Oil Paint for Beginners NZ — The Mont Marte Guide to Starting Oil Painting

Oil painting has a reputation for being intimidating — the smell, the long dry times, the toxic solvents. None of that has to be true. With water-mixable oils and the right starter kit you can be painting in your kitchen this weekend, no studio required. This guide walks NZ beginners through exactly what to buy, what to skip, and how to handle oil paint safely in a Kiwi home.

Why oil paint (and why not acrylic instead)

Oils stay wet for days, so you can blend, layer, and rework slowly. Acrylics dry in minutes — great for quick work, frustrating for portraits or atmospheric landscapes. The classical look of every museum painting is oil. The trade-off: longer wait times between layers, and more setup at the end of each session.

Choose oil if: you want to paint portraits, classical still life, atmospheric landscapes, or you've found acrylic dries too fast for your style.

Choose acrylic if: you want fast results, work in short sessions, or paint outdoors / in school.

Traditional oils vs water-mixable oils

The single biggest decision a beginner makes:

• Traditional oils — Mixed with solvents (turpentine or odourless mineral spirits) and oil mediums. Strong smell, requires ventilation, the classical experience. Brushes clean with solvent, then soap.
• Water-mixable oils — Same pigments, modified binder. Mix and clean up with plain water. Slightly different feel but 95% the same experience. Mont Marte H2O oils are the NZ-friendly starter.

For a beginner in a small NZ flat or with kids in the house, water-mixable oils win. You can upgrade to traditional oils later when you have a dedicated workspace.

The beginner oil starter kit

• Oil paint set — 8–12 colours covers the colour wheel. Mont Marte H2O Oil Paint Set or Signature Oil Paint Set is the NZ standard starter. Skip cheap student-grade oils — they have too much filler and too little pigment.
• Bristle brushes — Hog hair or synthetic hog. Stiff enough to push paint, holds shape. Get a flat, round and filbert in two sizes each.
• Canvas — Pre-primed stretched canvas or canvas pad. Don't try linen as a beginner.
• Mixing palette — Wooden palette feels right; freezer paper on a board works fine and is disposable.
• Palette knife — For mixing, not painting (yet). One small knife.
• Painting medium — Linseed oil for traditional, water for water-mixable. That's it for beginners.
• Solvent or water — Odourless mineral spirits (NZ brands: Gamsol equivalent) OR water depending on paint type.
• Rags or paper towel — You'll burn through these. Buy a bulk pack.
• Apron or old clothes — Oil paint doesn't wash out of fabric.

How long does oil paint take to dry in NZ?

The 'long dry time' that's famous about oil paint:

• Touch dry: 1–3 days for most colours. Thinner layers dry faster.
• Safe to paint over: 3–7 days for a single layer; longer for thick impasto.
• Fully cured: 6–12 months. Yes, months. Don't varnish before 6 months.
• NZ climate effect: Auckland's humidity slows drying by 20–40%. Don't be surprised if a winter painting takes a week to be touch-dry.
• Colours that dry slow: titanium white, alizarin crimson, ivory black. Plan your layers around them.
• Colours that dry fast: burnt umber, raw umber, Prussian blue. Use these as underpaintings to speed things up.

'Fat over lean' — the one rule that prevents cracking

The most important technical rule in oil painting: each layer must be 'fatter' (more oil-rich) than the layer below it. If you put a lean layer over a fat layer, the top dries first, the bottom keeps shrinking, and the painting cracks within a year.

In practice: start with thin paint and a tiny bit of medium; add more oil medium as you build up layers. Your final layers should be the oiliest.

Step-by-step: your first oil painting

1. Sketch in burnt umber thinned with solvent or water. Block in shapes loosely.
2. Let dry overnight — don't rush this layer.
3. Block in major colour shapes — thin layer, mostly paint with a touch of medium.
4. Let dry 1–3 days.
5. Refine values — darks darker, lights lighter. Slightly thicker paint, slightly more medium.
6. Let dry 3–5 days.
7. Final details — highlights, edges, small adjustments. Thickest paint, most medium.
8. Sign and wait 6 months before varnishing.

Brush care — the difference between $20 and $200 brushes

A cared-for $15 brush outlasts a neglected $80 brush. The routine:

1. Wipe excess paint on paper towel.
2. Swirl in solvent (or water for water-mixable) until paint releases.
3. Wipe again.
4. Wash with brush soap or Sunlight dish soap — work into the ferrule.
5. Rinse until water runs clear.
6. Reshape the bristles with your fingers.
7. Lay flat or hang to dry, never bristle-down.

Safety — what NZ flat-dwellers need to know

• Ventilate the room — even water-mixable oils off-gas mildly during drying.
• Never wash oil-paint rags in the laundry — they're a spontaneous combustion risk. Lay them flat to dry outside before binning.
• Don't pour solvent down the drain. Let solvent settle overnight, decant the clear top, save the sludge for hazardous waste pickup.
• Keep solvents away from pets and kids.
• Some traditional oil colours contain heavy metals (cadmium, cobalt) — wash hands after use, don't eat at the easel.

Pairs well with

Most oil painters need Mont Marte oil paints (or H2O oils), oil-specific bristle brushes, stretched canvas or canvas pads, and a floor easel for working comfortably at full size. A gesso primer is essential if you're working on raw board.

Frequently asked questions

How long do oil paintings really take to dry?

Touch-dry in 1–3 days, safe to overpaint in 3–7 days, fully cured in 6–12 months. Auckland humidity adds 20–40% to all these times.

Are water-mixable oils as good as traditional oils?

95% the same experience, 100% the same look on canvas. Slight difference in feel under the brush. The big win: clean up with water, no solvents needed.

Can I oil paint in a small NZ apartment?

Yes with water-mixable oils. Crack a window for ventilation, lay drop cloths, keep paint and supplies in a closed box between sessions. Avoid traditional solvent-based oils in tight indoor spaces.

Do I need a special easel for oil paint?

No — any sturdy easel works. Most oil painters prefer a floor easel because oil paintings often go through many layers over weeks, so leaving the work up is helpful. A solid table easel works fine to start.

Where can I buy oil paint in NZ?

At Handy Mandy. We ship the full Mont Marte oil paint range including H2O water-mixable oils NZ-wide from our Auckland warehouse, free shipping over $75 NZD.

What's the difference between Mont Marte Signature and Premium oil paint?

Signature is student-grade — great for learning, slightly more filler, lower pigment load, very affordable. Premium has higher pigment concentration, more lightfast, smoother handling — better for finished work you want to last decades.