Anybody used the Holkam Paints white/old white

[Anonymous]

Has anyone had any experience of the Holkam paints white and old white, in order to tell me the difference between them.
The website shows pictures, but they look very similar to me and I'd like to know if one is brighter than the other or how they differ, without having to traipse 30 odd miles to a shop to see if they have some samples side by side to see.

Thanks
Graham

 

[Anonymous]

Yes, I have a can of each on the go. White is what it says on the tin, Old white is not quite so bright. It is not very different - probably about the difference you used to get between a white lead paint and the new fangled 'Brilliant White' that was introduced in the 1950s. The difference, of coourse, lies in the pigments. White has Titanium dioxide and chalk, Old White has the same plus iron oxide. Unless you are going for the 'uPVC look' I would definately recommend buinth the Old White. It is slightly more expensive but worth it. The paint feels expensive when you buy it but it goes almost twice as far when you use it. Brush it and brush it to make the thinnest layer you can.

 

[Anonymous]

I thought you may have used them Biff, thanks very much. I had read here that old white was not so white looking but the web site pictures deceivingly make the old white look brighter !!!

Does the shellac work as well as they say as well? How about the linseed oil? It seems expensive compared to other sources, but they go on about it's really pure qualities - Have you used these?

Are they worth it as well?

I'm all for doing the job properly, but not for throwing money away <IMG SRC="http://www.periodproperty.co.uk/discussing/smileys/smile.gif" BORDER=0 ALT="">

Graham

 

[Anonymous]

I haven't used their linseed but might when I've finished the large can I'm slowly getting through. They do say theirs is a good quality. It's a bit like olive oil - first cold pressing trodden by the bare feet of a Tuscan virgin before dawn. Some 'qualities' have a lot of the stuff that turns it yellow/brown. This is not what you want when putting under white paint. You can refine the oil yourself by mixing it half and half with water in a jar with a lid, shaking it vigorously and then leaving it to stand for a day. The oil floats and the yellow stuff dissolves in the water. Pour off the oil. Then repeat this about half a dozen times. Each time the oil is a little purer. I never done this as I reckon it might be easier to buy expensive oil in the first place.
I noticed in B&Q a few days ago, a bottle of rather dark looking boiled linseed oil with a label that said it was 'pure' and also that it was a 'special blend'. I'm not quite sure how the manage 'pure' and 'blend'. If it's like whisky it's either a single malt or it's probably not worth drinking.

 

[Anonymous]

I expect Holkham get their oil from the same people as make the paint. Probably pressed by a blonde Swede rather than a Tuscan. Calm down, Mr Grimsdale. Lot's of info here:


Allback

 

[Anonymous]

The linseed oil reply was very informative, thanks. But this one was a little disappointing, there was I expecting a picture of a naked blonde virgin treading the linseed <IMG SRC="http://www.periodproperty.co.uk/discussing/smileys/smile.gif" BORDER=0 ALT="">

 

[Anonymous]

Like this!!!!!

 

[Anonymous]

Looks like Joan Collins when she was younger.

Jocelyn

 

[Anonymous]

That's it. Great what a dab of real linseed oil paint can do for the complexion.

 

[Anonymous]

Actually, I saw her a couple of years ago at one of those health-farm places* - trotting along a corridor in a towelling robe, with a neat little turban covering her hair, and sans a trace of make-up. I didn't recognise her until the masseuse told me she was staying there (on tour locally, I believe). I just thought what a pretty little woman she was, and was rather taken with the turban.

* My lovely other half had bought me one of those Special Days Out as a birthday present.

 

[Anonymous]

She usually wears a wig... which explains why she doesn't look like she has been dragged backwards through the proverbial hedge and I do possibly?

Or maybe she simply makes more effort...

 

[Anonymous]

MUCH more effort, I'd guess! And, as she didn't strike me as someone who'd had the attentions of a cosmetic surgeon, it's obviously paid off.
But - oh! the tedium of constant oiling and primping and working-out. Just as mind-numbing as housework in my book. There are so many more interesting and stimulating ways to spend one's life.
At least, that's my excuse.