30 Friday Mar 2012
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30 Friday Mar 2012
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After it was primed, I gave this bowl several coats of a light green acrylic paint, and decoupaged a butterfly on the interior:
I’ve been contemplating painting the rim in a coordinating shade of blue, but the butterfly is so striking against the solid background that I may leave it as is. I’ll cogitate on it for a while more before deciding.
Once the painting is complete, it will get several coats of clear acrylic varnish, and then it will be ready to go into the shop inventory.
29 Thursday Mar 2012
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Here’s what that cracked bowl I posted about earlier today, looks like once the repair work is complete (but before decoration):
29 Thursday Mar 2012
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Just came across Rachel Hansen’s great blog, Sheep Dog’s Fleece — take a quick peek at her fantastic sign-language crochet. Sooo want to give this one a try.
29 Thursday Mar 2012
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Sometimes I’m just a little too impatient taking it off the form, and sometimes it’s just a little too reluctant to let go:
The red-circled areas are pretty obvious: the edge cracked as it came off the form. The orange-circled area is a little trickier to make out; it shows several small areas where the papier mache pulp stuck to the form and pulled out of the bowl, leaving small voids.
The bad news is, this is not an uncommon occurrence. The good news is, it’s easy to fix.
First, dry the bowl completely in a 230F oven for several hours. (In this case, I took a few oven-proof silicone molds and propped the sides of the bowl as close to the desired shape as possible. Not all cracks require this.) Once it’s dried and cooled, it’s like spackling a wall: simply fill in the cracks and voids with finishing pulp, and pop it back into the oven for another hour.
Dried and sanded, the bowl is “whole” with no loss of strength or integrity; decorated and varnished, no one will ever know the cracks were there. Well, except those of you who read this entry… 😉
29 Thursday Mar 2012
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Kristen has a great blog, By the Book Paper, that’s filled with lots of great ideas — for example, her take on the “jar shelf” is creative and beautifully executed. I also really love her maps as decor post (I’m such a sucker for maps!). Be sure to check out her Etsy shop, too.
28 Wednesday Mar 2012
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Latest work (available on Etsy):
28 Wednesday Mar 2012
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This is the bowl I “toasted” yesterday, sanded, and primed with acrylic gesso:
You’ll notice that the rim is not perfectly circular — this is a natural result of how the bowl is formed, and while I could use the dremel to sand it even, I actually prefer the irregular shape. This will become a “butterfly bowl”, and the more organic edge will enhance the decoupaged design. (Besides, if you want a perfectly round bowl, you could just go out and buy one. ;-))
27 Tuesday Mar 2012
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The “Mod Podge Rocks” blog is a commercial site, no question, but it still has some great ideas, as well as helpful information — like this explanation of the varieties they make and the differences between them.
27 Tuesday Mar 2012
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Several hours out in the wind did the trick: the bowl firmed up nicely, and came off the form with no trouble at all. Then it was into the oven:
After about an hour, it was time to flip it over, so that the bottom could dry thoroughly, too:
I’ll let it continue drying for another hour or so, then it will be on to the next stage.
