into drops when laid on the work—and thin enough to make it work with ease.
The Process of Painting.
Supposing the carpenter to have left the doors, the windows, &c., in a clean and smooth state, the painter’s first office is knotting. Knots are round places in a plank, in which the grain of the wood runs through the thickness of the board, so as to show the ends of the pores at the surface. These ends absorb a greater quantity of paint than the other portion of the wood, so that if the same number of coats were given to all alike, the knots would have an ugly, dead appearance, in consequence of the absorption. The painter, therefore, gives the knots more paint than the rest of the wood-work; and the preparatory coat, which is laid on the knots only, is called the knotting. The paint used is generally red lead, and boiled oil; or sometimes red lead and size. When this knotting is dry, the priming is applied, consisting of a thin coat of white paint. White is used for the priming under almost every variety of circumstances, whatever the subsequent colours may be. This white paint is a mixture of white lead, linseed oil, and oil of turpentine, and is laid on, as are the subsequent coats, by means of brushes which are too well known to need a lengthened description. They vary from a quarter of an inch to three inches in diameter, and are generally made of hog’s bristles bound round with string, or sometimes with tin.
When the priming is dry, the painter proceeds to fill up all the nail holes and other irregularities, with putty. This he does by means of a pointed knife, with which he works in small portions of putty wherever they may be needed. It is then ready for the second coat of paint, which is thicker than the first, generally white, but sometimes coloured. Painting appears to be a very easy process, but in common with other trades, it requires considerable practice before skill can be attained. After having worked the brush over the wood-work in every direction, so as to completely cover every part with paint, the “laying-off” is effected by drawing the brush smoothly over every part in the direction of the grain, particularly at the stiles and panels of doors. Brushes of various sizes are employed, by means of which the workman can paint the fine mouldings, beading, &c., as well as the broader surfaces. The more skilful the workman is in the use of his tools, the less do the marks of the brush remain visible when the work is done.
As each coat of paint dries, another is laid on, until sufficient has been applied. The number varies from two to seven, according to the part which is to be painted, and the means of those who have to pay the painter; but in general, four coats is the average quantity which new wood-work receives. It is the last two coats only which are of the colour selected, as those which are preparatory are seldom other than white. On some occasions it is desired to have the last coat glossy; but in others dead. To effect these differences, all that is necessary is, to vary the oil with which the colour is mixed. If a glossy surface is required, linseed oil is principally used; but if a dead surface, oil of turpentine predominates. It is frequently seen that the walls of staircases, and other large surfaces, are, when finished painting, totally without gloss. This is effected by what is called flatting, that is, a coat of paint mixed wholly with oil of turpentine: the turpentine soon evaporates, and leaves the colour without gloss on the walls; whereas, when linseed oil is employed, the oil dries and hardens, instead of evaporating, and assumes much of the character of a varnish. If no linseed oil is employed in flatting, it is called a dead flat; but if a little is added, in order to produce a faint gloss, it is called a bastard flat. This part of the work forms one of the most unwholesome in which the painter is engaged, since the oil of turpentine, which is constantly evaporating during the process, is found to be extremely prejudicial to health.
As we are here speaking of a new house, we need not detail the process followed in repairing an old one. Nor is it necessary so to do even in respect of the processes themselves, for they are nearly the same for old work and new. The principal points of difference are these:—that in old work, greasy and dirty spots are washed with pearl-ash and water, or with turpentine; that the old paint is rubbed smooth with pumice-stone, or, if very rough, burned off; that a smaller number of new coats of paint will suffice; and that a larger proportion of turpentine is used than in new work.
Graining and Marbling.
We have in the above details confined our attention to that more general and economical kind of house-painting in which a large surface is painted of one uniform colour. But the department of house-painting in which the taste of the workman is more fully developed, is that in which imitations of various species of wood and marble are attempted; these processes are called graining and marbling. We may perhaps call this a humble branch of the fine arts, since the workman prepares a picture of a piece of wood or of a slab of marble; but whether this be a correct term or not, it is certain that skill in this branch depends more on taste and observation than on fixed rules.
Graining and marbling are sometimes done in oil-paint, but more frequently in distemper, that is, with a colour mixed with beer or some other liquid more limpid than oil; in this latter case, as the graining would not have a durable character, it receives one or more coats of varnish. We will endeavour to give a general idea of the mode in which graining and marbling are effected.