REMODELLING OLD BUILDINGS 49 



harden more upon the surface, and may thus possess 

 just as much preservative power as if it penetrated more 

 into the wood work. Many skilled painters use a large 

 amount of turpentine with the first coat of paint upon old 

 buildings to make it penetrate better, but turpentine 

 is often almost double the cost of oil and is not as much 

 of a preservative. Therefore while we conclude that the 

 winter may not be the best time to paint, the work is 

 so expensive an operation that those who are about to 

 paint their buildings should do it when it can be done 

 most thoroughly and most economically. 



Kind of Paints to Use. 



It is generally conceded that pure white lead and pure 

 linseed oil make the most durable paint, and in the end 

 the cheapest. With white lead as a foundation almost 

 any medium or light colors may be produced by the ad- 

 dition of the necessary dark colors. A large percentage 

 of the paints used are what are called ''ready mixed." 



Ready mixed paints put up by reputable dealers are 

 good, being mixed by machinery, and therefore the 

 lead or other pigments are more intimately mixed 

 with the oil than can be done by hand; but in the 

 greed for profits many ready mixed paints made by 

 unprincipled manufacturers are adulterated, and dealers 

 often advocate their use because of the larger profit to 

 themselves. 



Mixing Paints. 



If standard white lead is used for the foundation much 

 care and skill must be exercised if a variety of colors 

 is desired. In this work the lead should be first thor- 

 oughly mixed so that it is smooth and even all through; 

 then the coloring materials are to be as thoroughly 

 mixed, and then unless a fixed formula is used a little is 



