Frugal or cheap? How to save money as an artist when times are tight
Being an artist is expensive. Not “buy a private jet” expensive, but definitely “why does this tiny tube of watercolor cost more than dinner?” expensive.
When times get tight financially, artists usually react in one of two ways:
- They become smarter and more resourceful.
- They become catastrophically cheap and slowly sabotage their own work.
There is a difference.
Over the years I have learned a lot about stretching supplies, reducing waste, and surviving slower sales periods without completely destroying the quality of my paintings. Some of these lessons came from common sense. Others came from years of accidentally pouring expensive pigments down the drain like a financially irresponsible watercolor goblin.
Cheap vs Frugal
Cheap:
- buying terrible paper that fights every wash
- ruining paintings to “save” materials
- using bargain framing that makes artwork look worse
- refusing to replace destroyed brushes
- driving two hours to save $4 on paint
Frugal:
- learning how to waste less paint
- preserving materials properly
- understanding where quality actually matters
- using limited palettes effectively
- finding multiple income streams
- maximizing every sheet of paper
Artists sometimes confuse suffering with intelligence.
Using supplies so bad they actively sabotage your work is not noble. It is just self-inflicted punishment with extra steps.
The Paint Sediment Trick Most Watercolor Artists Ignore
This is one of the easiest ways to save money, and most watercolor artists completely overlook it.
At the bottom of your rinse bucket is a surprising amount of usable pigment.
Especially if you use:
- granulating pigments
- heavy mineral colors
- earth tones
- separating colors
- darker mixtures
A lot of beautiful color settles into the bottom of the container- screaming to be used again (and again).
Most artists dump this water automatically.
Meanwhile there is basically free paint sitting there.
I often let the water settle and then:
- carefully pour cleaner water off the top
- preserve the heavier pigment sediment near the bottom
- use those leftover neutrals and mixed colors for underpaintings, moody skies, textures, abstract backgrounds, or first washes
Some of the mixtures are honestly gorgeous.
You end up with:
- atmospheric grays
- muted earth tones
- interesting neutral variations
- unexpected separation effects
Basically “mystery watercolor soup.”
Sometimes ugly. Sometimes amazing.
And unlike buying another $18 tube of specialty granulating paint named something dramatic like “Ancient Arctic Volcano Shadow,” this costs absolutely nothing.
Pigment from bottom of water bucket collected on the palette (top lid)
(Disgusting pigment dried on top of palette- ready to be used (again))
This is what I call my “Schlopp”. Disgusting? Yes. Useful? Yes. This “color” makes the best darks and grays because it is (literally) all the colors.
Final Thoughts
Being frugal as an artist is not about depriving yourself of good materials.
It is about understanding:
- where quality matters
- where waste happens
- where marketing manipulates artists
- how to maximize what you already own
Spend money where it genuinely improves:
- your paintings
- your workflow
- your presentation
- your business
Save money where artists are often manipulated into overspending.
And before dumping your watercolor bucket, maybe check the bottom first.
There might be half a tube of paint hiding in there.
Ryan Fox AWS, NWS, TWSA
Ryan Fox Painting
(919) 645-8345