Directions for use
Recently completed paintings should be rubbed with a
brush dipped in soapy water. Rinse with fresh water and allow
to dry. The oil has been removed when the
water spreads uniformly without streaking or forming drops. To
prepare old paintings for amber varnish, first remove the old
varnish, then clean with a liquid composed of one part of
alcohol (90°), one part turpentine, and two parts of water.
Continue until the surface has become soft enough to permit the
amber varnish to adhere and penetrate. After the painting has
been prepared, pick up a drop or two of disolved amber at the
end of a short narrow stiff-haired brush and apply, making sure
to run the brush to achieve a thin coat. Varnish each section until
the whole painting has been covered, then smooth with a wide, long
haired brush in both directions. This can be repeated several times
to even out or to thin the coat. The wide brush will have to be cleaned
with turpentine and then dried several times. Six to eight grams of
dissolved varnish will cover one square yard.
Medium
Depending on the technique used, one will use either pure dissolved amber
or amber solution (In poppy seed oil solutions for lighter areas, linseed
oil solutions for darker ones). Solutions enable the artist to readily adapt
the consistency of his colors and to regulate the amber as the work progresses.
Should the painter be using weak solutions, he might consider finishing his work with a coat of varnish.
Touch-Up
In order to restore a painting to its original value and to
inhibit the new color from soaking, apply a slight scumble
of amber varnish, diluted with a drop of turpentine
with your finger or a hard brush.
Drying
Because it contains no drying agents, amber varnish
will not harden faster than the oils. To keep colors wet,
the work can be put in a cool place out of the light.
Conversely, drying can be speeded up by placing the
work in a lighted, dry, airy room.
Solvents
Dissolved amber that has thickened to varnish, can be diluted with a few drops of
rectified turpentine. Too much turpentine used in the layers will have a
harmful effect on both the fastness and the future cleaning of the painting
and should for this reasone, be avoided.