posted
Continued from Part 1 (this board will not allow more that 8 images per topic)
All of the pieces will be primed with several coats of Sherwin Williams Pro-Block Primer, tinted gray to level 4 this will help you cover the darker areas with fewer coats. On the Oak itself I began with a very dark blue-green. I would blend the leaf masses to enhance the depths of the boughs. By adding brighter and brighter hues of grass green to the wet layer below a nice gradient was achieved. The texture of the individual leaves actually helped. Finally I spiced things up by going a bit brighter on specific leaves to make them pop. It was a matter of higher contrast here and there.
The same Blue-green was used on the tree trunks body. It had a definite organic bark texture in the clay. To finish it I used progressively whitened washes of this color, Layer upon layer between drying. I used the high spots, running my brush across just the raised root like surfaces. I finally helped nature along by adding some specific paint daubs along the raised veins.
My letters were painted with 3 coats of Modern Masters Pharaohs Gold latex paint. it is semi-transparent. Again the texture can really be your friend. If this had been a flat surface it would have taken 5-6 coats to cover. I am so impressed with the luster of this paint when dried.
Here is a MagicSculpt Custom dingbat just for this project. It is coated with a cheap metallic gold spray paint acquired at a Family Dollar Store. The Poly-Metal it is resting on was painted with an ugly lipstick pink color with a thin coarse brush stroking of a brownish red for antiquing both latex. It also sports a PVC trim frame sprayed with the same metallic gold paint.
Say are Y'all ready to see something cool? here they are on my Mark Fair Presidential Tilt Lettering Bench.
Now in the Sunshine!
The oval was coated with the gold spray paint then painted with Burnt Sienna artist tube acrylics. The paint is scrumpled off with a plastic grocery bag allowing some of the metallic gold to show through. Then the same process is repeated with Burnt Umber artist tube acrylics. If this sounds familiar to you..That's because it is Mark Fair's recipe for faux wood graining. Minus the last step of removing the burnt Umber with a graining tool. I did coat this with a satin polyurethane for protection and depth.
Thanks for taking time to follow this project. I'll let you know what they think soon. Oh by the way, that good looking man is standing beside the smaller sample piece.
-------------------- Bob Sauls Sauls Signs & Designs Tallahassee, Fl
"Today I'll meet nice people and draw for them!" Posts: 765 | From: Tallahassee, Fl | Registered: Jun 2009
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posted
Great looking signs Bob! The sample piece you did will be more valuable than the customer's pieces in the long haul.
Thanks for doing the step by step!
-grampa dan
-------------------- Dan Sawatzky Imagination Corporation Yarrow, British Columbia dan@imaginationcorporation.com http://www.imaginationcorporation.com
Being a grampa is one of the the most wonderful things in the world!!! Posts: 8738 | From: Yarrow, B.C. Canada | Registered: Nov 1998
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It goes without saying, Dan's pioneering, informative posts and articles on this medium have inspired us all. Thanks for the tutorials and personal conversations GrandPa Dan. I surely would never have done this without you breaking the ground.
-------------------- Bob Sauls Sauls Signs & Designs Tallahassee, Fl
"Today I'll meet nice people and draw for them!" Posts: 765 | From: Tallahassee, Fl | Registered: Jun 2009
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-------------------- “Did you ever stop to think, and forget to start again?” -Winnie the Pooh & A.A. Milne
Kelly Thorson Kel-T-Grafix 801 Main St. Holdfast, SK S0G 2H0 ktg@sasktel.net Posts: 5496 | From: Penzance, Saskatchewan | Registered: May 2002
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Thanks you-very impressive, and nicely explained!
-------------------- "Stewey" on chat
"...there are no limits when you aim for perfection..." Jonathan Livingston Seagull Posts: 7014 | From: Highgrove via Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia | Registered: Dec 2002
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You should be very proud of this piece...Thanks for the how-to...the leaf treatment and colors are fantastic...however I would have gotten a good looking female model to pose with the sign instead of the guy...but I'm guessing you got him pretty cheap.
posted
Thanks Rusty, I was really hoping that you would stumble across this thread. I will post the second sign Garden View when I am done. I do wish that low res images did better justice to color. I will install this one tomorrow.
-------------------- Bob Sauls Sauls Signs & Designs Tallahassee, Fl
"Today I'll meet nice people and draw for them!" Posts: 765 | From: Tallahassee, Fl | Registered: Jun 2009
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Love the first shot of it on the tree with the very strong side light. It really shows off the dimension. That is the best way to show off a dimensional sign.
Good work!!!
Joe,
Makin Chip$ and Havin Fun!
-------------------- Joe Cieslowski Connecticut Woodcarvers Gallery P.O.Box 368 East Canaan CT 06024 jcieslowski@snet.net 860-824-0883 Posts: 2345 | From: East Canaan CT 06024 | Registered: Nov 2001
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posted
Dave that is a gazillion pinches of MagicSculpt rolled into tiny balls and then pressed onto the piece. Yes, it took hours and hours. I would press down a ring of them then overlap those with the next inner ring moving towards a built up center to emulate (that sounds impressive doesn't it?) the natural shape of an organic bough. I am finding that going dimensional is a true challenge artistically. After this and as I am now carving some too. I firmly beleive that thinking in 3D will help any one actually draw better. Light and darks become not just tonal differences but "places" this understanding, will lead to better capturing of perspective working in 2D. I know that was not a part of your original question, but thank you for allowing me to share something that I am excited to discover. this is the kind of thing that allows us to stay enthusiastic and creative as sign-artists!
-------------------- Bob Sauls Sauls Signs & Designs Tallahassee, Fl
"Today I'll meet nice people and draw for them!" Posts: 765 | From: Tallahassee, Fl | Registered: Jun 2009
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