Vintage Painting

LSIrish-2018Vintage Acrylic Painting

Using acrylics as an antiquing stain

This is the Never Goes Wrong technique that any carver can keep in his or her back pocket. It is a perfect answer for that paint job that you just can not get control of for some reason … too many paint brush stroke ridges, uneven coloring, a bad choice of colors. When that happens you can go directly to this technique and turn that carving around into an instant winner!

Supplies:

2″ x 2″ 3″ basswood block
bench knife
chip carving knife
large round gouge

Acrylic Craft Paints:
King’s Gold – golden yellow
Summer Sunset – pale burnt orange
Alizarin Crimson – maroon
Nutmeg Brown – medium dark brown
Carbon Black
Titanium White

220-grit sandpaper
dry, clean cloths

Step 1: Carve your fish body from a 2″ x 2″ x 3″ basswood block using the bench knife. Cut gills with the bench knife and up-end the large round gouge to create the eyes. Sand to smooth away any flat panes left from your shaping using 220-grit sandpaper.

 

Step 2: With a pencil create a 1/4″ wide grid across the back of your fish. You will need to vary the grid lines some to adjust for the changing width of the fish body. Mark a chip carving grid design using the grid lines. With a chip knife chip cut the fish body.

NOTE – If you are new to chip carving this is a fun practice piece. Because we will be distressing the fish after the painting steps if you make small kicks or chip out or even have uneven sides to your chip cuts none of that will matter when this fish is finished. So you can practice to your hearts content knowing that every practice piece will be a keeper.

LSIrish-1962Step 3: The pre-treatment for this project is a primer coat. Place a puddle of golden yellow, pale burnt orange, and alizarin crimson on your palette. With a large shader apply a multi-colored primer coat to the entire fish, including inside of the chip cuts. Allow to dry 15 minutes or nuke for 15 seconds. Apply a second multi-color primer coat and repeat the drying.

 

 

Step 4: Polish the primer coats to a soft sheen using a soft dry cloth.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Step 5: Place a small puddle of nutmeg brown on your palette and thin slightly with water. Working a small area at a time spot antique your fish.

 

 

 

 

 

Apply one coat to a small area then wipe that area with a slightly damp cloth. Repeat until the entire fish has been stained.

 

 

 

 

Step 6: Add a few drops of titanium white to the thinned nutmeg brown, you want a medium tan color. In a random fashion apply this mix to a few unconnected areas on your fish. With a slightly damp cloth wipe the color as you did the nutmeg.

 

SECRET – We are going for a true vintage look, not just a stained or antiqued work. Vintage wood darkens over time for three reasons. First, there is a dark layer – a black brown layer – that comes from handling. The oils and dirt from our hands builds up over time. Second, the layers of cleaning solutions and oil polished that have been used also add a dark layer of patina. But the final, top layer, of patina comes from the buildup of dust and dust looks pale grey/brown/white that is found in the corners and crevices.

So when you spot stain the chip fish with the tan craft paint you are putting dust into the deep areas of the carving!

Step 7: Allow the fish to dry well for 15 minutes or because we are using acrylic craft paints for the antiquing steps you can nuke in the microwave for 15 seconds.

 

 

 

 

Step 8: Sand your painted chip carved fish using 220-grit sandpaper. Work some areas very heavily to go back to the original wood,  Work some light to only thin the paint. Work unevenly to add to the distressed look.

 

 

 

Step 9: Take your fish to the sink and give him a good bath using Dawn dishwashing detergent, this removes the sanded paint dust. Allow to dry overnight.

 

 

 

 

LSirish-2020Step 10: Your fish is ready for its copper fins. I prefer to leave this type of painted carving unsealed – no oil or spray finish – as it adds to the aged look of the work. If I do need a sealer coat I use Golden’s Archival Varnish which is a mineral spirits based acrylic spray and a true crystal clear, dull matt.

SECRET – If you have started a painting on a carving that just is not going right, try this technique. Work the steps right over the painting you have already done. During the sanding steps you will re-discover little areas of your original painting which only add to the vintage look.

 

Basics to Painting:

 

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