When I first started painting with oils, I bought a smattering of substrates to test.  I painted on stretched canvas and linen, canvas and linen panels, oil paper, and gesso board.  Over the years, I learned that I didn’t like the bounce and fragility of stretched canvas and linen.  I didn’t like the texture of canvas panels, but I’m okay with the texture of a fine Belgian linen panel.  I also learned that not all gessoed plywood, MDF, and hardboard are the same.  Some are rough and grippy.  Some are slippery, and the paint almost resists the surface.  Doing “the thing” is the best teacher, and through doing, I learned that my favorite surface was plywood panels I gessoed (primed) myself.  (THIS is the gesso I use.)

I like that they are easy to store in my studio, inexpensive to ship, rigid and unlikely to be damaged, and have a smooth surface that isn’t too grippy or too slippery.  It’s perfect for what I like.  The other benefit is that I have a husband with a table saw and woodworking knowledge, so he can cut custom and hard-to-find sizes for me.  That means I can buy antique and vintage frames that aren’t standard sizes without worrying about finding a panel or canvas to fit.

So, I have a stash of frames that needed panels, and I also needed 9 x 12 and 11 x 14 panels, since my preferred brand no longer carries those popular standard sizes.  (THIS is my favorite brand of art panels, which are still available in 8 x 10.)  The stash of frames, while nice to have on hand, was out of control and feeling a little overwhelming, so I wanted to get panels cut for all of them and put them to good use.   I made this same mistake when I first started refinishing furniture.  I felt like having a big stash was somehow a benefit, but the cube of furniture in our basement just stressed me out.  I can keep a few frames on hand for standard sizes, but I don’t need 20+ random frames.  Almost all of them need some form of repair and require a custom panel.

Jeff took advantage of a beautiful Saturday a few weeks ago and cut down dozens of panels for me.  He uses a 1/4″ thick, finish-grade plywood so it’s free from knots, heavy grain, and other imperfections.  Since I had several large frames, he started with the custom-cut panels.  He measured each one and cut a panel on the table saw to fit.

Then, he set up the fence and cut 11 x 14s, 9 x 12s, and 6 x 8s out of the remaining plywood.

He even sanded the panels for me, so they were ready for a few coats of gesso.

And I ended up with a huge stack of panels in standard sizes, which, unlike random old frames in need of work, I do need to have on hand.  Now, I am set for a few months.

Since I had so many panels to do, I have had to gesso and tone them in shifts.  At some point, I might need to get a second drying rack so I can work on more panels at once.  (THIS is the one I have, and I use it all the time.)  I also didn’t need to prep all of the 9 x 12 and 11 x 14 panels right away, so I did several of each to have them ready for commissioned pieces and paintings to sell.

So, there is a little behind-the-scenes look at my art business.  I am going to try to share more of the business side of selling art since that’s primarily what I’ve been working on.  I’ve been hesitant to write too much about the art side of things, since I know I have a lot of blog readers who signed up for the home, furniture, and garden content, but I don’t have much time to work on those things in this current season.  This blog has always been about sharing what I’m currently working on, so I’m going to roll with it and hope my “home people” find it interesting too.