Page 46 - The Decorative Painter Summer 2014

Acrylic
GREEN BORDER
Refer to the Green Border Step-by-Step on page 43 as you paint.
STEP 1: This step is a wet-on-wet application. Soak the sponge in clean water, and then ring it out until it is damp. With the damp kitchen sponge, wet the surface where the green border will lie. The area should shine, but puddles of water should not develop. Tap the sponge into French Va- nilla, and then tap it on the palette to remove excess paint. Apply this to the border area by varying between tapping and dragging motions. Allow this to dry completely. Re- peat the process again, this time using Hauser Medium Green. Allow this to dry completely before moving on. STEP 2: Note that this step is not wet-on-wet—both the surface and the applicator should be dry. Crumple a piece of palette paper, and then tap it into Evergreen. By giving it a test tap on the palette you will see the stiff texture that the paper will create. Now apply this to the surface, over Step 1. This will look a bit intense.
STEP 3: To soften the look that was created in Step 2, load the 1" wash brush with DecoArt Americana Glazing Me- dium and then tip it into Evergreen. Work the paint into the bristles by stroking the brush back and forth on the palette. Apply a very transparent layer to the border. Let it dry completely, and then repeat.
STEP 4: Load the 1" wash brush with DecoArt Americana Glazing Medium, tip it into Emperor’s Gold, and work it into the bristles. Apply the paint to the border area, keep- ing it very transparent. Drag the various texture tools through the wet paint to create a grainy texture. Allow this to dry completely.
STEP 5: Paint the inside of the lid and box with Black Green. Basecoat the top line of color that encompasses the perimeter of the lid with Black Green. Paint the bottom line with Burgundy Wine.
Allow the entire lid to dry completely, and then trans- fer the design. With a kneaded eraser, soften the graphite lines so that they can be easily painted over.
LET’S PAINT
LEAVES
STEP 1: Using the no. 12 shader, basecoat the leaves with Hauser Medium Green.
STEP 2: Sideload the no. 12 shader with Evergreen, and then shade the leaves. Using the same brush, highlight the leaves with a sideload of Hauser Light Green. Work the paint well into the brush to avoid ribbons of paint. The first shades and highlights need to be wide. Avoid lines on the edge of the leaves.
Repeat the shades and highlights three or four times. STEP 3: The next highlight is a float of Avocado Dip; this highlight should be slightly smaller than the last. The last shade will be painted only in the darkest areas. Refer to the step-by-steps. Dip the side corner of the no. 8 shader into Payne’s Grey and blend out on your palette. Apply this float to the darkest areas seen in the photo of the final piece. Add a final highlight with Warm White+Avocado Dip. Again, this should be slightly smaller than the last high- light.
STEP 4: Tint the edges of some of the leaves with a side- load of Burnt Sienna. Apply this sparingly as an accent color. Don’t float this over a large area of any of the leaves.
ROSES
The goal for the roses is to allow the glow of the pet- als to show through each layer. To achieve this look, the colors of the flower’s ruffles and folds should be trans- parent. This will give the flower a delicate look, which will result in realistic-looking flowers. Thin the paints to an inky consistency.
STEP 1: Basecoat the roses with Boysenberry Pink, and then allow them to dry completely.
Lightly reapply the rose design lines, so that proper placement of the petals can be achieved.
STEP 2: In this step, the first full layer of the petals’ soft folds is created. Using the no. 12 shader with Baby Pink, add a float from the outside of each petal, easing up on the brush as it moves toward the base of the flower. Flip the brush, now using the side opposite of what was just used. Apply a second float next to the first, creating a back-to-back float. Each petal will remain darkest where it is closest to the rose’s center, becoming lighter toward the edge. Moving from one side of each petal to the other, rather than up and down, apply another back-to-back Baby Pink float using the same technique. Leave a bit of space between each float to allow them to vary in intensity. Avoid creating hard lines by softening the floats, so that they gradually fade. If necessary, fade the float by gently tapping its edges with a mop. Ensure that each float looks different by varying the pressure on the brush. This will ensure that the float does not appear as one solid color or texture. Pull your floats in the direction of the petal’s form.
Now that you are comfortable with the technique, move around the rose applying Baby Pink and Boysenberry Pink as before. Paint toward the center of the rose, moving with the form of the petals. Follow the shape of the petal; where the petal curves, pull the brush in a curved stroke. It is fine if some of the dark areas of the petals are lost; shades will
44 The Decorative Painter • ISSUE NO. 2, 2014
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