Dusty Bee Watercolors

DustyBee Watercolors was founded by artist Cori Derfus and specializes in high-quality, small-batch paints made by hand. Cori is a watercolor and oil painter who values non-toxic supplies and who has an interest in our natural environment.

From Cori:
I am drawn to natural pigments. Clay. Paints. Teas and plants. Yarns.
I have been using watercolor as a medium for over 25 years. I have worked with ceramics in the past and miss the physical connection to the earth from working with clay. I decided to experiment with creating my own paints with earthen pigments and create colors that inspire me from the earth, water, and plants around me.

Each paint is hand mulled for at least 30 minutes on a glass slab, poured, and allowed to set for a week before adding a second batch to fill the pans. Each watercolor is made with care in choosing the pigments to the ingredients sourced for the binder. Paints are made with either a single pigment or carefully mixed pigments for best results, organic gum arabic, organic locally sourced Oregon honey, and organic clove oil (used as a preservative). Honey allows for high pigment loads and smooth washes. While our watercolors are essentially non-toxic, they are recommended to be used as intended.