Today we will transform this small bench with the help of the Terra Clay Paints by Dixiebelle, WoodUbend ornaments and a transfer of Belles & Whistles. This treasure comes from the fund of a theater and was in his career as a prop no idea how often brushed or overpainted.
The full description can be found below the video and a list of the products used at the end of this article.
So what to wait for, roll up my sleeves and clean thoroughly with White Lightning. Then I tried to get to grips with the many layers of paint. Paint strippers, grinders, paint strippers, grinders …. and clean again. Everything was not to get down, then we simply work with what we have.
Since I have a light color in mind for this project and I noticed during cleaning that the wood gives off its tannins, I first primed with B.O.S.S. in Transparent By Dixiebelle. Boss is a blocking ground that includes both tannins and unpleasant odors. Also water-based, it is wonderfully easy to process.
Of course, there is almost no project without my beloved WoodUbends. Today I use the ornament set WUB1520.
If you don’t know WoodUbend yet, the basis is actually wood dust. When cold, they also behave like wood. You can saw, grind, drill them. When they are heated – with a hair dryer, hot air dryer, embossing gun or similar, they become flexible, so that you can fit them to any surface and shape.
They can be painted with any type of paint and even treated with a wood stain because they are porous like wood. It also doesn’t matter if you apply them before or after that. That always depends on your project.
After heating the WoodUbend with a hot air dryer, I paint the back evenly and opaquely with a wood glue. Wood glue, no matter what surface you attach it, metal, wood, glass, plastic. I prefer to use the Quick and Thick from Titebond, because it has a good initial adhesion and the ornament does not slip off immediately even on a vertical surface.
If I have painted the back well with glue, then I press it on the project, heat it again with the hot air dryer so that it becomes flexible again – if it should have become a bit stiff again in the meantime. Now I can press the edges really nicely to the surface. The details of the ornament are not damaged and in the end it looks as if it has always been there.
This is the big advantage of WoodUbend, which by the way is available in a huge number of large and small ornaments, flourishes and lasts.
Any excess glue that escapes from the side can be easily removed with a damp cloth, a baby wet wipe or a damp brush.
Today I work with the Terra clay paints by Dixiebelle. Terra Clay Paints are water-based and contain no chalk particles but clay particles. The special thing about these paints is that they can be reactivated with water at any time – as long as they have not been sealed – and they do not level out brush strokes. Qualities that are particularly desirable in creative techniques.
Of course, I have put a color in my head again, which does not exist in the Terra’s. Namely, a color that comes close to the apricot from the Chalk Mineral Paint line.
But since these colors can of course also be mixed with each other, this is no problem. I take here From Terra clay paint the colors Bougainvillea, Daffodil and Prairie Dawn. I mix the three together until I am satisfied with the color. There were approximately 2 parts each Daffodil and Prairie Dawn and 1 part Bougainvillea.
For painting I choose this time from Dixie Belle La Petit a natural bristle brush that has half/half natural bristles and synthetic bristles.
I like to work with a moistened brush and then first paint the whole bench at the top, bottom and all around in the mixed color. For the more difficult to access parts, I use an artist’s brush by Da Vinci. On the footprint and around the side WoodUbends I set a small highlight with Prairie Dawn.
After I let the paint dry overnight, it goes to the second layer – even if the first was actually already opaque. This time take the Best Dang Brush by Dixiebelle for the highlights with the Prairie Dawn. With this I get more of a cloudy and thus irregular, bleached effect.
When the whole thing is dried, the fun really begins. Now comes the Galaxy, a deep dark green into play. In my spray bottle I mixed vinegar with water. This makes the paint run less and more curdle.
First, I spray the corresponding areas with the vinegar mixture. To apply the Galaxy I use the Mudspatula from Dixiebelle. I pick up little color with the front edge and pull the spatula with the paint at a shallow angle from the corners and down at the edges. Wherever natural aging would take place. Also around the ornament. In fact, I hardly touch the surface at all. To make the color run even more, I help with my vinegar mixture and my fingers ?
The mudspatula is made of plastic and therefore gentler on the painted surface than a metal spatula. In the next step, it is used again, namely with the Prairie Dawn, but without vinegar water. I now apply this irregularly partially over the bench to create a peeling look. I spread the paint in different places until it runs out almost dry. This results in differently covered positions.
Then it is time to let it dry again. Since Terra Clay Paints can be reactivated with water, as long as they are not sealed, I always recommend just a layer of top coat over it when you have reached a stage where you are satisfied with the status quo and do not want to change anything. Of course, you can still paint over it, but nothing of the layer underneath will be changed.
In this case, I am not only satisfied with the current condition, but have planned to work with a transfer of Belles & Whistles. Each transfer brand has its own recommendations, please keep this in mind if you work with a different brand. The Belles & Whistles Transfers can easily be applied directly to the chalk mineral paints or the silk paints after drying. However, the Terra Clay colours are even more open-pored, so prior sealing with an overcoat is recommended. I sealed here with the Terra Seal and let it dry again.
I chose the transfer “Cotton and Eucalyptus” with beautiful eucalyptus leaves and cotton flowers. Transfers are wafer-thin self-adhesive films, which can be applied as a whole, in parts or on top of each other. They merge with the ground and end up looking as if the motif was hand-painted.
This thick milky foil you see here is actually just the carrier film. With the help of the scratch or transfer stick, I remove them from the carrier foil and transfer them to my project.
Think about where you want to place the motif and when you have placed it, it is best not to move it. The transfers usually adhere immediately to the substrate and if you pick up the backing paper again, it can happen that parts of the transfer stick to the substrate and thus tear a gap in the motif.
If you look closely, you can see that I rub with one hand and lift the backing paper slightly with others. So I can see well whether the transfer has already been transferred to the project. If a spot still sticks to the carrier film, I put it back and rub over it again until the last Fitzelchen is transferred.
I’m working my way from one end to the other here. From the center to the outside also goes very well. If you work from the outside to the middle, you run the risk of a fold forming.
In this project I have used up only a small part and by no means all of the Transfair.
If the transfer has completely detached from the carrier film and is on the project, I take the carrier film and rub again. You can do that too. But I avoid doing it with my hands, because mine are usually creamed and cream is not necessarily compatible with stroking projects.
Finally, I use the Finishing Pad by Dixiebelle to massage and merge the edges, which have a small clear edge, into the surface.
In the end, I sealed the bench with Terra Tuff, a robust and water-repellent water-based overcoat. So it is now well prepared as a flower bench or seat.
I hope you enjoyed it and maybe inspired you a bit. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.
For today I say thank you for reading and bye bye until the next blog post ?
Your Master of Disaster
Angela
Products used (for reference):
