Water mixable oils: all the richness of oil painting without the solvents
Oil painting has always had one significant practical barrier — solvents. Turpentine and mineral spirit are needed to thin the paint, clean brushes, and maintain equipment, and they bring with them a set of inconveniences that make oil painting impractical for many people: strong fumes, ventilation requirements, specialist disposal, and the general chemistry of working with hazardous materials in a home or studio environment.
Water mixable oil paints remove that barrier entirely. They are genuine oil paints — made from real pigments in a modified linseed or safflower oil binder — that have been formulated to thin, blend, and clean up with water rather than solvents. The painting experience is substantially the same as traditional oils. The slow drying time, the richness and depth of the pigments, the blendability, the fat over lean principle, the full range of oil painting techniques — all of these apply. What does not apply is the need for turpentine, white spirit, or any other hazardous cleaning material.
For anyone who has wanted to paint in oils but has been put off by the solvent requirement — anyone working in a small space, with children or pets nearby, without a dedicated studio, or who simply prefers not to work with hazardous chemicals — water mixable oils are a significant and genuinely useful development.
We stock the Winsor & Newton Artisan Water Mixable Oil Colour range in 37ml tubes at £7.35 per colour, alongside Artisan mediums and varnishes, and the book Water Mixable Oils at £14.99, at Craft and Canvas in Hebden Bridge and online at craftandcanvas.co.uk.
What makes water mixable oils different
The modification that allows water mixable oils to thin with water rather than solvent is in the binder. Standard oil paint uses linseed, safflower, or walnut oil as its binder — these oils repel water and require solvent for thinning and cleanup. Winsor & Newton Artisan uses a modified linseed oil in which the molecular structure has been altered to make it water-receptive. The pigments suspended in this binder are the same quality pigments used in traditional oil paints — there is no compromise in colour quality or lightfastness from the modification.
The practical result is a paint that thins smoothly with water, cleans from brushes with soap and water, and produces a dried paint film with the same archival stability and surface quality as traditional oil paint. The drying process is the same — oxidation rather than evaporation — so drying times are similar to traditional oils, which is one of the properties most valued by oil painters.
One important practical note: while Artisan can be thinned with water, using water excessively as a thinner can affect the paint film in the same way as over-thinning traditional oils with solvent — it can weaken the binder and cause the dried paint to be less flexible and durable. Water is best used in modest amounts for thinning, and the Artisan-specific mediums for more significant adjustments to consistency and flow.
Winsor & Newton Artisan: the range
Artisan is Winsor & Newton's water mixable oil colour range — one of the most trusted names in artists' materials producing one of the most carefully developed water mixable ranges available. The full range covers 40 colours from Series 1 through Series 4, and we stock the complete range in 37ml tubes at £7.35 per colour.
The colour range covers all the essentials of a working oil palette. The whites include Titanium White and Zinc White — each with different optical properties, Titanium being the more opaque and Zinc the more transparent. The yellows span Lemon Yellow through Cadmium Yellow Pale Hue, Cadmium Yellow Hue, Naples Yellow, and Yellow Ochre. The reds include Cadmium Red Hue, Cadmium Red Deep Hue, Permanent Alizarin Crimson, and Venetian Red. The blues cover French Ultramarine, Cerulean Blue Hue, Phthalo Blue, Cobalt Blue Hue, and Indanthrene Blue. The greens include Phthalo Green, Viridian Hue, Sap Green, and Oxide of Chromium. The earth palette covers Burnt Sienna, Raw Sienna, Burnt Umber, Raw Umber, and Yellow Ochre. And the blacks include Ivory Black and Mars Black.
The series designation reflects pigment cost rather than quality — all four series use the same Artisan formulation and the same modification for water miscibility. A working starter palette can be built entirely from Series 1 and 2 colours, with the cadmium and cobalt Series 3 and 4 colours added selectively as the palette develops.
The Artisan mediums we stock
While water alone can be used to thin Artisan paints, the dedicated Artisan mediums give considerably more control over specific properties of the paint and are worth understanding.
Artisan Linseed Oil — £8.75
The Artisan version of the traditional oil painting medium — water-cleanable linseed oil that increases flow and transparency, slows drying time, and improves the adhesion of later layers. Used in exactly the same way as traditional linseed oil in the fat over lean principle — adding more medium to later layers than to earlier ones to ensure a stable, flexible dried paint film. Compatible with water cleanup.
Artisan Safflower Oil — £8.75
A paler, slower-drying alternative to linseed oil with less tendency to yellow over time — particularly useful for lighter colours and whites where the slight yellowing of linseed oil over time would be most noticeable. Used in the same way as linseed oil but producing a slightly softer dried paint film.
Artisan Satin Varnish — £8.30
A UV-resistant satin varnish for protecting finished Artisan paintings. Applied once the painting is fully cured — typically six months to a year after completion for a thickly painted work — it protects the surface from dust and atmospheric pollutants and unifies the surface sheen. Non-yellowing and removable if the painting needs cleaning in future.
Artisan Matt Varnish — £8.75
The same UV-resistant protection as the Satin Varnish but with a completely matte finish — useful for paintings where a flat, non-reflective surface quality is wanted, or where the natural matte quality of some areas of an oil painting has become uneven and needs to be unified. Non-yellowing and removable.
The fat over lean principle — still applies
One of the most important technical rules in oil painting — fat over lean — applies equally to water mixable oils and is worth understanding before you begin building up layers.
Lean paint is paint thinned with water or a small amount of medium — it has a lower oil content and dries faster. Fat paint has a higher oil content — it is richer, slower to dry, and remains more flexible when cured. The rule is that each successive layer of paint should be at least as fat as the layer beneath it — ideally slightly fatter. A lean layer applied over a fat one dries faster and can crack as the fat layer beneath continues to cure and move.
In practice this means early layers should be thin — thinned with a small amount of water and minimal medium — and later layers progressively richer, with more Artisan Linseed or Safflower Oil added. The final finishing and glazing layers can be the richest of all.
Drying times
Artisan Water Mixable Oils dry at a similar rate to traditional oils — through oxidation rather than evaporation. A thin layer is typically touch-dry in eighteen to twenty-four hours. Thicker layers take longer — sometimes several days. The addition of water as a thinner can slightly accelerate surface drying, but this does not mean the paint film is fully cured — full cure takes much longer and the fat over lean principle still applies.
Drying times can be slightly faster than traditional oils in well-ventilated conditions, which some painters find an advantage. There is no fast-drying medium currently in our active stock for the Artisan range — if faster drying is important, working in thinner layers accelerates the process most reliably.
What you can make
Water mixable oils suit any subject and any oil painting technique. The full range of traditional oil painting approaches — alla prima wet into wet painting, layered glazing, impasto, scumbling, blending — all work with Artisan in exactly the same way as with traditional oils. The technique is unchanged. Only the cleanup materials differ.
For beginners new to oil painting, the practical accessibility of water mixable oils — the ability to set up and clean up without solvents, in any reasonably ventilated space — removes one of the main barriers to getting started. Our post on how to start oil painting covers the fundamental techniques in detail and is a useful companion to this guide.
For experienced oil painters considering the switch, the main adjustment is to the mediums — using the Artisan-specific water-cleanable mediums rather than traditional linseed oil, turpentine, or alkyd mediums. The colour behaviour and painting experience are very close to traditional oils, and most painters who make the switch find the transition straightforward.
The Water Mixable Oils book — £14.99
We stock the book Water Mixable Oils at Craft and Canvas at £14.99. Written specifically for artists approaching the medium — whether experienced oil painters making the switch or beginners starting directly with water mixable oils — it covers all the techniques, mediums, and approaches relevant to the Artisan range and provides step-by-step project guidance. An excellent companion to the paint range for anyone who wants structured guidance alongside the materials.
Frequently asked questions about water mixable oils
Are water mixable oils as good as traditional oils?
In terms of colour quality, pigment intensity, lightfastness, and archival stability of the dried paint film, yes — Artisan uses the same quality pigments as traditional Winsor & Newton oils and the modification affects only the binder, not the pigment. The painting experience is very similar. Some experienced painters find slight differences in handling — Artisan can feel marginally softer on the brush — but for most purposes the results are indistinguishable.
Can I mix Artisan with traditional oil paints?
In small amounts, yes — adding a small proportion of traditional oil paint to Artisan does not significantly affect the water-cleanable property. However, adding significant amounts of traditional oil paint progressively reduces water miscibility and you will find the cleanup becoming less effective. For best results, keep Artisan and traditional oils as separate palettes.
Can I use traditional oil mediums with Artisan?
Traditional linseed oil, alkyd mediums, and turpentine can technically be used with Artisan, but doing so reduces or eliminates the water-cleanable property. If you use traditional mediums, you will need traditional solvents for cleanup. For water-based cleanup to work, stick to the Artisan-specific mediums.
What surfaces can I use Artisan on?
Any surface suitable for traditional oil painting — primed canvas, canvas board, oil paper, wood panel. We stock Seawhite canvas boards and stretched canvases at Craft and Canvas, both of which work perfectly with Artisan. Pre-primed surfaces are ready to use without additional preparation.
How do I clean brushes?
Wipe as much paint as possible from the brush with a rag or kitchen roll first — removing excess paint mechanically before washing saves both time and water. Then wash with warm water and a small amount of brush soap or washing up liquid, working the soap into the bristles thoroughly. Rinse until the water runs clear. Reshape the bristles and lay the brush flat to dry.
Do I still need to varnish finished paintings?
Yes — varnishing is recommended for the same reasons as with traditional oils. It protects the surface and unifies the sheen. Use the Artisan-specific varnishes we stock — Matt at £8.75 or Satin at £8.30 — rather than standard acrylic varnish, which is not designed for oil painting surfaces. Apply only once the painting is fully cured.
Shop Artisan Water Mixable Oils at Craft and Canvas
We stock the full Winsor & Newton Artisan Water Mixable Oil Colour range in 37ml tubes at £7.35 per colour, Artisan Linseed Oil and Safflower Oil at £8.75 each, Artisan Matt Varnish at £8.75, Artisan Satin Varnish at £8.30, and the Water Mixable Oils book at £14.99 at Craft and Canvas in Hebden Bridge and online at craftandcanvas.co.uk.
Craft and Canvas | 3 Carlton Street, Hebden Bridge, HX7 8ER | craftandcanvas.co.uk