Thyme to paint Gloucester Goose Girl.....a primitive portrait

Today 

I wanted to show you a project

 that I have been working on 

called

GLOUCESTER GOOSE GIRL

Design 

by 

Cynthia Erekson

This is 

a 

primitive portrait 

measuring 

18" x 23"

My Palette

DecoArt Americana Acrylics

Light French Blue, Dusty Rose, Delane's Dark Flesh, Honey Brown, Blueberry, Burnt Umber, Traditional Raw Umber, Antique Green, Plantation Pine, Antique Gold, Black Green, Lamp Black, Light Buttermilk, Deep Burgundy, True Ochre, Raw Sienna, Yellow Ochre

Surface Preparation

I prepared my surface 

by first smoothing on one coat

 of 

GESSO 

to 

the front 

of 

the panel

When dry I sanded lightly

I then applied 2 coats 

of 

Light French Blue

I then traced my pattern

 and 

transferred the ground areas

 to 

the panel

Working 

on the 

ground area

I have now painted

 the 

water area

I am now adding 

some

 shading and highlighting 

to 

water and ground

I pounced some "foam"along the waters edge

I have now transferred 

the

 remainder of the pattern 

excluding the details

I am now painting 

the 

dress and collar

I am now painting 

the 

face, neck and arms

I am now working on shading 

the 

dress and collar

I dry brushed the dress to add highlights

Build color up gradually!

I have painted the details

 to the 

face and hair

I also painted

 the 

pantaloons, socks and shoes

I have painted the duck

I used a silk sponge

 to add the 

foliage 

to the trees

I applied a light coat 

of  

Dura Clear Ultra Matte Varnish 

to 

my finished piece

I let it dry completely!

I then covered the girl with a paper towel 

and 

spattered all around the outer edges 

with 

Burnt Umber

( To spatter easily with lots of control , dip just the bristle tips of a large stencil brush into the water and mix into a dime size puddle of Traditional Burnt Umber by circling on the palette. Hold the brush over the project and pull some bristles towards you, using pressure as you move the brush across the area to be spattered. Turn brush to access fresh paint. Reload as needed)

Let dry completely!

I lightly antiqued my portrait

 with

Walnut/Noyer Gel Stain

Let dry completely!

I then varnished AGAIN using several coats of Dura Clear Ultra Matte Varnish

Now to paint the frame!

I first sanded then sealed my frame 

using

 Multi Purpose Sealer

After it had dried completely

 I sanded it again lightly

I then base coated it with two coats 

of

 Country Red

 and 

let that dry

Now the DISTRESSING part!!!

I used a rasp to file the edges and corners of the frame

I added some dings and dents using a hammer and screw driver to show "age"

I then used an awl to create clusters of wormholes on different areas of the frame

I made a thin wash using water and Traditions Carbon Black

I made sure I got it in all the dings, dents and holes

I then wiped off any excess

This process left the red paint slightly darkened

I then mixed a glaze using Carbon Black, Glazing Medium and Easy Float1:5:2

I used the broad flat side of a 2" sponge brush 

to "press" the glaze

 onto 

the frame

I did one side at a time

I then rolled a paper towel around a thick piece of rope

I then repeatedly

 pressed and lifted 

the rope into the glaze

 along

 the edge of frame

I painted the corners of the frame Carbon Black

I just loved the faux finish wood grain look!

This is the first in a set 

of 

2 primitive portraits

My next blog post

 will show 

how I painted 

Yankee Primitive Fisher Boy

DecoArt provided me with the products to complete this project as part of their 

Helping Artist and Blogger Outreach Programs

Thank you DecoArt for so many wonderful products to create with!

You can view my blogger profile 

HERE

I hope you have enjoyed watching me paint

GLOUCESTER GOOSE GIRL

Happy Painting!

Lynn