Winsor & Newton Winton Tube Assorted Colours 37ml Set of 10

These paints are not priced in series numbers as they are beginner/student quality. In the interest of being cost effective, beginner/student quality paints are often made by mixing more economic pigments in order to create ‘hues’ that mimic more expensive pigment.

The coarse hair used for hog brushes is firm and springy, and lends the brush the strength it needs to manage the weight and thickness of oil paint. Their hard-wearing nature also allows them to withstand the solvents and harsh substances needed for cleaning oil paint from brushes. Should you prefer to use synthetic brushes, any synthetic brush built specifically for use with oil paint will have very similar properties to hog brushes.

All three types of painting offer very different experiences. Oil paints boast beautiful colour depth and blending properties and their long drying time allows the painter the flexibility to make changes over longer periods of time than when painting with acrylic or watercolour. Oil painting is one of the more traditional art practices and holds historical significance, the oldest discovered oil painting dating back as far as the 7th century.

Canvas is a popular surface for painters using oil colour. You can also paint onto oil paper, wooden panels or non-absorbent materials such as metal or glass. All surfaces will need to be correctly prepared before using with oil colour to ensure the paint grips to the surface, as well as avoid any risk of the oil base of the paint seeping through the surface. You can ensure that your surface is safe to use with oil paint is by priming it beforehand with gesso.

Series numbers don't indicate any difference in the quality of the paint. Each colour of paint uses different pigments - some are synthetic, and some are natural. These come from a wide variety of different sources, and the cost of each raw pigment varies. The cost of the pigment is reflected in the cost of the final paint. Series 1 paints are the ones that use lower cost pigments, whereas higher series numbers use more expensive pigments, meaning it costs more to make the finished product.