LESSON 1: Setting Up Shop
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SUPPLIES OVERVIEW
Rock painting, thankfully, is a fairly “cheap” endeavor. Whether you are doing this for fun or for a business, the supplies needed for rock painting are generally not expensive. We can all be thankful for that!
Below is a list of what I always have in my workshop (Note: click on the button further down the page to download a printable checklist!). Following this list are specific sources and links that I have never shared with people before! Yes, you are special!
Smooth rocks for painting
Acrylic paints in a variety of colors
Acrylic paint pens
Set of Stylus pens with different tip sizes
Paint brushes in a variety of sizes
Paint trays
Acrylic spray sealant
Paper Towels
Cups for holding water to rinse paint brushes
ROCK PAINTING SUPPLIES CHECKLIST
Click on the button below to get a convenient, printable PDF checklist.
ROCKS
“How many rocks do I need for this course?”
If you complete all of the projects in this masterclass, you will need the following supply of rocks:
Large rocks, sized 3-4 inches (approx. 4 rocks)
Medium rocks, sized 2-3 inches (approx. 3 rocks)
Small stones, sized 1-2 inches (you will need at least 70 of these)
“What rocks should I use for rock painting?”
That’s easy! Just go in your backyard or local park and pick up some rocks! Right???
… WRONG!
It’s a mistake to think you can paint on any old rock. Well, correction… you actually can paint on any old rock, but it won’t always be pretty. And we are aiming for pretty, right? You signed up for this course to take the next step from AMATEUR to PRO.
In this case, we DON’T want “any old rock.” We need to be a little choosy. Luckily for you, I have 4 years of trial and error under my belt, and I will share what I’ve learned with you!
When I first started rock painting as a hobby, I would be constantly on the lookout for rocks on the ground wherever I went. My husband recognized my “rock hungry” look. He would keep me in line by saying things like, “No, you can’t pick up that rock from that tree bed in the Target parking lot! That’s illegal!” or “I’m sure the neighbors don’t want to share their pebble flower beds with you!”
Sadly, I do not live near a natural source of rocks (river, lake, beach). I realized fairly quickly that I would need to shell out some money to BUY rocks. Believe me, I did not enjoy this idea. After all, rocks appear in nature all around us; why on earth should I BUY them? I got over that quickly. The gravel shards and craggy pebbles I picked up randomly were not good enough.
CRAFT STORES: I began my quest by looking in craft stores. There are small bags of rocks available at Michael’s and Hobby Lobby, but they are EXPENSIVE and I found that half of them cannot be used to paint on. I ended up having to toss many into my garden.
LANDSCAPE SUPPLY: Next, I tried using rocks meant for landscaping. This worked to a certain extent. I found that Mexican Beach Pebbles (available at Home Depot, Lowe’s, or WalMart) worked well, but here was the problem: I had to purchase these in large bags, and usually was only able to use about a fourth of a bag. The rest were broken or shaped strangely. This was a waste of money since, again, I had to toss most of it into my garden.
ONLINE STORES: I decided to see if my favorite shopping source, Amazon, had any rocks. I thought, “surely not, what about shipping costs?” Well, Amazon DOES have some sources for rocks for painting. However, they are VERY pricey. I see more and more options popping up as the rock painting craze takes flight, but none of them are cheap.
MY SOLUTION? I looked on Etsy. I don’t know why it took me that long; after all, I am an Etsy shop owner as well. Through trial and error, I found a couple of sources. Since then, I have not had to look elsewhere!
These two Etsy shops are my absolute FAVORITE sources for smooth, flat rocks. The owners of these two shops have given me permission to share their links with you. I have been keeping these shops a SECRET when people ask me where I get my great rocks… but now I am sharing them with you! YOU’RE WELCOME.
JDSticksandStones (Oswego, NY): the owners of this shop collect smooth rocks from the Great Lakes in their area. These stones vary in size from 1 to 4.5 inches and are extremely smooth. They are perfect for memory rocks, mandalas, paperweights, and other larger designs. Shipments arrive quickly and the rocks are already cleaned; you just need to rinse them off, but no scrubbing required. Their customer service is excellent!
PNWCoastalCreations (Port Angeles, WA): These beach rocks from Washington State are flatter and slightly more coarse than the ones from the link above. They are perfect for Story Stones and pocket rocks because of their light weight and thin style. I have also used these to create magnets; since they are flat, it’s easy to attach magnets with crafting glue such as E6000. These rocks arrive in clean condition, and customer service is amazing.
Final Note: If you are lucky enough to live near a source of smooth, flat rocks from a beach, river, or lake, YOU ROCK! Go out a grab some! Then share some with the rest of us. ;-)
PAINTS
I use the following two brands of acrylic paint:
These are links to products in Amazon, but you can also get these in craft stores such as Michaels or Hobby Lobby.
ACRYLIC PAINT PENS
Acrylic paint pens work really well on rocks. The colors are slightly more vibrant than regular acrylic paint, and they are easy to use. The only drawback is that certain colors require more than one coat or else you will see the rock surface beneath.
Uni-POSCA Paint Marker Pens: My favorite brand of acrylic paint pen. I have tried many, but these are by far the best. They have NO SMELL and have vibrant colors. This is a set of colors, but there are many other colors to choose from. They are sometimes shipped form overseas, so plan your projects ahead of time. Be sure to order the EXTRA FINE tips for detail work. They are not extremely fine but work well for most things. Get the pens with bigger tips to cover larger surface areas.
Uni-POSCA Extra Fine Black Marker Pen: This is the pen I use for outlining my designs once I have painted a rock and the paint is dry.
FLYMAX Black Acrylic Paint Pen: These fine-tipped pens are also great for final details and outlining.
NOTE: For extra-fine details, acrylic paint pens don’t work very well because the flow of paint is too fast. Instead, use MICRON pens with very fine tips. These tend to dry out quickly so I don’t use them very much. They will smear if you try to seal your work with a brush-on sealant. This is why I recommend a spray sealant.
BALL STYLUS PENS
These unique pens are topped with a steel ball on either end. Originally designed as tools for embossing, these handy “pens” have become popular in the rock painting community. They can be used to create evenly-sized dots or successions of dots that ascend or descend in size. In other words, they are perfect for Mandala Art, which we will cover in Lesson 6.
I use ball stylus pens for MORE than Mandalas, though. I use them to embellish my rocks with tiny dots, and I use them for certain designs such as stars, flowers, and more. They are also handy for drawing fine lines, filling in small details with paint, or creating texture.
These usually come in sets, and each pen has two sizes of ball tips (one on each end). I got my set on Amazon.
PAINT BRUSHES
I don’t spend a lot of money on top-quality paint brushes. We are working solid, non-absorbant canvas (a rock!), so you basically need a set of brushes from fine to thick. For some things you will need a fine-tipped brush that does not hold much paint. For larger surfaces, you will need rounded brushes you can “load” with paint. You can get a variety at craft stores.
I use these fine liner brushes for detailed work (from Michaels)
I use this round brush set for base coats, backgrounds, and bigger areas that need paint covering (also from Michaels)
SEALANT
You will want to seal your painted rocks with a coating that protects it from scratches and from exposure. Acrylic paints are water-based, which means they can be washed away with water. Think: heavy rainfall on a rock you’ve hidden outside. It’s only a matter of time before the paint begins to wash away. Garden stones and markers absolutely need a water-resistant sealant.
As with many of my supplies, I spent a lot of time (and money!) finding the best sealant for my rocks. Many people will recommend Mod Podge. I do NOT use it! It takes forever to dry and sometimes remains sticky indefinitely. It’s also not waterproof. Others recommend a brush-on sealant. This only works with true acrylic paints. If you used any type of acrylic marker, brushing on a sealant will cause your artwork to smear!
There is nothing worse than created a Painted Rock Masterpiece only to have it ruined by a bad sealant!
I use a SPRAY sealant called DecoArt Americana Acrylic Sealer/Finisher. It comes in a gloss or a matte finish (it’s up to you whether you want your rocks to be glossy or not). This sealer is labeled as a “clear, protective, non-yellowing, waterproof coating which provides permanent protection to all painted finishes.” “Nuff said.
You simply spray several coats on the rocks in a sweeping motion, waiting 15 minutes or so between coats. Easy peasy!
NOTE: You must be sure to find a well-ventilated area to use this spray sealant. The vapors can be harmful. Wear a protective mask over your mouth, nose, and eyes.
EXTRA STUFF
Just a couple more things to mark off your Supply Checklist:
Paper towels: You will need these. Like, a lot! Not only for spills but also to wipe the ball stylus pens clean. I use paper towels to dry paint brushes after I rinse them during a painting session.
Cups for water: Have an old plastic cup full of water on your workspace while you paint. Swirl your brushes in the cup to rinse, then dry with a paper towel. Or dunk your used brushes in the water and leave them there until you have time to properly clean them.
Coffee: Ha! Just kidding. I guess not everyone requires a cappuccino while they are being creative…
WORK AREA SUGGESTIONS
Everyone has their own vision of THE Perfect Workshop. It doesn’t always work out the way we want it to, though. Because, life. Am I right? We make do with what we have, and if an opportunity arises for improvement, we take it!
My workspace is in one half of our master bedroom. Granted, our master bedroom is HUGE so the area was wasted space anyway. I have a work table, a cabinet for shipping supplies, bins with rocks, a bookcase for painted rock storage boxes, and several rolling cabinets for my paints and other supplies.
Regardless of your workshop setup, I have several recommendations:
Lighting: You will want your workspace to be near a natural light source (a window!). Natural sunlight is the best source for painting and for perception of color. You will, of course, need to also add artificial light for those dark days or evenings. Choose halogen lights and incandescent bulbs as these have been proven to illuminate artwork best. I have several lamps on my workspace and move them around as needed to minimize shadows.
Utility Sink: If your workspace can be near a utility sink, that is ideal! My bedroom is next door to the laundry room, which has a utility sink. I use the sink multiple times daily to:
soak and scrub rocks
wash paint brushes
rinse cups and paint trays
Ventilated Space: This is a must. If you plan to use the spray sealant as I have recommended above, you need a ventilated area in which to do so. I have a storage space adjacent to my master bathroom that is open to the outside. This is where I do my sealant spraying. It’s not ideal, but I wear safety goggles and a mask over my mouth and nose. The storage space has a door which I close behind me once I am done spraying. I then turn on several floor fans in the bathroom and open the windows. You can set up a space in your garage, with fans for ventilation. Ideally, we should all have a ventilated Spray booth, but… well, I personally would need to win the lottery first!
What else do I use frequently for my rock painting business?
This is not a course on marketing and product photography, but I thought I’d share some basic equipment that I use to photograph my rocks and edit them for use on Etsy or my website. None of these are super fancy, but they work for me.
CAMERA: You thought I was going to list some fancy, complicated camera here, didn’t you! Ha! No, because I use my handy dandy iPhone to take my product photos!
LIGHT BOX: Lighting is key to good product photos. My rocks are difficult to photograph because the are rounded (of course), so there is the shadow issue, and because the sealant I use is glossy, which causes reflections when I photograph them. I purchased this Havox Light box to control the shadows and improve lighting. Before making this purchase, though, check YouTube for “How to Make Your Own Light Box.” There are many ways to make your own! I made my own light box and used it for awhile before investing in this one.
PHOTO EDITING APPS: Though the light box helps with lighting, my photos still require touch-ups to adjust exposure, saturation, vibrance, etc. My favorite phone app for photo editing is Lightroom. I also use PicMonkey for some things, and PhotoGrid for collages. (I didn’t include links here because apps are change frequently.)
