Vince is trying to get me to set up a mold farm! My guess is that it's the surface area of the copper object that matters, pennies from after 1982 might be just as good as pennies from before 1982
I bought a roll of copper tape from the plumbing section at my local hardware store. It is designed to stick in a water-heavy environment (it is used around water pipes). I put a couple pieces in the bottom of my wet palette and I never have issues with mold. The whole roll of tape was a couple bucks.
@@MrGunnar177 I just did a couple strips because I had the narrow tape but if I have to do it again I'm going to do the entire bottom. The other option would be getting a small piece of copper sheet metal that's cut to the size and put in the bottom but that's a bit more work
Denver painter here. Something else that changed my life is a tiny desk humidifier. Only about the size of a soda can, but it extended the life of my paint on my palette by a TON.
Is there a particular one you like? I live in the high desert, I could use a bit of humidity just in my room to help the paint from drying before it gets from the pallet to the mini lol
I’ve taken to adding a little bit of IPA to my wet palette. I live in the desert so mold isn’t a huge concern. When I’m done with isopropyl alcohol. I switch to India Pale Ale for the painter.
I rock 7 parts water, 2 parts IPA 1 part (vallejo) airbrush cleaner as a surfactant, Its working really well for me so far... incase someone needs a specific recommendation/recipe (i just make a 2L batch since thats how much is in the big bottles of vallejo airbrush cleaner, i suspect you could use WAY less but you really dont use enough of the liquid for cost to be a real issue...
I don't have too much trouble with mold where I live, but when it has gotten a bit musty, a quick wash with white vinegar completely takes care of it. My go to cleaner for sure!
i use copper tape - it has a adhesion side, so i stick it to the bottom of the palette. I also used distilled water. Thanks Vince, and always informative and helpful. ALL HAIL THE WIZARD V.V !!!
Your videos are so helpful and great as a teaching tool. So informative and educational for someone trying to learn to paint better. Thank you for doing videos like this.
Bought the Exemplar and it is the best I have used. I also found that the Masterson's did have a mold issue and I started using distilled water because I have well water this reduced the issue. I now only use distilled water in my Exemplar and to clean my brushes to reduce any minerals or other contaminates in my water. Just water for thought...
I came to wet palettes late in my hobby career and they’re great. I use little plastic resealable boxes from Walmart, cut down kitchen sponges, parchment paper, and some astringent - never had any mold and the paint stays wet for days. I wish all these tips were around when I started!
A note on the sponges included with the exemplar... I had to put everything in storage about a year ago. While I poured out the excess water in the palette, I left the damp sponge in there and just closed the top (no copper wire, no detergent, just bottled water). I just pulled it out of storage - NO odor, NO mold. Right back to working with it like I put it away yesterday :)
As someone who has never used a wet pallet before this video is truly helpful! I’ve been painting for years but I still use a regular canvas - I think it’s finally time to transition over
Thanks for the hot tips for a wet palette, Vince! I particularly appreciate when "influencers"(for lack of a better term haha) give the advice that you don't have to buy "X" product that costs a ton, and instead suggest a DIY version on the cheap.
Always, I will give my fair reviews of products and if you're interested, pick them up - but almost nothing is required and not everyone has the money to just go spend oodles of cash on hobby nonsense. My goal is getting everyone hobbying first - always. :)
I when the paper has flatten itself, I love to use an old creditcard to push the remaining air bubbels out. Satisfying :) My dab,dab : clot partially wet (size of a tongue), where I point my brush, no more brushlicking :p
This is awesome! Thank you! As someone who’s at times used the super cheap wet pallet and was at times able to get days out of a paint, I just upgraded to the Exemplar and it’s awesome!!! I don’t get paint to last quite as long but the other advantages make up for it. I also love the tip to get a secondary paint blob and the info to dab and twirl.
I’ve made a habit of dabbing off my paint brush with basically everything (arm flair included) since watching your videos & it’s really changed the game for me. I’ve finally had my first aha moment with thinning paints & now I’m figuring out layering (also thanks to your videos). I appreciate your perspective & approach to painting. Thanks again!
Wet palette is a must have in the hobby! I don't even mean allowing for longer painting session with wasting less paint (but this is also a great plus), but that it allows for easier paint mixing. I usually start my painting with few base colors and with 1-2 highlight colors (sometimes I need cold and warm highlight color) as well as 1-2 shading colors (dark tones that will nicely allow me to darken base paints). This has it's drawbacks when base colors are not vibrant enough (a desaturated end result), but it can be easily fixed by using more vibrant base colors/glazing with vibrant color at the end. It's not as good when I paint a whole army, but it's great for painting characters/single minis. Great video!
Not only are kitchen sponges more susceptible to mold, they also come in distracting colors. So I moved to a white (or light grey) sponge that gives a better idea of the true color of the paint.
I use a copper penny from the 1950s in mine and I’ve never had problems. You just have to use a penny from before a certain year and put it under the sponges.
Paper towel + parchement paper works great. I can't imagine why I would ever want to get into a custom-shaped sponge that I can't easily replace with stuff from the grocery store, and then have to worry about mold. The stuff I use keeps paints workable for 6+ hours
I was wondering why I always seemed to have so much trouble with my wet palettes and getting good consistency with my paints - this is making me realize I definitely put way too little water in my Army Painter Wet Palette. Thanks for this! Also, reading through the comments has given me another idea. My sponge definitely is susceptible to mold where I live in Canada, and we discontinued our pennies a decade ago now so I can't even just hope to find old copper-rich pennies like I had heard over the years. I The copper plumbing tape others are mentioning is definitely something I can pick up for cheap though!
“Double Sponge!” - Kudos Sensei Venturella for eazily clarifying the everything there’s to know about wet palettes! Thanks so much! Keep it up your content always amazes! 🌞♥️🤟🏼🐝
I love your honesty and attitude Vince. I live in extremely dry area (eastern Europe) and I have 40% humidity in a room with TWO humidifiers (20-25% without). Plus shadowless professional lamp that gives me sweet +2 degree C of room temp when on, and I struggle with ANY kind of wet palette and papers combination. I've tried all hobby brands of products, all kitchen papers and sponges, nothing work. I make a gradient, and when I finish with shadows and go to midtone, paint is already dry and I can only re-activate it. Sadly, retarders dilute paint too much on wet palette. What helped the most is USB table-humidifier, which is small but transferring fog of humidity directly on palette giving me a chance to work. So, my workaround is : 1) a little retarder 2) table usb humidifier 3) creating gradient with bigger blobs BUT on 3 close passes of glazing, e.g. if you planning to layer 5 shadows, 5 midtones and 5 highlights from 3 paint drops, I prepare ONLY 2-3 glazing steps at a time, not a full gradient ready.
I've been using my wet palette for over a year & love it but do struggle a little with it. The simple summary of the water osmosis & evaporation process is a game changer in helping me understand why I see the benefits I do from it but also the issues. Now I feel much more prepared to handle it better going forwards. Sharing this with so many people right now.
For pennies use one from before 1983 where the copper content was higher. I live in a tropical area and a 70s penny in the wet pallet prevents mold unless I leave it clamped shut for more than a couple weeks.
I have the Redgrass Gaming pallet and have found the paper that they come with starts to deteriorate after a day or so of being wet. It starts to pull little fibers off the paper which has perturbed me to no end a couple times having to stop mid session and get a new pallet paper. So, I don’t use it to preserve paint over night. I use it to keep the paint workable during my paint sessions and discard the paper when I’m done for the day. Also a couple lengths of copper wire work great to inhibit mold. I used to have the Masterson pallet and I never had mold issues. Just take the copper out and remove the oxidation with a scouring pad once in a while to keep fresh copper exposed in order for it to remain effective.
In times when it is very dry, I’ve placed my wet palette in the refrigerator overnight. I’ve also found it easier to pre-cut several sheets of parchment paper then place the cut sheets under some heavy books to help them unroll and lay flatter when I first start using it.
Followed Vinces earlier video on this and it worked great. Parchment was cheap and I grabbed an A4 pallette off amazon for a tenner. The included paper was clearly for canvas painters and useless, expect this. Not tried the foam stuff, but this system works so well I dont see a need to change it. Humidity/mold wise, well, im in England, so there isnt any 95% of the year. Commiserations if your a mini painter in a tropical area. Youve got a lot more maintenance work to do, but nicer weather to do it in. Thanks Vince, good update.
Parts of Cornwall are classified as a rainforest and the inside of your house will go black if you turn your back on it, I'm jealous of your arid corner of england
I’ll need to try the double sponge method. Humidity in the room I paint is quite low, and may help. I use the Army Painter XL, and it’s been solid but my main gripe is the paper that it comes with is too large, and the palette only closes with the plastic well insert. I do trim the paper on the mine Wanted grab the red grass artist XL, but it is nearly double the price as this one, and all it is really is a container and a sponge at the end of the day.
Kitchen towel(s) are the superior sponge as you can stack as many as you need and if you get mold you can throw them away and replace them as theya re super cheap.
For anti-microbial additive I’ve had good results by adding a squirt or two of rubbing alcohol to the sponge and water. It’s enough to keep the bugs down, but not enough that it affects the acrylic paint or any ca glued joints.
i got a wet pallet earlier this year and it has helped me quite a bit. Being rather slow having paint last a while is great. and it just seems easier to thin the paints. I would highly recommend trying a wet pallet.
Add rubbing alcohol, maybe a tablespoon, to the pallet which keeps mold from growing and it will last months, never had a problem with mold. The paper will be completely filled with paint and . the pallet will need a fresh paper before needing to clean the wet pallet. The one time I forgot to add alcohol and I had mold in a few days. My wet pallet is a plastic chinese fast food container/tray (like the tupperware) with a foam sponge from a miniature package and parchment paper from the store. I've had it for years, but the sponge is starting to wear out and I'll probably have to do something new soon. I've made mini wet pallets for my kids with the miniature packaging and foam sponge so they could both paint with me once, worked good. The extra wet paint from a day ago may be too thin for regular painting but is good for thinning with fresh paint. The too thinned paint can also be cleaned off the pallet with paper towel or Q tips to save space on the wet pallet.
I am in a mountain area, very dry and luckily paint is workable for about 24 hours on most colors but on some depending on initial thinness they might not have as much time. Mold only becomes an issue after weeks of the sponge being wet but I still cut a piece of copper wire and drop it in the side. I use the redgrass pallet but the game envy sponge looks good. Personally I put a masterson sponge under the redgrass sponge to double sponge so if a pallet comes with multiple layers of sponge that might save some hassle.
I live in a moderately humid (summer) or dry (winter) area and have found that refrigerating my wet palette between sessions has kept mold away and saved excess paints, though I do need to wash off the paper if I go too long between sessions as the stored paints get too water logged. I hadn't heard about cutting down the paper and will have to try that. Thanks for another great hobby cheating video!
i always use multiple self made at once, they are all 2x3 inch (5,5x7,5cm). every color has it own wet palette with a little extra space for mixing, this way i never have issue with mold and i waste less materials
I made my own wet palette with a sealable box and cellulose fiber cloths (or sponge cloths). They contain a tiny bit of some kind of soap, and this is really good at keeping out the mold! I live in a pretty humid environment and I never have issues with mold.
Two other options to consider for anti-microbial solutions: I have rolls of copper sheet for terrain and armour; I also have a roll of fine silver wire which was purchased for a water-cooling reservoir. Both options are more expensive than mentioned options; at least as standalone purchases. If I recall, the last copper I bought was around £15, while the wire was £6 (several years ago). I use the wire in my water stones; but it should work well in a wet-pallet too, and silver is a better anti-microbial than copper. I have lined the bottom of my wet pallet with copper; meaning the entire sponge is in contact (it’s the Matheson, natural/pseudo-natural sponge and it has been grim in the past). If you have these sorts of materials anyway there is no reason not to use them (I have no idea how I’ll use all of the silver wire in my lifetime :-) ). I will also suggest using a piece of ordinary cartridge paper between sponge and parchment. I’m not sure how much influence the black sponge in the Exemplar has; but I found bringing the surface of my pallet closer to white very useful.
Great video vince and loads of tips I never knew even though I've had my army painter wet palette for years now, tempted to try your go to palette Vince.
Note to self: "Don't be the stinky kid". Apart from that, keeping the palette in the fridge when on stand-by did the trick for me as far as mould is concerned. Never had any since I started doing that.
10:10 Can confirm that waxed paper will let water trough, just not as much. Also I have encountered waxed paper with different amounts of wax on them, which naturally affects the amount of water they let through. Which is a way of regulating the amount of hydration your paints get.
Thanks for the video. I don't remember you saying if you use distilled water or tap water. There was some discussion on an Uncle Atom video. I use distilled water because I don't want minerals from my well water leaving any residue behind on my models. Some people said that chlorine in their tap prevents mold, but I know it quickly evaporates (besides there isn't any chlorine in my well water). I plan on using your dish soap suggestion.
I agree with you that Game Envy’s pallet is the best. I tried Masterson’s small wet pallet and it would get moldy easily and the Redgrass games pallet paper (From their V2 model) is way too thick for most hobby paints and doesn’t hydrate all that effectively.
What is a wet pallet? And say thing that helps extend work time. It is not an indulbial tool. But it is a good tool. I find especially when I'm working with air brush paints and doing brush around work. I'd like using a dry pallet because they're thin enough. But if you want to work with games, we're a trop pants or more traditional. Hobby paints could help Sten your paints, which is one of the biggest things you need to learn, is a new painter. Thin Down your pants.
to prevent mold and bacterial growth on your wet palette you can add 5-10% alcohol to the water you use to hydrate your sponge, this will kill pretty much everything that can grow on the sponge. another solution is to add a few drops of hydrogen peroxide. it doesnt smell, doesnt affect the paint a can be readily acquired in any pool or aquarium supply store. its also great to clean your refrigerator ;)
I use a drop of dishsoap in 1 cup of water and use that mix on my wet pallet. It seems to keep mold away Edit: I should have watched all the way through before posting my comment. 😳
My personal 3 cents: * If you use baking paper, it's handy to cut 20-30 pieces beforehand, not by 1 every time. * If you use one piece of paper for a long time, keep the lid on the palette to cover the area you don't use atm to prevent dust accumulation. * If you need surface to be more wet, put toilet (or any other soft) paper between the sponge and the baking paper, because sponge may suck moisture back if there's not enough.
hi, yes as a Physician I can confirm that Copper is known in medicine for it's antibacterial properties. On the other side, Mold is Fungi and not Bacterial :) Copper works as well.
I’ve bought every, single one - IMHO, it comes down to 1) the paper 2) the “seal” on the cover 3) distilled water if on a well or high iron. No matter what I’ve used, (after 2 days max) the paint either floats and becomes over saturated, or during the session the paper begins to dry out and curl. “User error” is a possibility I suppose
Vince, great video as always, but can you please raise the volume? I always have to adjust by a lot when I watch your stuff, it feels like everything else on youtube is much louder
This is another great resource to be referenced for years. Marco and Scotts videos about wet palettes pushed me to use one and that was really the tool that made painting a fun hobby instead of a means to an end result. Some great information here not found elsewhere and your video library is the most comprehensive and accessible resource for our community. Thanks Vince (ps your pro acryl signature series is the best)
another great video !!! one thing i would note is that it seems like the videos volume is " low " ive got u cranked full volume on all settings and can just hear u... traffic outside my window is louder... i know u cant really do much about it now, just thought u might like to know for future videos... i will often toss ur videos on in the background with music playing while i paint but this one i had to turn off my tunes to hear ya :D as for pennies in the palette, new pennies use an alloy coating which does not oxidize giving the anti-fungal benefits, u should use old pennies from before 1980... the older the better ive got some in my palette from as early as 1950 :D
I don't recall hearing you mention metallic paints and wet palettes. Any thoughts? Also, a suggestion for mold, spores and fungus prevention: Vinegar. It works in drywall and papier mache, as well as wet palettes. I use a small spray bottle filled to the top line with water, and 1 drop of vinegar.
Metallic paints and wet palettes don't mix is my attitude. Metallic paints don't like water, and the suspension they are in is often quite delicate, so I prefer a dry palette for metallic paints.
Great video, though my experience is slightly different. I find that most of the cheap craft paints that I am still using up, will be usable for 3 weeks or more in my wet pallet. Now, the actual mini paints I have don't last more than a few days. Maybe because I use less water. I tend to get the sponge to just over saturated. So there is only a little water beside it on the edges. I also don't tend to have issues with mold unless I leave it closed for more than a month. (my hobby time can be very sporadic depending work and honey-do lists). Might be because all the water I have on my workbench has a tiny bit of soap in it to help with surface tension. And mine is just the cheap yellow sponge that comes in the Masterson. I am up here in northern Ohio, so my basement is pretty humid half the year too.
I have been trying hydrogen peroxide to wet my palette on occasion to stop mold.. I tried mixing with paint to see if it would cause some bleaching of the paint and did not notice any change. Inexpensive.
Check with your local principality to see how they treat your water. Chlorine evaporates over 24hrs whereas Chlorinates don't evaporate at all. If you live somewhere with chlorinates in your water like me, your wet palette will seem to never get moldy. I also use reverse osmosis water since I have a filter, that also seems to never get funky.
It looks like the paper you are using is substantially hydrophobic and the paint beads up rather than spreads out when you move it around. I was using paper like that but now switched to dedicated paper which has VERY different behavior for thinning and mixing. It seems like most people use much less hydrophobic paper so the paint dosen't bead up.
OH - cleaning the squeeze bottle. You know, now that you say it, it does make sense... Oops. Definitely will have it in my list of regular things to do!
Hi Vince, Not sure if anyone asked this already, didn't see anything scrolling down..... Have you used the Redgrass Games wet pallette and if so, how do you think it compares to the Exemplar. I used a masters for years, but It had a lot of mold issues and I spent a lot of money replacing the sponges. I got the Redgrass after another creator recommended and It was a HUGE difference... no mold at all, my paints stay workable for much longer, and easier to clean. I just clean the neoprene-like sponges in the dishwasher and thats it. However, I like the fact that the Exemplar has a closable vent, thats a nice feature. I also want to say how awesome you are, I watch you, Ninjon, Uncle Adam, Miniac, and Squidmar more than I watch regular TV. You are all amazing sources for the hobby and recomment you all to new hobbyists. Also, Majestic 13 is freaking awesome!
I have a Redgrass V2 palette, and they say that their sponge is designed to inhibit mold growth. And they say to not add alcohol or wash with alcohol or anything other than water or else it will destroy the antimicrobial properties of the sponge. I haven't had any mold on my palette yet, so hopefully their claim is true?
When should you NOT use a wet palette? I tend to use a lot of contrast style paints, and I’ve been told by some people not to use them on my wet palette, but they seem to work fine for me. Other people say you SHOULD use those style paints. Some people say you can pick up paints for dry brushing from your wet palette, then move over to something else, some people say not to even bother with a wet palette when dry brushing. What are your thoughts?
Let me start by saying there is no one single answer to this question, your style, methods and so on will all define what is good for you here. That being said, I don't use my wet palette for the following things - metallic paints (as they shouldn't really have extra water added), washes (for the most part, unless I want them thinned), dry pigment (obvious reasons) and contrast paints when I want them at full power. That being said, that last one and what you're asking is about 50/50. I will often put contrast paints there when I want them to be thin and act more as a filter.
Great video! I've been going back and forth between my Studio Redgrass palette and my Exemplar. Love 'em both, but I think the Exemplar hits the sweet spot for me. Didn't know about the new sponge, however! Might need to check it out.
@@grombatmole Mostly the size, I didn't really take into consideration my desk space when Kickstarting. I also agree with the lid being annoying, at least in comparison with the Exemplar.
Definitely answered a few questions I had. I've been using the Masterson since I picked up painting once again. I have been looking for a new palette a while now. What's everyone been using, and what's your favorite?
I have a masterson's pallet and when I tried switching to parchment paper my paints seemed to absorb too much water and ran around a bit. Then again whenever I see youtubers using one they seem to like it that way. I guess I always figure I could add a bit of water if needed but can't dry the paint out. I probably should seek out some better sponges.
Vince, love your content. I always like and comment. Question about your volume: Is it possible to increase the output of your videos so that our ears don't get destroyed when ads pop out? For example, right now my sound is almost at max to hear you well, but when an ad pops out, it super loud and uncomfortable. Just leaving some feedback to my favorite Warhammer/Painting channel on UA-cam. Thank you :)
Here we are about a month later, I put 3 of these pennies (after cleaning them) under my sponge in the wet pallet and I no longer get a funky smell from it.
Love the exemplar wet pallete! I came across one at one of my LGS late last year. I hadnt heard of it before and couldnt really find reviews on it. I decided to risk it all anyways and a year later its easily the best tool I have for the hobby. Question Vince, I have the original wet pallette with the old sponges, whats the advantages with the new nylon sponges? And would it be worth picking some up? Ive never had an issue with mold and I live in the very humid parts of the US. Like any of my previous palletes I always kept a couple older copper pennies in them. Also fun fact, any pennies pre-dating 1982 were made of 95% copper so those are the ones good for wet palletes. I just happen to have 2 by chance over time.
Maybe an idea: any reason not to use those water purification drops for drinking water (e.g. Micropur by Katadyn) that contain silver ions? Just add some to the water that you put into your wet pallette. Didn't try it myself, was just thinking of it when I hear Vince discussing the mold issue. (I didn't have a mold issue with my wet pallette yet, even though I kept it moist for several weeks at times.)
I have a stack of game envy pallets from various kickstarters, never broke me of the RedGrassGames one I've had forever -- might have to give it another go as I hate the international shipping. Granted I just order more handle tops and stuff to make it easier. Regretfully even with the game envy copper guards in it. if you forget about it in your Evo Bag for over a month it's not very happy. Any line on where to get the Mini Master Werks - Palette Guard. Looks like most places are sold out of it or not carrying it.
Hey Vince, great topic, the question I have is: do you find a difference in water? Tap water, if provided by a city can have Chlorine or Chlorimine at certain times a year. Have you tried distilled water? 😅
Distilled is generally better, but I use tap water mostly, can't be bothered and it works fine for the most part, but your local water can heavily influence that.
Vince is trying to get me to set up a mold farm! My guess is that it's the surface area of the copper object that matters, pennies from after 1982 might be just as good as pennies from before 1982
A great point. THis is why I always trust a chemist. :)
@@VinceVenturella You say chemistry I say forbidden alchemical heresy designed to invoke nurgle!
The penny I've been using for years is from 1984 apparently. Works fine. No mold.
I bought a roll of copper tape from the plumbing section at my local hardware store. It is designed to stick in a water-heavy environment (it is used around water pipes). I put a couple pieces in the bottom of my wet palette and I never have issues with mold. The whole roll of tape was a couple bucks.
I’ll have to give that a go
Did you line the whole bottom of it?
That's a great idea. Didn't even think of that. I stripped out the copper wiring from an old broken ethernet cable. Seems to work.
@@MrGunnar177 I just did a couple strips because I had the narrow tape but if I have to do it again I'm going to do the entire bottom. The other option would be getting a small piece of copper sheet metal that's cut to the size and put in the bottom but that's a bit more work
Denver painter here. Something else that changed my life is a tiny desk humidifier. Only about the size of a soda can, but it extended the life of my paint on my palette by a TON.
Is there a particular one you like? I live in the high desert, I could use a bit of humidity just in my room to help the paint from drying before it gets from the pallet to the mini lol
Vince just dabbed. My life is complete
I’ve taken to adding a little bit of IPA to my wet palette. I live in the desert so mold isn’t a huge concern.
When I’m done with isopropyl alcohol. I switch to India Pale Ale for the painter.
I rock 7 parts water, 2 parts IPA 1 part (vallejo) airbrush cleaner as a surfactant, Its working really well for me so far... incase someone needs a specific recommendation/recipe (i just make a 2L batch since thats how much is in the big bottles of vallejo airbrush cleaner, i suspect you could use WAY less but you really dont use enough of the liquid for cost to be a real issue...
Just wanted to say how much I appreciate all your knowledge and consistency in sharing this with all of us.
I don't have too much trouble with mold where I live, but when it has gotten a bit musty, a quick wash with white vinegar completely takes care of it. My go to cleaner for sure!
i use copper tape - it has a adhesion side, so i stick it to the bottom of the palette. I also used distilled water. Thanks Vince, and always informative and helpful. ALL HAIL THE WIZARD V.V !!!
That's a great idea!
Your videos are so helpful and great as a teaching tool. So informative and educational for someone trying to learn to paint better. Thank you for doing videos like this.
Bought the Exemplar and it is the best I have used. I also found that the Masterson's did have a mold issue and I started using distilled water because I have well water this reduced the issue. I now only use distilled water in my Exemplar and to clean my brushes to reduce any minerals or other contaminates in my water. Just water for thought...
I came to wet palettes late in my hobby career and they’re great. I use little plastic resealable boxes from Walmart, cut down kitchen sponges, parchment paper, and some astringent - never had any mold and the paint stays wet for days. I wish all these tips were around when I started!
A note on the sponges included with the exemplar... I had to put everything in storage about a year ago. While I poured out the excess water in the palette, I left the damp sponge in there and just closed the top (no copper wire, no detergent, just bottled water). I just pulled it out of storage - NO odor, NO mold. Right back to working with it like I put it away yesterday :)
As someone who has never used a wet pallet before this video is truly helpful! I’ve been painting for years but I still use a regular canvas - I think it’s finally time to transition over
Glad it was helpful!
Thanks for the hot tips for a wet palette, Vince! I particularly appreciate when "influencers"(for lack of a better term haha) give the advice that you don't have to buy "X" product that costs a ton, and instead suggest a DIY version on the cheap.
Always, I will give my fair reviews of products and if you're interested, pick them up - but almost nothing is required and not everyone has the money to just go spend oodles of cash on hobby nonsense. My goal is getting everyone hobbying first - always. :)
I when the paper has flatten itself, I love to use an old creditcard to push the remaining air bubbels out. Satisfying :)
My dab,dab : clot partially wet (size of a tongue), where I point my brush, no more brushlicking :p
This is awesome! Thank you! As someone who’s at times used the super cheap wet pallet and was at times able to get days out of a paint, I just upgraded to the Exemplar and it’s awesome!!! I don’t get paint to last quite as long but the other advantages make up for it. I also love the tip to get a secondary paint blob and the info to dab and twirl.
Regarding cleaning the wet palette, you can also throw the sponges in the microwave for 30 seconds or a minute to kill any bacteria in the sponge.
8:48 Tried copper wire versus penny's and in my experience the wire is much superior in preventing mold.
Depends on the penny. Post 1982, US pennies are copper washed zinc, not copper. So newer pennies won’t work if you’re looking for copper toxicity.
problem is some paints will react with the copper in some funky ways
I’ve made a habit of dabbing off my paint brush with basically everything (arm flair included) since watching your videos & it’s really changed the game for me. I’ve finally had my first aha moment with thinning paints & now I’m figuring out layering (also thanks to your videos). I appreciate your perspective & approach to painting. Thanks again!
Wet palette is a must have in the hobby!
I don't even mean allowing for longer painting session with wasting less paint (but this is also a great plus), but that it allows for easier paint mixing. I usually start my painting with few base colors and with 1-2 highlight colors (sometimes I need cold and warm highlight color) as well as 1-2 shading colors (dark tones that will nicely allow me to darken base paints).
This has it's drawbacks when base colors are not vibrant enough (a desaturated end result), but it can be easily fixed by using more vibrant base colors/glazing with vibrant color at the end.
It's not as good when I paint a whole army, but it's great for painting characters/single minis.
Great video!
Thank you for showing me the secrets of the wet pallette
A deep dive into a wet palette? Can`t do that into mine.
Not only are kitchen sponges more susceptible to mold, they also come in distracting colors. So I moved to a white (or light grey) sponge that gives a better idea of the true color of the paint.
Folded kitchen on top of the sponge helps with colour “bleed” 👍
Please don't do a deep dive into a wet pallette, Vince. You'll hurt yourself. We would lose your videos. I'll pay for you to go to the swimming pool 😂
Puns are the highest form of humour. Closely followed by dad jokes. Good show that man!
Boooooooooooooooooo lol
And he combined them both…platinum tier clean humor.
Well done.
Just double sponge 🧽
I use a copper penny from the 1950s in mine and I’ve never had problems. You just have to use a penny from before a certain year and put it under the sponges.
Pre 1983 penny.
Paper towel + parchement paper works great. I can't imagine why I would ever want to get into a custom-shaped sponge that I can't easily replace with stuff from the grocery store, and then have to worry about mold. The stuff I use keeps paints workable for 6+ hours
I was wondering why I always seemed to have so much trouble with my wet palettes and getting good consistency with my paints - this is making me realize I definitely put way too little water in my Army Painter Wet Palette. Thanks for this!
Also, reading through the comments has given me another idea. My sponge definitely is susceptible to mold where I live in Canada, and we discontinued our pennies a decade ago now so I can't even just hope to find old copper-rich pennies like I had heard over the years. I The copper plumbing tape others are mentioning is definitely something I can pick up for cheap though!
“Double Sponge!” - Kudos Sensei Venturella for eazily clarifying the everything there’s to know about wet palettes! Thanks so much! Keep it up your content always amazes! 🌞♥️🤟🏼🐝
I love your honesty and attitude Vince. I live in extremely dry area (eastern Europe) and I have 40% humidity in a room with TWO humidifiers (20-25% without). Plus shadowless professional lamp that gives me sweet +2 degree C of room temp when on, and I struggle with ANY kind of wet palette and papers combination. I've tried all hobby brands of products, all kitchen papers and sponges, nothing work. I make a gradient, and when I finish with shadows and go to midtone, paint is already dry and I can only re-activate it. Sadly, retarders dilute paint too much on wet palette. What helped the most is USB table-humidifier, which is small but transferring fog of humidity directly on palette giving me a chance to work. So, my workaround is : 1) a little retarder 2) table usb humidifier 3) creating gradient with bigger blobs BUT on 3 close passes of glazing, e.g. if you planning to layer 5 shadows, 5 midtones and 5 highlights from 3 paint drops, I prepare ONLY 2-3 glazing steps at a time, not a full gradient ready.
I've been using my wet palette for over a year & love it but do struggle a little with it. The simple summary of the water osmosis & evaporation process is a game changer in helping me understand why I see the benefits I do from it but also the issues. Now I feel much more prepared to handle it better going forwards. Sharing this with so many people right now.
I didn't know I needed another wet palette guide until I saw your video. You are a genius - thank you for your videos and great work!
copper from just a regular house line works great.
Thanks so much for this - I've been using a palette for over a year now and have had it under-hydrated the whole time.
For pennies use one from before 1983 where the copper content was higher. I live in a tropical area and a 70s penny in the wet pallet prevents mold unless I leave it clamped shut for more than a couple weeks.
I have the Redgrass Gaming pallet and have found the paper that they come with starts to deteriorate after a day or so of being wet. It starts to pull little fibers off the paper which has perturbed me to no end a couple times having to stop mid session and get a new pallet paper. So, I don’t use it to preserve paint over night. I use it to keep the paint workable during my paint sessions and discard the paper when I’m done for the day.
Also a couple lengths of copper wire work great to inhibit mold. I used to have the Masterson pallet and I never had mold issues. Just take the copper out and remove the oxidation with a scouring pad once in a while to keep fresh copper exposed in order for it to remain effective.
As always, thank you for your amazing knowledge and your awesome MTG Angels screensavers
In times when it is very dry, I’ve placed my wet palette in the refrigerator overnight. I’ve also found it easier to pre-cut several sheets of parchment paper then place the cut sheets under some heavy books to help them unroll and lay flatter when I first start using it.
Was just saying to myself this week I need to look at a wet palette guide. Thanks Vince!
If your curious about the climate inside your house and how much it fluctuates, having a basic humidity gauge on your hobby desk can be helpful.
Followed Vinces earlier video on this and it worked great. Parchment was cheap and I grabbed an A4 pallette off amazon for a tenner. The included paper was clearly for canvas painters and useless, expect this. Not tried the foam stuff, but this system works so well I dont see a need to change it. Humidity/mold wise, well, im in England, so there isnt any 95% of the year. Commiserations if your a mini painter in a tropical area. Youve got a lot more maintenance work to do, but nicer weather to do it in. Thanks Vince, good update.
Parts of Cornwall are classified as a rainforest and the inside of your house will go black if you turn your back on it, I'm jealous of your arid corner of england
I’ll need to try the double sponge method. Humidity in the room I paint is quite low, and may help. I use the Army Painter XL, and it’s been solid but my main gripe is the paper that it comes with is too large, and the palette only closes with the plastic well insert. I do trim the paper on the mine
Wanted grab the red grass artist XL, but it is nearly double the price as this one, and all it is really is a container and a sponge at the end of the day.
Kitchen towel(s) are the superior sponge as you can stack as many as you need and if you get mold you can throw them away and replace them as theya re super cheap.
For anti-microbial additive I’ve had good results by adding a squirt or two of rubbing alcohol to the sponge and water. It’s enough to keep the bugs down, but not enough that it affects the acrylic paint or any ca glued joints.
i got a wet pallet earlier this year and it has helped me quite a bit. Being rather slow having paint last a while is great. and it just seems easier to thin the paints. I would highly recommend trying a wet pallet.
GREAT VIDEO VINCE BECAUSE IT WAS VERY INFORMING SO THANK YOU FOR GIVING US NEWBIES YOUR KNOWLEDGE ABOUT USING A WET PALETTE
Glad it was helpful!
This is great. You are covering several things that I haven't seen in the other online discussions of wet palette best practices.
Add rubbing alcohol, maybe a tablespoon, to the pallet which keeps mold from growing and it will last months, never had a problem with mold. The paper will be completely filled with paint and . the pallet will need a fresh paper before needing to clean the wet pallet. The one time I forgot to add alcohol and I had mold in a few days.
My wet pallet is a plastic chinese fast food container/tray (like the tupperware) with a foam sponge from a miniature package and parchment paper from the store. I've had it for years, but the sponge is starting to wear out and I'll probably have to do something new soon. I've made mini wet pallets for my kids with the miniature packaging and foam sponge so they could both paint with me once, worked good.
The extra wet paint from a day ago may be too thin for regular painting but is good for thinning with fresh paint. The too thinned paint can also be cleaned off the pallet with paper towel or Q tips to save space on the wet pallet.
I am in a mountain area, very dry and luckily paint is workable for about 24 hours on most colors but on some depending on initial thinness they might not have as much time.
Mold only becomes an issue after weeks of the sponge being wet but I still cut a piece of copper wire and drop it in the side.
I use the redgrass pallet but the game envy sponge looks good. Personally I put a masterson sponge under the redgrass sponge to double sponge so if a pallet comes with multiple layers of sponge that might save some hassle.
This was a very useful video. Someone as a wonderful present got me a wet pallet and I had no idea what to do with it, lol.
Glad it was helpful!
I live in a moderately humid (summer) or dry (winter) area and have found that refrigerating my wet palette between sessions has kept mold away and saved excess paints, though I do need to wash off the paper if I go too long between sessions as the stored paints get too water logged. I hadn't heard about cutting down the paper and will have to try that. Thanks for another great hobby cheating video!
i always use multiple self made at once, they are all 2x3 inch (5,5x7,5cm). every color has it own wet palette with a little extra space for mixing, this way i never have issue with mold and i waste less materials
I made my own wet palette with a sealable box and cellulose fiber cloths (or sponge cloths). They contain a tiny bit of some kind of soap, and this is really good at keeping out the mold! I live in a pretty humid environment and I never have issues with mold.
Great tip!
Two other options to consider for anti-microbial solutions: I have rolls of copper sheet for terrain and armour; I also have a roll of fine silver wire which was purchased for a water-cooling reservoir.
Both options are more expensive than mentioned options; at least as standalone purchases. If I recall, the last copper I bought was around £15, while the wire was £6 (several years ago). I use the wire in my water stones; but it should work well in a wet-pallet too, and silver is a better anti-microbial than copper. I have lined the bottom of my wet pallet with copper; meaning the entire sponge is in contact (it’s the Matheson, natural/pseudo-natural sponge and it has been grim in the past).
If you have these sorts of materials anyway there is no reason not to use them (I have no idea how I’ll use all of the silver wire in my lifetime :-) ).
I will also suggest using a piece of ordinary cartridge paper between sponge and parchment. I’m not sure how much influence the black sponge in the Exemplar has; but I found bringing the surface of my pallet closer to white very useful.
Correction: Masterson, not Matherson.
I don’t know how I got that wrong considering it was referenced in the video.
Awesome review Vince. Keep the hobby cheating coming!
Great video vince and loads of tips I never knew even though I've had my army painter wet palette for years now, tempted to try your go to palette Vince.
Note to self: "Don't be the stinky kid". Apart from that, keeping the palette in the fridge when on stand-by did the trick for me as far as mould is concerned. Never had any since I started doing that.
10:10 Can confirm that waxed paper will let water trough, just not as much. Also I have encountered waxed paper with different amounts of wax on them, which naturally affects the amount of water they let through. Which is a way of regulating the amount of hydration your paints get.
Thanks for the video. I don't remember you saying if you use distilled water or tap water. There was some discussion on an Uncle Atom video. I use distilled water because I don't want minerals from my well water leaving any residue behind on my models. Some people said that chlorine in their tap prevents mold, but I know it quickly evaporates (besides there isn't any chlorine in my well water). I plan on using your dish soap suggestion.
Distilled water is generally better, but I often use normal water for expediency.
I agree with you that Game Envy’s pallet is the best. I tried Masterson’s small wet pallet and it would get moldy easily and the Redgrass games pallet paper (From their V2 model) is way too thick for most hobby paints and doesn’t hydrate all that effectively.
What is a wet pallet? And say thing that helps extend work time. It is not an indulbial tool. But it is a good tool. I find especially when I'm working with air brush paints and doing brush around work. I'd like using a dry pallet because they're thin enough. But if you want to work with games, we're a trop pants or more traditional. Hobby paints could help Sten your paints, which is one of the biggest things you need to learn, is a new painter. Thin Down your pants.
to prevent mold and bacterial growth on your wet palette you can add 5-10% alcohol to the water you use to hydrate your sponge, this will kill pretty much everything that can grow on the sponge.
another solution is to add a few drops of hydrogen peroxide. it doesnt smell, doesnt affect the paint a can be readily acquired in any pool or aquarium supply store. its also great to clean your refrigerator ;)
I use a drop of dishsoap in 1 cup of water and use that mix on my wet pallet. It seems to keep mold away
Edit: I should have watched all the way through before posting my comment. 😳
My personal 3 cents:
* If you use baking paper, it's handy to cut 20-30 pieces beforehand, not by 1 every time.
* If you use one piece of paper for a long time, keep the lid on the palette to cover the area you don't use atm to prevent dust accumulation.
* If you need surface to be more wet, put toilet (or any other soft) paper between the sponge and the baking paper, because sponge may suck moisture back if there's not enough.
Copper Sulphate either in powder or liquid solution. You can buy enough cheaply that you will never have to buy again.
hi, yes as a Physician I can confirm that Copper is known in medicine for it's antibacterial properties. On the other side, Mold is Fungi and not Bacterial :) Copper works as well.
Thanks for that useful tips! All this time using wet palettes… and I didn’t hear about some of them…😅
If you live in a really humid area, it's best to not completely close the lid, as that can cause mold.
Thanks Vince!
I’ve bought every, single one - IMHO, it comes down to 1) the paper 2) the “seal” on the cover 3) distilled water if on a well or high iron. No matter what I’ve used, (after 2 days max) the paint either floats and becomes over saturated, or during the session the paper begins to dry out and curl. “User error” is a possibility I suppose
Love ya Vince, thank you for all the knowledge!
My pleasure!
Vince, great video as always, but can you please raise the volume? I always have to adjust by a lot when I watch your stuff, it feels like everything else on youtube is much louder
This is another great resource to be referenced for years. Marco and Scotts videos about wet palettes pushed me to use one and that was really the tool that made painting a fun hobby instead of a means to an end result. Some great information here not found elsewhere and your video library is the most comprehensive and accessible resource for our community. Thanks Vince (ps your pro acryl signature series is the best)
another great video !!! one thing i would note is that it seems like the videos volume is " low " ive got u cranked full volume on all settings and can just hear u... traffic outside my window is louder... i know u cant really do much about it now, just thought u might like to know for future videos... i will often toss ur videos on in the background with music playing while i paint but this one i had to turn off my tunes to hear ya :D
as for pennies in the palette, new pennies use an alloy coating which does not oxidize giving the anti-fungal benefits, u should use old pennies from before 1980... the older the better ive got some in my palette from as early as 1950 :D
I don't recall hearing you mention metallic paints and wet palettes. Any thoughts?
Also, a suggestion for mold, spores and fungus prevention: Vinegar. It works in drywall and papier mache, as well as wet palettes. I use a small spray bottle filled to the top line with water, and 1 drop of vinegar.
Metallic paints and wet palettes don't mix is my attitude. Metallic paints don't like water, and the suspension they are in is often quite delicate, so I prefer a dry palette for metallic paints.
Thank you so much Vince!
My pleasure!
Great video, though my experience is slightly different. I find that most of the cheap craft paints that I am still using up, will be usable for 3 weeks or more in my wet pallet. Now, the actual mini paints I have don't last more than a few days. Maybe because I use less water. I tend to get the sponge to just over saturated. So there is only a little water beside it on the edges.
I also don't tend to have issues with mold unless I leave it closed for more than a month. (my hobby time can be very sporadic depending work and honey-do lists). Might be because all the water I have on my workbench has a tiny bit of soap in it to help with surface tension. And mine is just the cheap yellow sponge that comes in the Masterson. I am up here in northern Ohio, so my basement is pretty humid half the year too.
I have been trying hydrogen peroxide to wet my palette on occasion to stop mold.. I tried mixing with paint to see if it would cause some bleaching of the paint and did not notice any change. Inexpensive.
So much useful info in this video
Check with your local principality to see how they treat your water. Chlorine evaporates over 24hrs whereas Chlorinates don't evaporate at all. If you live somewhere with chlorinates in your water like me, your wet palette will seem to never get moldy. I also use reverse osmosis water since I have a filter, that also seems to never get funky.
It looks like the paper you are using is substantially hydrophobic and the paint beads up rather than spreads out when you move it around. I was using paper like that but now switched to dedicated paper which has VERY different behavior for thinning and mixing. It seems like most people use much less hydrophobic paper so the paint dosen't bead up.
Super cool. Thanks
You rock
Deep dive into the wet pallet?
I'm thinking of the old cartoons where they high dive into a glass of water😊
Another amazing video as usual Vince, thank you!
My pleasure!
OH - cleaning the squeeze bottle. You know, now that you say it, it does make sense... Oops. Definitely will have it in my list of regular things to do!
Vince is the GOAT
Hi Vince,
Not sure if anyone asked this already, didn't see anything scrolling down..... Have you used the Redgrass Games wet pallette and if so, how do you think it compares to the Exemplar.
I used a masters for years, but It had a lot of mold issues and I spent a lot of money replacing the sponges. I got the Redgrass after another creator recommended and It was a HUGE difference... no mold at all, my paints stay workable for much longer, and easier to clean. I just clean the neoprene-like sponges in the dishwasher and thats it. However, I like the fact that the Exemplar has a closable vent, thats a nice feature.
I also want to say how awesome you are, I watch you, Ninjon, Uncle Adam, Miniac, and Squidmar more than I watch regular TV. You are all amazing sources for the hobby and recomment you all to new hobbyists. Also, Majestic 13 is freaking awesome!
I used the Redgrass a lot, it's fine, nothing particularly wrong, but I do like this one much better.
I have a Redgrass V2 palette, and they say that their sponge is designed to inhibit mold growth. And they say to not add alcohol or wash with alcohol or anything other than water or else it will destroy the antimicrobial properties of the sponge. I haven't had any mold on my palette yet, so hopefully their claim is true?
When should you NOT use a wet palette? I tend to use a lot of contrast style paints, and I’ve been told by some people not to use them on my wet palette, but they seem to work fine for me. Other people say you SHOULD use those style paints. Some people say you can pick up paints for dry brushing from your wet palette, then move over to something else, some people say not to even bother with a wet palette when dry brushing. What are your thoughts?
Let me start by saying there is no one single answer to this question, your style, methods and so on will all define what is good for you here. That being said, I don't use my wet palette for the following things - metallic paints (as they shouldn't really have extra water added), washes (for the most part, unless I want them thinned), dry pigment (obvious reasons) and contrast paints when I want them at full power. That being said, that last one and what you're asking is about 50/50. I will often put contrast paints there when I want them to be thin and act more as a filter.
@@VinceVenturellathanks for the response, that’s made things a lot clearer.
Great video! I've been going back and forth between my Studio Redgrass palette and my Exemplar. Love 'em both, but I think the Exemplar hits the sweet spot for me. Didn't know about the new sponge, however! Might need to check it out.
Why do you prefer the exemplar? I really like the huge area on the redgrass but the lid is frustrating to open
@@grombatmole Mostly the size, I didn't really take into consideration my desk space when Kickstarting. I also agree with the lid being annoying, at least in comparison with the Exemplar.
Definitely answered a few questions I had. I've been using the Masterson since I picked up painting once again. I have been looking for a new palette a while now. What's everyone been using, and what's your favorite?
The examplar you see here is my favorite.
I have a masterson's pallet and when I tried switching to parchment paper my paints seemed to absorb too much water and ran around a bit. Then again whenever I see youtubers using one they seem to like it that way. I guess I always figure I could add a bit of water if needed but can't dry the paint out. I probably should seek out some better sponges.
not on you but the amazon for the exemplar says it's not longer available (might not ever return). Maybe they aren't selling through amazon anymore.
Vince, love your content. I always like and comment. Question about your volume: Is it possible to increase the output of your videos so that our ears don't get destroyed when ads pop out? For example, right now my sound is almost at max to hear you well, but when an ad pops out, it super loud and uncomfortable. Just leaving some feedback to my favorite Warhammer/Painting channel on UA-cam. Thank you :)
American Pennies minted between 1962 and 1982 contain 95% copper. I'm gonna find one in my change jar and give that a shot in my wet palette.
Here we are about a month later, I put 3 of these pennies (after cleaning them) under my sponge in the wet pallet and I no longer get a funky smell from it.
Love the exemplar wet pallete! I came across one at one of my LGS late last year. I hadnt heard of it before and couldnt really find reviews on it. I decided to risk it all anyways and a year later its easily the best tool I have for the hobby. Question Vince, I have the original wet pallette with the old sponges, whats the advantages with the new nylon sponges? And would it be worth picking some up? Ive never had an issue with mold and I live in the very humid parts of the US. Like any of my previous palletes I always kept a couple older copper pennies in them. Also fun fact, any pennies pre-dating 1982 were made of 95% copper so those are the ones good for wet palletes. I just happen to have 2 by chance over time.
Maybe an idea: any reason not to use those water purification drops for drinking water (e.g. Micropur by Katadyn) that contain silver ions? Just add some to the water that you put into your wet pallette. Didn't try it myself, was just thinking of it when I hear Vince discussing the mold issue. (I didn't have a mold issue with my wet pallette yet, even though I kept it moist for several weeks at times.)
Never thought about it, couldn't be sure, but its an interesting idea.
I have a stack of game envy pallets from various kickstarters, never broke me of the RedGrassGames one I've had forever -- might have to give it another go as I hate the international shipping. Granted I just order more handle tops and stuff to make it easier. Regretfully even with the game envy copper guards in it. if you forget about it in your Evo Bag for over a month it's not very happy. Any line on where to get the Mini Master Werks - Palette Guard. Looks like most places are sold out of it or not carrying it.
I pick it up at cons (like Adepticon) but I know online, Elrick's Hobbies had some.
Cool and useful as always.
Hey Vince, great topic, the question I have is: do you find a difference in water? Tap water, if provided by a city can have Chlorine or Chlorimine at certain times a year.
Have you tried distilled water? 😅
Distilled is generally better, but I use tap water mostly, can't be bothered and it works fine for the most part, but your local water can heavily influence that.
Have had a hard time finding non waxed backing paper here in the Netherlands.
I quit using wet palettes in favor of cold palettes. So much easier to use and much the same result.