You can also use potassium sorbate. It’s a food grade mold inhibitor that you can buy either in a solution or as a powder. They use it in many many things.

HEADS UP: I've used clove oil (the strong stuff) and it has the ability to melt certain plastics. I have the same palette as Sarah and my palette wells are fine, but the hinge of the lid has indeed melted a little during the filling of the palette. Out of caution I don't use the mixing space because it's made of the same type of plastic as the hinge. You can't really wipe it off once the melting process has started (the internet tells me to soak it in a vinegar solution but the palette is full of gouache now), so I've just left it and now have a gooey looking hinge. It still works, but it's an important little heads up for those of you who want to add clove oil (or any other essential oil to a plastic container)!

i'm a gouache artist, i found pigments like pr209 (quin red) tend to mold on me, but mainly during the summer. i don't keep them in stay wet palettes. i let them dry out and then wake them up with a spray of distilled water. i use distilled water because we are on well water, with a very high iron and mineral content. i use a spray of denatured alcohol for molded pans. i also periodically refresh the pans by putting a few large drops of water in them, letting it sit and stirring up the pigments again thoroughly. if they look a bit grainy as they wake up, i'll add a bit of glycerin and a tiny bit of water with a dispersal agent (oxgall). i'm glad you're doing this, as well as the lightfast tests, it's a good start for anyone to know what the other artists have found, as well as helping decide on what pigments to add to your palette. i do lightfast tests on all my pigments. i think that is a good idea for any artist to do. i'm so thrilled to see gouache getting a following. i keep having to explain to people what it is, and that it's not the matt acrylic stuff called gouache

Clove oil used in an essential oil . Every essential oil has anti-bacterial and anti mold property. Some oils ( essences) more than other. Tea Tree is one of the most powerful, but it is a ' matter of taste ' , that is if you like or not the parfume. You can also try with ORIGAN essential oil, one of the powerful too. All this to say that you can chose

The timing for this video couldn't be more perfect. I was struggling to scrape the mold out of my pallet yesterday 😆 Thank you for your tips! 💚

Such great information, Sarah. I store my gouache palette in the refrigerator, that has cut way down on any issues. It is very usable from the refrigerator, I've not had any issues. Otherwise, in my climate, mold is a common problem. I also use alcohol, but will try the clove bud oil. Thanks for all of this good info!

I live in humid Alabama so mold is always a concern. It's kind of odd, but the only gouache I have that grew mold is the M Graham Titanium White. None of the other colors, a mix of brands, have given me any issues. I'm trying spritzing my palette with alcohol and water because I have inside cats and don't want to take a chance with the oils. In case someone isn't aware, essential oils can be toxic to cats and birds so please use with care. It's also kind of weird that I have only a couple of watercolors that tend to mold. The same colors in other brands have not had the same problem. I don't know if I did something different with the palettes, or if it is just weird luck. Anyway, thanks for the video. If the alcohol doesn't work, I'll try the peroxide someone mentioned in a comment. If that doesn't work, I'll just shut the cats out of the painting room. That'll be fun. We all know how cats love to be shut out of places. lol

I have a TON of watercolor sets, both student and artist grade, and I love them all. I’m glad I didn’t obsess as much with gouache. I have Arteza tubes and Caran D’ache pans, and I’ve been tempted to get himi numerous times but i just could never get myself to buy because I cannot imagine myself doing all that maintenance. Kudos to those who have all the patience with gouache maintenance!!

Your gouache mold test is how I found your content online originally! Thank you for maintaining this data and sharing it.

Yesss I've been hoping for a video like this for so long 😍

I’m super pumped for your gouache brand explorations! Thank you so much for the time, effort, and money you’ve put into this!!

So sorry you've had a rough time and hope this year is really good for you. You have a wonderful style and your videos are well received and real. Thank you for sharing them with us and inspiring so many of us.

What a nice video! I always like to have your videos as background noise and peek every now and then. I think the information is very useful and I might try and get some of the clove bud oil to try and make my own palette! Thank you for another informative video, can't wait for future parts

Thank you for making these videos for us! ☺️🙏

Thanks for doing what you do and being such a great inspiration!

Thanks for this topic and your “experiments,” Sarah - I’m at just the point of wanting to start a stay-wet palette for gouache, and you’re helping me get going with good understanding and (most important) good habits! 😊 I’m so glad that I found your art and your channel ❤ I’m painting happily along with you 👏

Thanks so much for doing this extensive study & testing of gouache, mold, maintenance, & how they each perform on the paper. I am really enjoying & looking forward to seeing your results. I have enjoyed reading the gouache database blog posts already! Have a great weekend!💖💕😊

Thank you for this! I appreciate the hard work you put into this video 😊Lovely paintings. I love that you made each one different ❤

I'm very excited about your upcoming reviews and the results of your experiments. I'm super curious about Daniel Smith's entry into the gouache market. Thank you so much for the great information 🩵

I use clove bud oil too, i put a drop or two into each color. My gouache palette is over 3 yrs old and never any mold! I also use some peroxide with water in my spray bottle used to moisten them up a little. I think I'm going to try the clove bud oil in the spray bottle too. Have you ever tried Murphy's Oil soap for brush cleaning? It's helped my brush bristles stay moisturized Thanks for all you do for us❣️

Thank you so much for the explanation! I was looking for someone with gouache knowledge and watching Paul Clack and he recommended your channel, ❤ Blessings

I'm excited about the reviews. I think I'll hold off on buying more until I see it.

I’ve used oils, watercolor and acrylics for years. I’ve been wanting to try gouache for a long time and thanks to your videos I’m ready! I now have a the supplies setting in my studio. I’m so excited to begin this journey! 😅

I love your channel Sarah. You are very inspiring and I am learning a lot. Thank you

I had an issue with Arteza Gouache going moldy that I put in a sealed pallet. I had to scoop out quite a bit of the paint to remove the mold so that was a bit of a waste. So far I have not had any issues with my Himi Gouache.

thank you so much for breaking down how you use the clove bud oil! my google searches weren't turning up many helpful results 😅 looking forward to your reviews of all the different gouache brands and the results of the mold test!!

Another tip for the silicone lids! Keep an old toothbrush that you can use to scrub stuff clean like those tiny nooks and crannies. I try to keep a few old brushes for different things like painting techniques, cleaning stuff like this kind of lid, and even jewelry.

This will be great. Living in a dry climate, I thought there wouldn’t be problems here. Well surprise that has nothing to do with it. I cleaned out the mess and went back to the James Gurney way, just squeeze out what is needed on a damp paper towel. So I need to be educated. I am a little surprised no one ever talks about DaVinci gouache. They have nice big 37 mil. Tubes at reasonable prices and I like it but it’s just what I started with. So I will be watching.

Oh i cant wait for all these vids! I have a cheap set (used and really awful), a mid range set (not used yet) and a quality set (trying tonight)... Cant wait to see what your opinions are too!

Thank you. I just started using gouache. I found this video very informative and I like the way you present your information.

@Sarah Burns Studio Great idea! I haven't found mold in my gouache, but over the years, I ran into the stuff, especially in my large plastic palettes. I used them a lot outside, so it may have even been something picked up while painting. I do know that it didn't show up after just a week. It was usually several weeks of no light or fresh air. I noticed it more in my traditional paints - my cadmiums and cobalts and ultramarine. I found that when I found it, spraying alcohol on them and then cleaning it off was most effective. Adding water seemed to make it more difficult. Even a touch of mold could mean a lot more was there but it hadn't changed color. In watercolor, it would be more scummy, and pulling that out usually took care of it. I am curious what it would be like in gouache since the actual texture of the paint is thick to begin with. My watercolors were often very wet. I live in western Oregon, which is not very humid even though it rains a lot half the year. Now I'm going to have to check my gouache. I have a couple of those 24 well plastic palettes and love having my gouache in them. I used one for my Himi and the other for the tubes I've had for years, some having hardened and needed to be peeled out of the tubes and refreshed.

Great information Sarah.

Great 👍 and timely info. I have a similar palette (rectangular with 24 spaces) with Schmincke Akademie Gouache. Only the viridian green got moldy 🤷. I added a drop of organic pure clove oil to all colours, which is an all natural antifungal oil. I cleaned the silicone cover, rinsed with alcohol and then added a couple of drops of clove oil to it and buffed it with a paper towel. The palette is mold free and smells amazing! Plus, I try to bring distilled water if on the go, to keep the colours clean from anything that tap water might bring. Good to see your silicone lid stains too.

Looking forward to more mold research 😀.

Thank you! Very helpful.

New to gouache. Ordered paint, clove bud, sprayer, 2 pallets like yours, paper, etc. can’t wait for it to arrive. LOVE, LOVE your tutorials. Thanks for the wonderful information!

Nice! Good luck with the experiments, I'm excited to see the results. I have the clear pallet with the clip and haven't had any issues with my gouache since I started using it last year. Even times where I went a month without checking in. I tried making two for watercolor, ones all White Nights and the other one has Schmincke, WN, & Holbein. The White Nights one was completely covered in mold in a week 😵 Holbein dried out in a week, WN in two. The Schmincke started getting mold after a month of use. I ended up letting them all dry out 😏 and then dousing them with alcohol & getting rid of the mold. I've heard that mold can ruin the paint or paper later on, but I haven't seen any issues after ~6 months. I couldn't get myself to throw it out either knowing how much $ would be thrown away 😵 Maybe next time I'll try the clover bud, the dried watercolors not too bad 😅

Love this ❤️

@SarahBurnsStudio What a great timing. ❗Do you know Miranda Watson - Alkali Creek Art ? She just posted a video about this topic YESTERDAY and showed exactly the same kind of palette and mold in it. 😂 👌

Excellent timing. I filled 2 of the same palettes yesterday. One with Holbein and one W & N . I only filled them 1/3 of the way. I used toothpicks to level them & mix. I've been using M Graham Watercolor for years and have never had a problem with mold. I swatched the gouache with the paint from the toothpicks. Waiting for your brushes to be in stock!❤

You are my fave, go to, Gouache Geek! Thank you!

I am really looking forward to your upcoming videos. Currently I own four different gouache paints, ranging from budget to an artist mixing set. I also own your brush set but sadly have not been able to use them due to persistent health issue of last three months. Hopefully by it's all said and done, you complete your reviews, I am on the road to recovery and painting 🖌️!

Wonderful video Sarah! I am primarily an acrylic & oil painter for over 40 yrs ( water mixable oils as well as regular oils ) and the BEST and ironically most inexpensive brush cleaner I use is MURPHY OIL SOAP ( labeled as MURPHY WOOD CLEANER ) this is the concentrate 946 ml not the spray type. It’s currently less that $5 in Canada, is 99% naturally derived ( vegan) and is highly recommended by Rosemary the founder of the UK Artist Brush manufacturer Rosemary & Co. for both natural & synthetic bristle brushes. I paint 6 days a week and wash my brushes after every session, a little goes a long way and the (almost) 1 litre bottle lasts me 11 months; It’s available everywhere in North America, not sure about the rest of the world. I have brushes that are over 30 years old and still look (& perform) like almost new. Hope this helps someone and if you have friends or relatives on this side of the Atlantic I’d ask for a Murphy’s Care package.😊. Sarah, I will be happy to send you a bottle if you would like to try the Murphy’s vs Master’s for yourself, think it would be a great video. Hope this helps someone, keep up the great content! Cheers!

Thx for the video. Right away I started cleaning my palette 😉 I got mold on my palette for the first time. Last time I used it , I was painting in the kitchen... And thinking and eating.... I use Schminke Gouache and I'm sure the some dirt got into one of my colors. Because mold need sugar to grow.

I would love to try all these. My mouth is watering. I have a couple tubes of ulrecht which is actually pretty good at least in the tubes I have, winsor and newton (pretty much a full set) a small set of holbein and then I have the arteza 24 set which I use in my sketchbook a lot and bullet journal. Arteza is decent but not nearly as thick. Good for practicing and sketchbook stuff though imho.

I think the primary reason you’d see mold is continued disuse in a humid climate. I live in a tropical place and homes aren’t really climate controlled here. I had a himi goache pallet that never grew mold in the months I was using it semi regularly (broke it out every few weeks) but I switched mediums and didn’t open it for about a year and there was a thin mold layer. I feel like if your paints are exposed to air periodically, the extra moisture won’t build up enough to mold over

I’m learning so much from you and now have your blog bookmarked, too. I did learn that you can place a tiny piece of a sponge soaked in clove bud oil and just place it in your palette and/or sta-wet palette. I know you use your empty corner for your magnets but maybe you can squeeze a soaked sea sponge in, too? Thank you again for teaching me so much already. 😊

aaaa this was a great video! very informative and helpful. didn't know clove bud oil and general clove oil are different with different purposes, the more you know! I bought the clove oil (not the bud one) but do you think it'll work fine or do I buy the bud version? Also I can't wait to see your reviews on the Himi jelly cups, arteza and royal talens! If I may throw a request, Caran D'Ache pan 8 set or 15 set. They paint surprisingly nice for pan stuff 😄

Great suggestions! Essential oil of clove can be an effective antifungal for inside a sealed palette, as can essential oil of thyme, as easily obtained consumer product replacements for paint antimicrobials. Essential oils don't have to be in direct contact with the paint to provide protection; there can just be a small bit in close proximity. Some pigments can be more vulnerable than others- Ivory black seems to develop mold more readily than most. Anyone experimenting with other treatments should take care not to add anything that could affect colors; even weak acids like lemon juice can bleach Ultramarine Blue, for instance. There's a lot of good advice in this video, and an important topic. Thanks for discussing this issue!

Nice video!

I’ve only had my yellows mold. Seattle is "moist"… I spritz with a little isopropyl alcohol (just the stuff from the drug store). Has worked great!

Excited for the results/comparisons of all this gouache research and experimentation! I think the brand of gouache my local art store carries is one of the few that isn’t in your mold experiment 😂. My shop carries Maimeri and, as someone new to gouache, I wish they carried one of the brands that is used more commonly so when I want to look something up it would be easier to find info. I have ordered some Schmincke and W&N online though, so I do have some “common” tubes lol. Helpful tips on mold prevention, that’s something that worries me especially since I often only have painting time on weekends. I might be better off using my stay wet palette.

I just cleaned my gouache travel palette last week. Hadn’t opened it in weeks and it was a little dry but no mold. I have used clove with handmade watercolors but never thought to put it in gouache. Colorful hummus had me 😂🤣! I have a new himi gouache palette that I haven’t opened yet. Interested in getting the Daniel Smith gouache but need to use what I have now first to justify spending money on more.

Hi Sarah. I love your scientific approach, thank you, that's what we call dedication! Have you published a follow-up to your tests yet? Or is it too early?

I have had mould on my watercolours and found the solution to be very simple … letting my paints dry before I place the cover on

I don't use gouache but I use at work acrylic housepaint diluted to yoghurt consistency. It molds and get smelly and sometimes it has so much bactreial/fungus growth that paint discolors throught. My favorite ways to prevent it or at least slow it down is adding two things to the paint: liquid soap and vodka. So far it works! I also hope to try baking soda solution in the future.

Very interesting sharing, so nice video,😍

I have the arteza gouache in my airtight palette and I had issues with two of the blue colors, I just ended up taking them out of the palette since they weren't primary blues and it wasn't worth fighting with them. I have some W+N gouache I'm going to put in there as the arteza runs out and I'm interested in if it will have less of a problem

I have more experience with watercolours than gouache, but either way... The ones that get mouldy for me are pans rather than liquid paint in wells/boxes. Not that it happens often to me. Right now I live in the British Isles, so as rainy and humid as it gets, but hadn't got any issues. I did have several moulded ones (some beyond rescue) while I was traveling. My bet is weather/environment over anything else. From mould in tiles/walls to not clean enough brushes & water.

Excellent material. I have that same small palette that I've filled with some Arteza paints. It sat for about 1 month before I opened it just the other day with the intention of cleaning using your recommended method and adding some clove oil. Sadly, 3 of the wells had some full-blown mold growing. I just now emptied out the entire palette and scrubbed it clean. I was quite happy when I pulled you up on KZfaq to see if you've done a mold specific posting. I've actually been fairly satisfied with (surprisingly) with the Arteza until now. The huge drawback is that I don't believe you can buy any open stock. I am all out of white and will have to refill with a different brand.

I had wondered about the seawater since it could have tiny beings in it. Thanks for mentioning it.

Would be really interested in finding out about lightfastness for the cheaper brands. .Also wondering if you have ever tried using a medium added to your gouache before you put the colours in a pallette? Here in Australia my gouache dries so quickly I was considering adding a watercolour honey base medium.

you have the most beautiful voice ❤

I got a Nevskaya Master Class Gouache set, and besides other issues, I found mold growing in the Ultramarine paint just a few days after I opened it for simple tests and swatches. I tried alcohol 70⁰ but the effect didn't last. So I read about clove bud oil, which I didn't have. Turns out I had Melaleuca oil, which has similar properties. So I mixed it with alcohol and gave it a try. It worked right away, but I have been quick-spraying the mix over time, as I don't paint with gouache as much as with watercolor. Haven't had any problems ever since.

I got the palettes because I could no longer unscrew the lids of the tubes. They would twist the tubr top completely until it bursts or the lid was so damaged because pliyers did even work I thought this would make it easier to use but I got mold because I was busy. Very sad but hopefully I've learned and these tips will help me.

Do you have any posts or videos about the colors you have in your palette/ do you pre mix the colors at all? I’m just starting out and I’m trying to get a nice base palette to get me going

would mould happen for a dry gouache palette setup? I have a travel palette that I am going to fill with gouache and let dry like watercolour but when spraying water and leaving it in I am wondering if I'll run into this issue thank you for your videos and experiments they've been very informative

I filled a brand new stay wet palette for a trip to Scotland. They were Holbein paints and my red paint was moldy when I opened the palette a little over a week later in Scotland, I hadn't even used it yet. I scraped off the mold and it came back. I put some rubbing alcohol in the palette areas and the mold hasn't come back. Not sure if it's bad for my gouache, but it seems to be working fine.

Thanks for this. I’m a newbie. What are the brand names of your airtight containers. That would be helpful.

So I don't use my gouache as often as I would like. And right now all I have in a pallette is that paul rubens opaque set. Not exactly lightfast, but while some have given the paint poor reviews I love it. It's super opaque, smoothe, bright, and I love it. So I use it without reservations. Other than selling the work. With that said I leave mine closed for weeks, not treated, and I've never gotten mold.

I've actually experienced mold with the arteza gouache after about 3 months+ in a stay wet pallette, even though only the most middle colours (purple and dark blue) were moldy, the other ones were fine. I don't know, if the location in the stay wet pallette was the issue or if those colours are just more prone to mold than others or if it's a mixture of different factors. The Mia gouache didn't mold at all.

I’m not using gouache regularly but as the daughter of 2 scientists I am curious to see how your experiments turn out. Also I was asking myself how much of the mould problem could be caused by introducing “things” into the wells when you paint. I’m guessing there could be a difference in the amount of mould forming in an unused vs in a used palette. Looking forward to your (hopefully not too furry) reveals! 😂

HELP! What are those airtight palette boxes that you used called? Are they available in the US? I’ve looked and looked and I can’t find them!

I have a question, I was looking over your supply list for Gouache but I noticed that some on your list say acrylic gouache. Did you combine your acrylic and watercolor gouache together? Which would make sense since they’re both gouache, I just wanted to make sure bc I’m looking for specific watercolor gouache. Thanks and love all your help and suggestions.

Hello! May I know what percent of essential oil did you add to the water? or how much is the volume of water you prepared to add drops of how much essential oil to? I can't estimate the size. :')

The key to growing mold in palettes really has to do with the addition of excess water. So I do not do this. Actually more water than should be in the gouache keeping it moist. I once grew mold in one of my -bigger palettes like yours. I left it for a couple months but had sprayed it with too much water on top. That is when I set up my smaller sealable palette with the water cup attached. I used a drop of clove oil (I believe) not clove bud oil. I’d have to check. I also had certain colors that dried out faster, usually earth tones. So I added a bit of gum Arabic to each color along with the drop of oil. The gum Arabic is just additional binder and is great when plein air painting because you don’t have gouache drying out in five minutes on a windy day, or the second you put brush to paper. It still give a little working time. I was going through a lot last year and went over 5 months without opening my gouache palette. Aside from a couple of earth tones drying, everything looked terrific. I stirred them up cleaned up my palette and was good to go!

Thanks for the tips! I've just gotten a new gouache palette and am doing some research before using them for the first time, so this is super helpful! I have a few questions- I'm not sure if you have to worry about your paints getting dry with the frequent uses, but if ever you need to rehydrate them, do you go the extra length to use distilled water or will regular tap water work fine? Or do you just use the clove mixture as the means of rehydration? (Wondering because distilled water is sold by the gallon and I don't know if I want to buy that much of it unless I'm sure I need it)

After getting mold in this same palette that Sarah uses, I put one drop of lemon essential oil instead of clove bud bc that's what I had on hand in each section, and it caused my (very cheap) gouache to show very obvious oil spots in my work bc oil and water do not mix. So, I think I ruined the paint, but I have not had a problem with mold since, and it smells great. I may continue to use it just in my sketchbook for practice. I am not sure if this would be the same for more expensive gouache or if lemon oil is more oily than clove bud oil? Glad it was just my cheap stuff. I just purchased the 10 tube W&N gouache set and do not plan to put them in this palette for now. Thanks for the video Sarah!

Is the oil okay for paper?..

Do you think clove would even prevent M. Graham gouache from molding?

Do you think the wet palette it also work for Acrylics?

I spray with colloidal silver, seems to work. No smell or contamination.

Interesting, thank you for the video! I opened one of my blue jars of gouache last year, only to find it all fluffy with green mold inside. Yuck!! That was an unpleasant surprise haha.

My acrylics molded really bad!! What to do?! Help.

In Seattle you look away and then look back ..and voila mold! 🤦🏽‍♀️ . My watercolour palette or even eyeshadow palettes I leave open for 24 hours - thus so far no mold, I just bought a Himi Miya palette, which I won’t keep open obviously after use 😛 so this video is handy.

Miya the jelly gouache brand has mold spray in 2 sizes

yum colourful hummus 😝

You might want to leave it open over night so it dries, then it doesn't get moldy. The colors can easily be activated with the water atomizer, there's no need to keep it wet at all times. And the casing looks cool, but those watercolor cases where the half pans can be slightly distanced between them on rails are precisely so you don't have color contamination. Some products aren't designed well, in my opinion. 👍👍

I only use distilled water

Mmm colorful hummus.

The question is: can you save a palette that only had one color contaminated, or should you get rid of all the other colors too « just in case »? How would you proceed? Does adding a drop of alcool to each remaining colors can effectively destroy any fungi and save the paint from being contaminated? What can happen if you paint with these colors? Does an artpiece can get contaminated? Anyone has some experience of it to share? Thanks

Can you make an open pallet like watercolor?

Anyone use vinegar and water in a spray bottle? That’s my current weapon but haven’t been using it for long enough to know if it works.

Came running after I opened my air tight palette to see my Winsor and Newton and sui gouache having a chunky mold party 😭😭😭😭

I thought gouache was re-wettable. Is it wrong to allow it to dry in the same way that watercolors are allowed to dry in half pans? Must it be kept wet? Is that for convenience? Does it matter? Just curious.

Honey based ...gouache usually get moldy easily

Keep it in the fridge it slows down mold .

Colorful humus 😂

Colorful hummus 😂