The guide to oil painting Author:Guide Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: removed, have acquired great solidity ; or else they will be torn off, and leave the surface in a rough and ragged condition, that cannot be remedied without... more » much difficulty ; a sharp table knife, that has been a good deal used, is the best instrument for scraping. Oiling out -- The surface of colours in drying, frequently assumes a state that renders it difficult to lay fresh colours thereon properly, -- to correct this, previous to commencing work, the picture must have a little oil, (either Linseed or Nut) sparingly applied to it with a brush and then perfectly removed by wiping it with a soft silk rag, this will be effectual. It sometimes happens that the colours dry in, as it is termed, -- this weans that the oil they have been mixed with is partially absorbed by those colours over which they are laid, whereby their brilliancy is partially obscured, but it may be restored when required, by a very thin application of either Mastich or White Lac Varnish. OF PAINTING HEADS AND FLESH GENERALLY. The number of sittings required for a portrait, depends entirely on the degree of facility acquired by practice, and on the kind of subject, whether it be maleor female, old or young,« less