Journey Art Supplies Blog
Tips, Tricks, Thoughts, and inspiration from across the art spectrum.
Winter Plein Air Journaling Made Easy
The winter season may seem like the most inconvenient time for plein air journaling, especially in the mountains, where the temperatures have been exceedingly low this year. However, it can be the most exciting time of the year for wonderful, paintable scenes.
Winter Plein Air Journaling Made Easy
The winter season may seem like the most inconvenient time for plein air journaling, especially in the mountains, where the temperatures have been exceedingly low this year. However, it can...
10 Fun Facts to Know About Cheap Joe’s
Ever wondered what makes Cheap Joe’s Art Stuff such a special place for artists? Let’s take a little trip behind the scenes and get to know our company, its quirky beginnings, and the creative, art-loving people who make it all happen! Where It All Began: Boone Drug A Humble Beginning Among Aspirin BottlesCheap Joe’s Art Stuff started over 35 years ago in Boone, North Carolina, right inside the Boone Drug store. Joe Miller himself recalls stocking art supplies on a shelf between the aspirin and Ex-Lax. Turns out, this “prime” spot gave artists just the relief they needed! Today, the store still reflects that unique, local charm—and you might even spot some legendary artists on our walls, including works from Cheng Khee Chee, Lian Zhen, and Suzanna Winton, all part of our cherished "Art Hall Wallery." The Art Hall WalleryCheap Joe’s Boone location serves as our headquarters, and walking through the office is like stepping into an art gallery! We’re home to one of the finest collections of art, with pieces from top artists in the business. So, if you’re in Boone, NC, pop by and stroll down our hallway gallery! Our Team of Talented Artists An Artistic Team with Diverse TalentsCheap Joe’s team isn’t just knowledgeable about art supplies—they’re artists themselves! From watercolorists to encaustic artists, our employees have real experience creating art. For those who aren’t artists, we offer seminars, workshops, and product demos, making sure everyone has the expertise to help you find exactly what you need to bring your art to life. A Workshop Studio Worth the TripOur state-of-the-art workshop studio has been called the “Cadillac” of art venues! Students here have spacious workstations, ample lighting, and, of course, our fully stocked art store right next door. And thanks to our high-tech upgrades, every seat is the best seat in the house. We have large flat-screen monitors and an overhead camera, so everyone has a front-row view of instructor demos. No more craning your neck to see the magic unfold! Check out our variety of art lessons and workshops today! Our Guarantee & Giving Back Our 365-Day Unconditional GuaranteeAt Cheap Joe’s, we want you to love your art supplies as much as we do, so we give you a full year to decide. If anything doesn’t meet your expectations, just give us a call at 800-227-2788, and our friendly team will make it right. It’s a promise backed by the best guarantee in the business! Brushes for Vincent: Our Art CharityCheap Joe’s Art Stuff is the proud founder of Brushes for Vincent, a charity that helps bring art supplies to young artists in need. We believe in the power of art to change lives, so every penny you donate goes to orphanages, hospitals, and nonprofits, supporting budding artists who might be the next Van Gogh. A little goes a long way, and you can help us inspire creativity in children everywhere! Behind the Scenes with Cheap Joe Cheap Joe’s Past Life as a PharmacistBefore becoming the art guru we know and love, Joe Miller worked as a pharmacist at Boone Drug. But a gift of watercolor lessons changed everything. Joe was so inspired by that class that he stocked up on quality art supplies and began selling them at affordable prices. And that’s how Cheap Joe’s Art Stuff was born—bringing savings and quality to artists ever since! YouTube University: Cheap Joe’s StyleWant to learn the ins and outs of art techniques without spending a dime? Head over to Cheap Joe’s on YouTube! Our channel is packed with free tutorials and product demos. Whether it’s a quick tip on how to use a “paint pusher” or a full tutorial on stretching watercolor paper, we’ve got you covered. Art Supplies with a Personal TouchCheap Joe’s is renowned for its customer-centered approach, but did you know that some of our exclusive products, like American Journey paints, were developed based on feedback from local artists? Joe himself often collaborated with suppliers and customers to refine products, ensuring his art stuff met the practical needs of creators. It's a personal touch that sets Cheap Joe's apart as more than just a retailer—we’re proud partners and participants of the art community. A Fresh New Website for Easy ShoppingWe recently redesigned our website to make finding your favorite supplies and learning resources easier than ever. From improved navigation to more informative product pages, our goal is to make your online experience as smooth as possible. After all, finding the right art supplies should be a creative journey, not a frustrating scavenger hunt! Whether you’re a brand-new artist or a seasoned pro, Cheap Joe’s is here to support your creativity with the tools, advice, and inspiration you need. We can’t wait to see what you create! And if you’re looking for more information about our company, check out our About Us page.
10 Fun Facts to Know About Cheap Joe’s
Ever wondered what makes Cheap Joe’s Art Stuff such a special place for artists? Let’s take a little trip behind the scenes and get to know our company, its quirky...
Capturing the Beauty of Fall Foliage with Trave...
For those eager to capture the ephemeral beauty of this season on canvas or paper, a well-prepared travel art kit and sketchbook are essential companions. In this guide, we hope to inspire you to slow down and capture North Carolina's fall foliage with a sketchbook in addition to your camera.
Capturing the Beauty of Fall Foliage with Trave...
For those eager to capture the ephemeral beauty of this season on canvas or paper, a well-prepared travel art kit and sketchbook are essential companions. In this guide, we hope...
Why Should You Try American Journey Acrylic Pai...
With the sheer volume of acrylic paints on the market, it can be frustrating and expensive to find the right paints for you. How do you know if the paint has a strong pigment or if it can blend well with other colors? Most of the time, you have to spend money on the paints before you know what the quality is truly like, which can result in you taking a risk of possibly wasting your money on a sub-par product.So, how do you choose the right acrylic paints? We think it’s best to rely on professionals for advice. At Cheap Joe’s Art Stuff, our mission is to deliver you the best quality products for the best value. And we believe that American Journey Artists’ Acrylics are some of the best acrylic paints on the market today! American Journey products have been a staple at Cheap Joe’s Art Stuff since 1998 for two very good reasons: Their quality never fails, and their value is unmatched. American Journey produces a wide variety of art supplies, including high-quality brushes, sketchbooks, watercolor sticks, palettes, mediums, and even studio furniture. But their Artists’ Acrylic paints are truly the showstoppers of the brand. Their vibrant, concentrated formulas deliver stunning pigments that don’t dull when color-mixing and perform beautifully on paper and canvas. +V373 Pigment Quality and Paint Characteristics The most important characteristic of acrylic paints is the quality and number of pigments used in the formula. Premium acrylic paints ideally contain only one pigment. The fewer pigments in a paint, the easier it will be to mix colors. If acrylics contain two or more pigments, mixing the paints can risk blending all three primary colors, creating a dull brown shade. Therefore, over half of the American Journey acrylics are single-pigment paints. This makes color-mixing simple and stress-free! The American Journey Acrylic Paint formula contains a unique blend of acrylic polymer emulsion, which gives the paint a high viscosity, leaving a flexible finish when dry. The pigments are finely-ground and “mill-strength,” which gives the acrylics an especially high tinting strength. This high-tinting strength means less paint is needed to cover a surface, and they will retain their vibrant color when mixed with white to lighten. All 60 shades come packaged in air-tight collapsible aluminum tubes and are available in 60 or 150 ml.Here are some noticeable qualities we found when working with the American Journey Artists’ Acrylics:1. The paints have a smooth, creamy texture when wet2. The acrylics dry fast and remain flexible when dry to prevent cracking3. The pure pigments create an easy mixing process4. The colors dry evenly5. The paints have a moderate sheen when used in full strength6. The sheen was reduced when mixed with Tint White7. Tint White is good for mixing; Titanium White is good for covering One of the best ways that we can demonstrate the quality of these acrylic paints is by creating a complete color swatch chart. Using all 60 American Journey colors, we created a color chart using the paints at their full strengths and then again at a 50% lightened version. Our eventual goal is to create such a chart for each of our paint lines, to be used as a visual tool for our customers. Having a color chart to reference when painting can be invaluable. Use the step-by-step instructions below to create your own color chart! Creating a Color Chart All paint brands use different formulas, so their paints will perform differently. Having a visual aid that displays each shade and its lightened version can be very helpful when trying out new paints or re-using old favorites. Here is an example of how to make a color chart using American Journey Artists’ Acrylics:Necessary Supplies:• 60 Tubes of American Journey Artists’ Acrylics• 18 x 24 Joe’s Prime Extra Fine Art Board• Joe Miller Signature Series Gesso• Richeson Grey Matters 12 x 16 Paper Palette• ½ Inch Flat American Journey Interlocked Synthetic Brush• #81 Cheap Joe’s Painting Knife• Yupo Watercolor Paper• X-Acto Gripster KnifePreparation: Apply three coats of the Signature Series Gesso to the Prime Extra Fine Art Board, letting each layer dry in between. Alternate directions of the coats to minimize brush strokes. To fit all 60 shades on the art board, they should be arranged in 12 rows of 5 colors each. To minimize pencil lines on the board, create a placement template out of Yupo Watercolor Paper using a ruler and an X-Acto Gripster Knife. The paper template should have five 2” long by 1” tall swatch areas cut out. There should be ½ inches between the rows. Painting: Begin squeezing small amounts of the American Journey Artists’ Acrylic Paints onto the Richeson Grey Matters Paper Palette. Only use a few colors at a time so they don’t dry out while you’re mixing. Use the 1/2-inch flat brush to swatch the true color on half of the swatch area. Then using the #81 Painting Knife, mix a 1:1 ratio of the color with Tint White to show the tinting strength of each color. Swatch the lightened mixture on the other half of the swatch area. Each swatch area should represent a single color: the true shade and a 50% lightened version. Continue mixing and painting swatches of each color until the board is filled. You can arrange the colors in any way that suits your style best. We used a typical color family sequence, similar to the color wheel, starting with bright yellow and ending with neutrals and black and whites. When you are finished with the swatches, let the paint dry completely. Then add names and item numbers to each swatch for reference. A swatch is only helpful if you know which color it is!
Why Should You Try American Journey Acrylic Pai...
With the sheer volume of acrylic paints on the market, it can be frustrating and expensive to find the right paints for you. How do you know if the paint...
Create Captivating Art by Understanding How You...
Understanding how to hold and direct your viewer’s attention is an important part of the design. When you’ve trained your eye to follow the visual forces in your painting, you can begin to design your paintings in a more creative way
Create Captivating Art by Understanding How You...
Understanding how to hold and direct your viewer’s attention is an important part of the design. When you’ve trained your eye to follow the visual forces in your painting, you...
"Guidelines" by Skip Lawrence
Skip Lawrence offers some Guidelines for finding a more personally expressive, creative, and sincere way to paint. From the Palette Magazine.
"Guidelines" by Skip Lawrence
Skip Lawrence offers some Guidelines for finding a more personally expressive, creative, and sincere way to paint. From the Palette Magazine.
Hue And You: Some Thoughts On Color Selection b...
Is this the way you choose colors for a painting? 1. Pull a few tubes of paint at random out of your paint box 2. Start painting 3. Hope for the best. If this is your method of color selection for a painting, you can do better.
Hue And You: Some Thoughts On Color Selection b...
Is this the way you choose colors for a painting? 1. Pull a few tubes of paint at random out of your paint box 2. Start painting 3. Hope for...
Finding Your Space
Your treatment of pictorial space (how much you emphasize the illusion of depth) depends on your expressive intent. Here are your choices, their advantages, and their disadvantages. Reprinted from the Palette Magazine
Finding Your Space
Your treatment of pictorial space (how much you emphasize the illusion of depth) depends on your expressive intent. Here are your choices, their advantages, and their disadvantages. Reprinted from the...
"Painting A Series" by Anne-Marie Harvey
Anne-Marie Harvey demonstrates how you can explore new approaches and develop a style by Painting A Series. Reprinted from Watermedia Focus Magazine now called the New Palette Magazine.
"Painting A Series" by Anne-Marie Harvey
Anne-Marie Harvey demonstrates how you can explore new approaches and develop a style by Painting A Series. Reprinted from Watermedia Focus Magazine now called the New Palette Magazine.
"Value Judgement" by Don Andrews
Anne-Marie Harvey demonstrates how you can explore new approaches and develop a style by Painting A Series. Reprinted from Watermedia Focus Magazine now called the New Palette Magazine.
"Value Judgement" by Don Andrews
Anne-Marie Harvey demonstrates how you can explore new approaches and develop a style by Painting A Series. Reprinted from Watermedia Focus Magazine now called the New Palette Magazine.
Reviewing the 3 Basic Color Qualities - by Chri...
In this article reprinted from the early, early days of the Palette Magazine, Toph and Skip fill us in on the differences between Hue, Value & Intensity as it pertains to the qualities of color.
Reviewing the 3 Basic Color Qualities - by Chri...
In this article reprinted from the early, early days of the Palette Magazine, Toph and Skip fill us in on the differences between Hue, Value & Intensity as it pertains...
Mark Mehaffey on \Personal Abstraction\""
Mark Mehaffey was featured in the New Palette Magazine issue #61 which is now out of print. In this reprint, Mark shares with us his process in creating abstract shapes.
Mark Mehaffey on \Personal Abstraction\""
Mark Mehaffey was featured in the New Palette Magazine issue #61 which is now out of print. In this reprint, Mark shares with us his process in creating abstract shapes.
