Frequently Asked Questions

One Stroke is a technique of decorative painting developed by Donna Dewberry.  You load two colors of paint on a flat brush to achieve blending, shading and highlighting in "One Stroke".
 
This method of painting can be used on many surfaces, such as, wood, glass, tin, walls, clothes, and candles just to name a few.
 
After a few classes you will see how easy this style of painting is to learn and how quickly you can complete a project. 

You do not need prior painting experience.  A qualified teacher can show you everything you need to know.  I recommend taking a class with an One Stroke Certified Instructor (like me).  Donna's book and video "Brush Stroke Basics" can get you started.  Practice along with the tape, and you'll want to watch it again and again.  Laminated teaching guides are also helpful for getting the feel for strokes and to achieve the shape you want.  The laminated sheets make it easy to paint on them and then wipe off.  Or you can put wax paper over the guide and paint on the wax paper (no clean up).    Compare your strokes to the guide to see how you are doing.  This is how I taught myself to paint One Stroke.

Once you have learned the basics of how to load your brush and how to perform the strokes all you need is practice. You'll see changes every day you paint.  Even now I will paint a "bad" leaf or petal, but all you have to do is stroke over it.  The paint is very forgiving - and you should be too.  If it looks good to you, it's perfect!

The certification class is very intense. You paint, paint, paint for three days. On the fourth day you take your tests. Donna or one of her Elite Instructors teach you everything you need to know in order to pass the tests. You sign up for certification through Donna Dewberry's website www.onestroke.com 

This technique was developed to work with Folk Art paint as it is the perfect consistency for blending and shading.

No.  It is important to use the brushes developed by Donna that were designed specifically for this technique. The One Stroke brushes come in a variety of sizes.  Be sure to get the correct brush for the correct paint.  The brushes for Folk Art Enamels are different from the Folk Art Papier brushes, etc.

Water is used mainly for cleaning the brushes and not to thin the paint.  The only exception is when making curliques with the script liner.  Never wet the scruffy brush before using it.  If you clean your brush between colors, be sure to blot the water off on a paper towel.  You'll know if you still have water in the brush because it will look like it's foamy and the paint will be getting muddy. 

Left-handed people are just as good at One Stroke as right-handed people. The only difference is when right-handed people work from left you right, you would work from right to left.  You start where we end and end where we start. 

Floating is a method of shading and highlighting that will add dimension to your painting.  Folk Art Floating Medium is especially designed for this technique, and it's smooth gel formula won't run as water can. 

Floating medium is used so that you can flow smoothly with your paints on porous surfaces that are very dry, such as wood, drywall, etc. Load your brush with paint and tip the chisel edge of the brush into the Floating Medium and paint.

If you want a faded look, load your brush with Floating Medium and pick up a touch of color and paint.

Floating Medium is also great for shading. Load brush with Floating Medium then side load into color you wish to shade with.  Blend on palette to merge and soften color.

**Helpful Hints**

* Use as large a brush as possible

* Be sure the brush is full. Blend the medium and the color on the palette enough to graduate the color.

* Apply the paint slowly and carefully.

Pour enough paint to make at least a 1" (2.5 cm) puddle of each color you need.

1. Dip one corner of your brush into the first color.

2. Turn the brush over and dip the corner into the second color.

3. To full load the brush, stroke it back and forth on the palette.  Not all the way across the plate, just a 1-2" space.

4. Repeat this two or three times to load the bristles with paint two-thirds of the way up to the ferrule.

5. Now that your brush is loaded, pick up paint on each corner to begin painting.  Don't stroke the brush anymore on the palette. As you continue to work, load the paint only on the corners of the brush.

Yes, you can use Folk Art Textile Medium. Mix Folk Art Textile Medium with any Folk Art acrylic color to easily create permanent, washable painted effects on fabric. Folk Art Textile Medium allows paint to penetrate fibers, so your painted design is soft, not stiff, and actually becomes part of the fabric.