Buckinghamshire Art Competition

New online gallery

Skills are excited to introduce the new online gallery shop as part of the website make over for 2018.  Now you won't have to worry about your favourite painting being purchased by another shopper and we are adding new pieces which have not yet been displayed in the High Street Gallery.  Now you can visit the shop anytime you like to view our latest collection.

Skills new floral art collection for Spring 2018

Skills and Primrose Gallery are proud to present this beautiful collection of fine art giclee prints by Buckinghamshire Artist and textile designer Nicky Hunter.   Taken from her original watercolours, Nicky works mainly in this medium along with ink to capture the vibrancy of flowers.  Working loosely and allowing the pigment and water flow to create translucent magic and intense contrasts are important to her.  Nicky works from still life mostly and en plein air when possible, enjoying the immediancy and unpredictability this approach has.
Nicky's many years working as a textile artist selling her floral print patterns to designers and brands internationally has led to a deep love of floral decoration.  The foundation of her skills often lies in botanical painting and drawing and explorative sketching and graphical work.

Nicky Hunter's limited edition prints are a series of 50 and are mounted and ready to frame.  Available in sizes 465 x 380mm at £69 and 590 x 465mm at £89, these are beautiful quality prints to brighten any home.   There are also greetings cards in this range.

To view Nicky Hunter's floral watercolours visit:-

Skills Art Materials and gallery 18 High Street Stony Stratford MK11 1AF

Primrose Gallery at 26 High Street, Thrapston, Northamptonshire NN14 4JH

Skills for artists and art lovers

Skills lives up to it’s name

• specialist artist materials
• specialist art and photography services
• an exceptional framing service
• highly experienced staff providing art valuation and restoration

We are passionate about encouraging your creative path whatever your age or stage in life.  We are proud to be one of Stony Stratford’s vibrant independent shops.  Skills stocks only authentic specialist art materials, which contain the high quality an artist deserves.  We also let customers try before you buy.  Why gamble with online purchases when you can confidently buy from Buckinghamshires only independent art shop.  In our company, we have no less than five artists and two photographers, because of this we understand your needs and ideas.  Stony makes a perfect summers day shopping without the hassle of crowds.

Skills have a Calorie Free Easter Egg for you

Golden Egg & Smartie by Ramond Campbell

Original oil on board
7.5 x 7.5 cm

Presented in a fancy warm silver/white gold frame and white slip
20 x 20 cm wall size

£220

Art Lovers Valentine Ideas

Feel the love in Stony Stratford at Skills with these wonderful Valentines gift ideas.  A bouquet of roses does not last, but these beautiful rose prints will be a lasting token of love.  The Jenni Murphy print ‘The Romantic Gardener’, framed in a gorgeous shabby chic duck egg green, is our window centrepiece.  We have the beautiful ‘Companion’ for dog lovers, and the fun ‘HareKare’ by the amazing printmaker Alison Read.  There is also the memorabilia framing service to surprise your loved one with a framed football shirt, photo booth keepsake, or 3D framing of the best souveniors of a fledgling romance.
Visit Stony Stratford, number 18 High Street, MK11 1AF.  See our website for details or follow us on Facebook or Twitter for art inspiration and new stock ranges.

Skills Guide to Picture Framing Levels

Top Quality Framing at Competitive Prices
Skills picture framing workshop staff are members of the Fine Art Trade Guild.  This means that they have received top quality training to ensure that any item will be framed perfectly to conserve it to high levels.  So many times Skills receives framed items from other framing outlets which have not been framed adequately.  Either the frame has started to fall apart or the item inside the frame is getting damaged through destructive display methods, including stitching an expensive item or from having acidic mounts put directly on top of work.  Skills can save a treasured piece from further damage and will adivse on how best to keep your treasured picture, embroidery, or memorabilia framed to the highest level for longevity and enjoyment on your wall.  The levels available are as follows:-

Budget Level Framing
It’s better than Minimum and better than ready made framing. If you can afford to frame your items or artwork at Commended Level, the Fine Art Trade Guild recommends you do so, as that gives it a degree of protection from physical and mechanical damage, airborne pollution and acid damage. Budget Level framing makes no pretence to protect the artwork or its long-term visual appearance. However, Budget Level Framing does provide a visually acceptable frame at a budget price and is suitable for replaceableartwork of no commercial or sentimental value.
Commended Level Framing
Guild Commended Level framing should visually enhance the artwork and will give a moderate level of protection from physical and mechanical damage, airborne pollution and acid damage. A windowmount or slip should normally be used to visually enhance the artwork and distance it from the glazing. Processes do not have to be reversible so make sure your framer knows if the chance to get your work back to its condition prior to framing is important to you. The Guild recommends that processes should be reversible whenever possible, as the future value of works cannot always be foreseen and work ‘in mint condition’ commands the best secondary market value.
The target time for this level of framing is around five years in normal conditions, but this can be improved by requesting Conservation Level quality of materials, such as mountboard, where you can afford it. Consult with your professional framer. Always have items and artwork that you value framed with the best possible materials; this will help them give you pleasure for longer. Commended Level framing gives you a wider choice of mountboard colour options than Conservation Level and some artwork will look better when dry mounted, a process that can also help disguise previous damage but that is usually not readily reversible.
Commended Level Framing is suitable for replaceable artwork of limited commercial and/or moderate sentimental value and where visual appearance is important. The target lifetime assumes that artwork is not inherently unstable. Commended Level framing is not recommended for high value limited edition prints or original artwork, which should be framed to Conservation or Museum Level.

Conservation Level Framing
Guild Conservation Level framing gives a high level of protection for your artwork or objects, whilst looking good and enabling you to view your framed work to best effect. It should give virtually as high a level of protection as Museum Level framing and in many markets, for example the USA, no distinction is made between the two. By using conservation quality materials and the best techniques, the framer can give your work protection from physical and mechanical damage, airborne pollution and acids generated by many framing materials
Conservation Level framing should be good for 20 years in normal conditions, but be vigilant: pictures are rarely hung in ideal conditions, so we recommend that you have the frame checked every five years or so by a professional framer .  The Fine Art Trade Guild recommends that you agree a ‘condition of artwork’ report on all works to be framed to Conservation Level that are not brand new, prior to framing. Appropriate remedial action on deteriorating artwork should be taken before reframing. Some framers can do this work; not all. Check and ask for credentials

Suitable for

Objects and artworks that are to be preserved for future generations and collectables should be framed to Conservation Level, if not to Museum Level. Original artwork deserves Conservation or Museum Level Framing. Limited edition prints of moderate to high value that are not framed to Conservation or Museum Level may not hold or increase their value over time as well as those that are. This is because Conservation Level framing, as well as Museum Level framing, requires that all processes affecting the artwork be fully reversible. In other words, what you have framed to Guild Conservation Level can be returned to its former state, i.e. prior to framing, at any time up to 20 years, assuming that the artwork is not inherently unstable

Good original frames should be retained wherever possible as these can enhance the value of the artwork. Frames can be replicated for display purposes, while the original is preserved in museum storage. Sometimes it is advantageous to retain an original windowmount (possibly gilded or decorated). A qualified framer will know how to do this and protect the artwork from damage this original windowmount could otherwise inflict on the artwork.

Museum Level Framing

Museum Level Framing is not confined to museums’ works. Some artwork gains museum-quality status over time. Works that are to be preserved for future generations, including high value items and artwork of potential or historical value should be framed to Museum Level, where possible. Processes are intended to be fully reversible up to 35 years, which means that the framed work can be returned to its former state, i.e. prior to framing, at any time, assuming that the artwork is not inherently unstable
Good original frames should be retained wherever possible as these can enhance the value of the artwork. Frames can be replicated for display purposes, while the original is preserved in museum storage. Sometimes it is advantageous to retain an original windowmount (possibly gilded or decorated). A qualified framer will know how to do this and protect the artwork from damage this original windowmount could otherwise inflict on the artworkMuseum Level framing should give the best possible protection for your artwork or objects, whilst looking good and enabling you to view your framed work to best effect. By using the highest quality materials available and the best techniques, the framer can give your work protection from physical and mechanical damage,  airborne pollution and acids generated by many framing materials. Museum Level framing should be good for at least 30 years in normal conditions. However, pictures are  rarely hung in ideal conditions, so we recommend that you have the frame checked every five years or so by a professional framer. The Fine Art Trade Guild recommends that you agree a ‘condition of artwork’ report on all works to be framed to Museum Level that are not brand new, prior to framing. Appropriate remedial action on deteriorating artwork should be taken before reframing. Some framers can do this work; not all. Check and ask for credentials.
Note: Any existing labels should be preserved as this can provide provenance for the art    

Visit Skills at 18 High Street, Stony Stratford MK11 1AF for a non obligatory quote and expert advice on picture framing.  Click on the map for opening times and contact details

Skills Junior Artist Range

 Due to the increasing demand for childrens art materials by Stony Stratford shoppers, Skills are excited to introduce the Fun Range and their new Junior Art section.  These colourful and economical art materials cover all age groups and activities – from finger paints and washable picture stencils for the younger artists, to high quality acrylic and watercolour sets for budding artists starting out on their creative pathway.  Complementing this range are manga design sets, zentangle, scrapbooks, art doodle books, and sketchpads.  The only problem is choosing which to try first!

Drawing Essentials for every Artist and Colouring Fan

For Technical Drawing

High precision technical pen with refillable ink reservoir, in 13 line widths. Wear-resistant, hard chrome-plated thin tip allows working in exquisite detail.Refillable ink reservoir ideal for frequent drawers using bottle inks.

Experience the exquisitely smooth flow of fine graphite from the Cumberland Valley in England. Derwent’s Graphic Pencils are made from the finest quality graphite and purest clays for a smooth line. They are ideal for crisp, detailed illustrations or tone drawings.
Derwent Graphic Pencils are available in a full range of densities from 9B (softest) to 9H (hardest). Pencils in most of the range have 2.2 mm graphite cores, but the softer pencils from 4B to 9B have thicker 3.5 mm cores. The matte finish hexagonal shaft affords a firm grip. Pencils are pre-sharpened.

For Manga Lovers

 Strathmore 200 Series Bristol Board Pads are economical, smooth bristol weight boards printed with non-reproducible blue lines for comic and Manga applications. They are created specially for the comic, cartoon and graphic novel industry.



For Sketchers and Colouring Book Fans

 Pitt artist pens are famous for combining a modern brush nib design with traditional India ink. India ink offers artist odorless, permanent, waterproof, lightfast ink in 48 vibrant colours. The durable nib gives the freedom to create broad, medium or narrow brush strokes with an even application of colour.  Perfect for colouring books, colour sketches, and manga drawing.

Graphik Line Painters are a fine line paint pen that gives immense depth of colour, even on dark backgrounds.
Create layers, dribbles and washes with the opaque waterbased ink in 20 strong colours.
These cool pens have a 0.5 Japan nib is robust and delivers a fluid paint line.

Sketching Essentials

The dramatic beauty of traditional charcoal with a hint of colour. Naturally water-soluble.
Contains Sand, Glowing Embers, Lavender, Mountain Blue, Ocean Deep, Green Moss, Dark Moss, Driftwood, Peat, Natural, White, and Charcoal Dark.

 The paper stump makes the difficult job of blending dusty media such as charcoal and pastel much easier and cleaner. Once the stumps get dirty and the points wear down they can be easily cleaned and re-pointed using a sandpaper block. Derwent paper stumps can be found individually or in a handy pack of 3 sizes ranging in diameter from 5.5mm to 10.5mm. The paper stumps are made from compressed rice paper and with a point at each end.

 This eraser takes your drawings to another level and creates specific highlights in coloured pencil drawings of animal fur and foliage.  Used quickly and lightly – in a stroking or dabbing action – it can lighten without removing all colour. If you you then work back over the erased area it’s possible to create a complex texture of optical colours.  The eraser works quickly over large areas and makes light work of rubbing out.







For Commuting

Zentangle sets with the sturdy tile as a canvas, provides a fantastic support and boredom buster for the budding artist and doodler on the bus or train.

 The Collins and Davison Travel Journal is both practical available in A5 and A6 size, hard back black, and elastic binding.  Beautiful quality paper for sketching on the move.