10/11/2025

Ohuhu Mix-Media Hardover Pad (210cm x 210cm)

This Ohuhu pad looks expensive due to its luxurious leather-like cover, flexible soft binding, elastic band, ribbon bookmark and decent mixed media paper. It comes in a sturdy cardboard box that protects it and makes it perfect for wrapping and gifting. It comes with a complimentary silicone sheet that can be inserted between pages to prevent bleeding and staining. All the design is really well thought and the price fantastic. 

I was looking forward to having this pad for mixed-media painting, but the first results were disappointing. I first tasted the paper without gesso priming and I was getting quite happy with the paper performance despite using a lot of wet media. My happiness ended when, after finishing a grid layout, I started to remove the low-tack soft masking tape I normally use. This tape glides off beautifully on most papers, but it ripped the paper apart destroying most of the painting area. I got me really annoyed.

The product page states "Designed especially for use with alcohol markers, the 120lb (200GSM) mixed media paper has a pleasingly smooth surface that resists smudging and feathering." To me, this is not the best paper for wet mixed-media because the paper definitely wraps and buckles, and needs of gesso to work on it to prevent the paper being ruined or torn apart. However, the pad is perfect for dry media, pencils, crayons and markers.  
 
In the end, I decided to use it as a collage sketchbook with limited use of water-based products and I'm very happy with this pad for that purpose. 
 
The pages are punctured so you can cut them off if ain't happy with what I'm doing or the paper gets damaged. However, the part of the binding before the puncture stays in, so if you have many pages cut off, it bulks up and it looks cheap. 
 
For the rest a good quality pad perfect for limited wet and dry media, and collage.  

Arttec Oil & Acrylic Sketch 240gsm A2 Pad (12 sheets)

This pad is one of the few affordable A2 pads in the market that allow you to work with oils. acrylics and mixed media. I've used it with mixed media and it's great both as a sketchbook and for producing studies or art pieces that you aren't going to sell. It has a beautiful canvas-like texture on the front, and a sealed plastic-ish smooth back that prevents bleeding. It's not meant to replace good quality paper, but allows creating quality studies and sketches without breaking your budget. You can still have some rubbing and scratching done on the paper, but to a certain point. I gesso the pages before working on them so that the pages don't tear or break when doing that. The pad is not only affordable but the twelve sheets are a generous number for the price. 

10/10/2025

Johnson's Pure Cotton Bud Applicators With Paper Sticks (150 Pack)

I use these cotton buds for so many purposes, to clean my ear lobes to start with, but also as part of my DIY manicure, to clean my eyebrows while dying, in my artwork practice, you name it. I love that the sticks are made out of paper. They are still strong and don't break. 
 
I cannot understand the necessity of using a plastic container. A cardboard one, made out of recycled cardboard, would be not only more environmentally friendly, but also cheaper to produce. I hate one-use plastic packaging. The container is really cute and can be reused, but due to the shape is not easily to store in small spaces, so I ended binning it. I feel guilty every time. 
 
Due to what's happening in some parts of the world I'm no longer supporting brands like this and reverting to local brands and companies.  

Bamboo and Plastic Desk Top Drawers

This is one of those Kmart items that I consider a staple at home. I have many of them stacked on each other in my art studio/home office. They're not only good looking, durable, roomy and easy to clean, but also fit well with the Ikea Skandi look that I love for my studio. I stuck them by using a bit of blue tack on the base. I have put some of them inside my shellves, and they look great, keeping all my stuff tidy and organised.

USEFUL INFO

Measurements: 12.1cm (H) x 33.7cm (W) x 24.2cm (D).

Materials: Polypropylene (PP) plastic and bamboo.

Product weight: 1.7kg.

10/08/2025

Kmart 4-Drawer Storage Unit on Wheels

Not fancy, not pretty, but a great storage solution if you're on a budget. This unit is perfect for garage storage, tools storage, shoe cabinet, and toys storage among other uses. It's amazingly simply to put together (it's like a large Lego puzzle piece) without the need of any tool. It has rudimentary wheels that help me move and transport the unit around. Price is amazing for such a useful unit. I've had two of these for years, and they're still as new. On the flip side, they're a bit wobbly, made of plastic and nothing you want to display around the home.  
 
USEFUL INFO 
Measurements: 70cm (H) x 31.5cm (W) x 43.5cm (D) / 2.3ft. (H) x 1ft. (W) x 1.4ft. (D). Drawers: 15cm (H) x 32cm (W) x 43.8cm (D).
Material: Polypropylene (PP).
Maximum weight capacity: 5kg (each drawer)

TEHAUX Paint Brush Cleaning Tub (10.5 X 21cm)

I was so excited about finding this brush cleaning tub at a good affordable price. The good thing is that it's made of stainless still and it costs half of what you'd pay if it were from an art brand. However, after getting it and using it, I've found that it's a bit of a nuisance in my studio. The ringed holder only allow small thin brushes to be inserted; otherwise, the brushes will pop up and fly across the room like popcorn. I use a mix of brush sizes in my art practice, so it defeats the purpose. The brushes, can be placed vertically or inside the ring, horizontally. This tool would need of more space than the one I have on my working table to be fully functional. In all honesty, those brushes that fit in the rings, dry better, quicker and get less damaged. 

Yitexin Canvas Pencil Roll Wrap (72 slots)

This is a good quality large pencil wrap with 72 slots. Perfect to keep pencils, average pen and thin/medium markers. The elastic band are  tight, so it's difficult to get some of the markers in. At the same time, this prevents them from sliding off. There are too double fittings, which are perfect to insert thick markers or several small things, like pencil/pen refills, erasers, etc. I miss having a couple of more of those double fittings to put all the things I wanted in. This wrap has thicker canvas and is better quality than others I own. I fit tons of stuff in this.