How to turn Two dollars into Twenty dollars

     The easiest way to make money airbrushing, is to sell T-Shirts. Airbrushing a name on a shirt is by far the biggest selling design. There are many styles of airbrushed lettering that are very popular. Script, block, bubble, ole' English, stick and scratchy letters, to just name a few. I'll post samples of different lettering styles in a later post. In this video we'll be doing a quick two color name design. This design can be done in less than one minute. I'd charge $19.25 for the shirt and design. Imagine doing 100 of similar shirts. This could mean big bucks. This is easily possible at the right venue. Not too bad for one day airbrushing.
     Some things to note. Notice how quickly and smoothly i move. And how i go back and thicken the letters. Remember that all down strokes are thick and all up strokes are thin. Also try to use a darker color for the main lettering and lighter colors to accent. And try to use colors that blend well if they are to touch. Now for the beginner your lettering at first will probably suck. But you must do it over and over and over and over and over.... Then it will look awesome!!
     You'll have to find a wholesale T-Shirt supplier in your are to get bulk shirts  for about $1.50 each. With shipping it comes to less than $2.00 per shirt. Check some of the links to find great deals on airbrush supplies and garment wholesalers.
     Come back next time and we'll have samples of different lettering styles that will surely put cash in your pockets.

Getting up to speed

     Now that a person has gotten all the equipment to start airbrushing, it's important the have some fundamental skills. Or should i say skill. The one airbrush skill that is essential to paint anything is...... The DAGGER STROKE. or rat tail or whatever others call it. This is when a person is able to bring the airbrush stroke to a point at the end of the stroke. This is tricky to do at first. But once mastered, one will have total control of the gun. The dagger stroke should be able to be performed in all directions, widths and lengths. The easiest way to master this is to practice doing palm trees. That's right palm trees, like the ones seen on those cheesy airbrush beach scenes that are so popular and that pay oh so well. Now the secret is to keep the air on and just rock the paint flow back and forth, swooshing in close to the surface as the paint is shut off.  But.....leaving the air on. Like i said it's tricky. But after a few thousand times it can be mastered and you are on your way to making money. Next time we'll talk about how to turn $2.00 into 20.00 in less than one minute.

Getting Started

Hello, welcome to the first blog post for Making Money Airbrushing. This is for the total beginner. If you want to start making money airbrshing, you must first learn to airbrush. Unfortunately it's not quite as easy as it looks.  But with alot of practice anyone can do it. Let's start by discussing airbrushes. Basically there are two types, single action and double action. I won't go into a lot about the difference but take my word for it get a double action gun.This means when you push the trigger down you get air. When you push down then pull back on the trigger you get a combination of air and paint. Then it's a matter of how much air and how much paint. How close or how far away from the work surface to determine the spray pattern and amount of detail one can acheive. I paint mostly T-Shirts. So i'll stick primarily with things related to garments. Once you have a good siphon fed double action airbrush. You will need an air source. There are many different types of air compressors. But for doing shirts, you need one that will at least get 50 pounds of pressure. Then you'll need paint. I use pre-mixed airbrush fabric paint. Go to your art store and buy a sample pack of whatever brand they carry for now. Most often it will be a brand called Createx. http://www.createxcolors.com/  It works fine. Many Pros use this paint extensively. Others prefer other brands. We'll discuss other brands in a later post. You'll now need paint bottles with the spout. Try to get as many s you can afford, preferably one for each color, plus one to flush between colors.
     Assuming you have all the hoses for the compressor, airbrush and some sort of moisture filter between the compressor and gun, you are ready to start getting paid!! After a few thousand practices or so, maybe less who knows?
     So far you might have about $400.00 invested. That's airbrush, paint, hoses, bottles and compressor. The compressor will be the biggest expense. Many times you can borrow your dad's , uncle, cousin, etc.. Until you can afford your own. And figure out what works best for you. With the right set up and venue you should be able to make all your investment back in one day or one weekend at the most. For now fill a few paint bottles, and hook everything up.Turn on your compressor and set the pressure to about 50lbs.You'll need some type of easel and a flat board. Get a roll of cheap paper towels and start spraying. To start just push down on the trigger and you should have just air then gently pull back until paint comes out. Get close to the paper towel and start painting. Just play around and get the feel for it. Write your name or try to draw something. It will probably look pretty bad. This will change soon. You are on your way to making big bucks.Check back for the first series of  how to's on how to get a professional look fast. Tips and tricks that usually takes years to master, but if you know what to look for you can apply imeadiately. Good luck and see you next time.