Thursday 17 February 2011

Montana Gold Spray Paint

Montana is one of the most recognised and well-respected spray paints on the market. They have just re-launched their vast range of Montana Gold - adding new exciting colours, a bigger range of nozzle widths and new fancy packaging!

Click here to view the new nozzle sizes and full colour chart...

Montana provides a specially developed Low-Pressure-System, for maximum accuracy and professional results. The paint is a high quality acrylic lacquer with a matt finish, which is lightfast and can be applied to a variety of surfaces - including flexible surfaces.

To find out what Montana is really like to use, we asked local spray artist Readybreak (aka Matt Barton) to review them for us, and compare them to the other leading brands of spray paint on the market. Matt is a regular Chromos customer and uses Montana in his work.

'Two-tone' Stencil cut out ... before the spraying. Must require a lot of patience!



'In Dark' - 5 layers on Board, 2010



'Ol' Sushi' - on canvas, 2010


'Out of Space' on board, 2010

Here is what Readybreak has to say:


"I have used both Belton Molotow and Montana Gold in my work, and have found the main differences between the two brands are colour range and can pressure. Montana Gold has by far the biggest and most varied colour range, with more tonal shades for each colour (which is great for producing monotone multilayered stencils). Montana also has lower pressure when spraying, allowing more can control - particularly in the thickness of paint being applied. (Belton Molotow cans have a higher pressure so spray thicker and faster, which can be good for covering larger areas quickly but can get messy and be difficult to spray an even layer). Really it comes down to personal preference and what type of work you do. I do a lot of multi-layer stencil work on canvas so I really like the range of colour and the pressure control of Montana Gold. They are not the cheapest spray paint out there, but in my opinion they do offer the best quality and results for work on canvas or board. Also, Chromos often have special offers on and also do good deals on bulk buy, so its worth stocking up a few cans at a time!"


'Miles Blue' on canvas, 2010



Friday 7 January 2011

Logan Team System Mountcutters - January 2011 special offer!


Framing can be an expensive business, whether you are framing photography or your own artwork for an exhibition, or you have a special picture you want to frame nicely and give as a gift...


If you do your own framing you will probably have noticed - as I have - how expensive (yet essential for a professional finish) the card mounts are.

So... here is the solution - cut your own mounts!




The tricky thing about cutting your own mounts is getting that lovely 45 degree angle on the cut - a small detail that makes all the difference. Logan mountcutters are specially designed to cut this angle, and enable you to produce professional, unlimited mounts to your own size and specification, for a fraction of the price it would cost to buy ready-made.
I bought a Logan Team System Mountcutter (24") myself a few months ago, as I do a lot of framing and was becoming frustrated by the amount I was spending on mounts. (I hate paying for something when I think I can do it myself!) I have found it to be an excellent purchase and well worth the money - in fact it has definately saved me money over time.
The system comes in 2 parts - the ruler and the blade. The ruler is a very sturdy, metal 24" that can also be used for general cutting. On one side it has a groove that the blade holder fits into. To cut your mount, you simply measure out the size of the hole you wish to cut, mark the mountboard on the back of the card and line up the mark you have made with the special mark on the blade. The blade is spring-mounted, so you push the blade down firmly with your thumb and run the blade along the length of the line to make the cut. Do this 4 times, one for each side of the rectangle you are cutting out, and hey presto - done!

I was a bit nervous when I first used my mountcutter, as I thought it would be quite difficult to master, but it really wasn't - in fact I was surprised how easy it was. So long as you are precise with your measurements and careful with your cuts, you should achieve perfect results. One little note - watch the corners, you may need to push the blade 1mm further than the end of your marked line to ensure your cuts meet at the corners.

RRP £54.95 but currently on offer at Chromos for £39.95! (We also sell the mountboard in a range of colours, A1, £3.55 per sheet).
Grab one while you can!
(reviewed by Lydia)