Thyme to show you Catch of the Day

Today

 I wanted to show you a project that I just completed 

called

Catch Of The Day

Design

 by 

Cynthia Erekson

The 

surface is a 30 1/2" tall

 "Dummy Board"

"Dummy Boards" 

were first brought to this country in Colonial Times.

 Cut from flat boards, 

these whimsical figures were painted to resemble men, women or children. 

They were free standing

 and

 were often placed near a fire place with their backs

 to the wall to serve 

as a presence in an empty room.

My Palette

DecoArt Americana Acrylics

Deep Midnight Blue, Dove Grey, Neutral Grey, Slate Grey, Graphite, Heritage Brick, Dusty Rose, Burnt Sienna, Victorian Blue, Antique Maroon, Warm White, Lamp Black, True Ochre, Milk Chocolate

Let's Paint

I began by first sanding my surface. 

I then wiped the dust.

Next I sealed my wood with 

Multi Purpose Sealer

I let the wood dry.

I applied 2 base coats of  Deep Midnight Blue.

Dry well between each coat.

I then transferred the main design lines to the board.

I base coated the hat, cuffs and pants with Dove Grey.

I shaded these areas with a mix

 of 

Neutral Grey and Slate Grey.

The hat brim, and boots are base coated in Graphite.

The entire 

face and beard area 

is undercoated 

with 

Neutral Grey.

I added several light coats of 

Dusty Rose

to the 

face area.

I created the 

nose and eye sockets 

by shading these areas 

with a mix

 of 

Dusty Rose plus Burnt Sienna.

I usually use 

Ultra Rounds

 for painting.

They hold a lot of water 

and 

their pointed tip make it easier to get into smaller areas.

I always use separate brushes for base coating and floating.

This insures that you have a nice chisel edge on the brushes you use to float.

When floating I like to apply several washes of color to achieve my desired value.

Not only are good brushes important to achieve a good float 

BUT

so is water!

I always have 2 containers of water on my table when I paint.

One container is for rinsing my brushes, 

the small glass dish contains CLEAN WATER

 to dip my brush in before loading it with paint to float.

You will never get a good float if you are using muddy water from your brush basin.

I have painted the Captains eyes.

I am now working on the jacket.

I used both Moon Brushes and Stain-It Brushes to do the jacket.

The jacket is heavily dry brushed using Victorian Blue to highlight it.

The Deep Midnight Blue I used to base coat the surface now becomes the shading.

I am now working on the beard.

I base coated lobster with Heritage Brick and a small touch of Dusty Rose.

Shading

on lobster was done 

with 

Antique Maroon 

to define the 

body sections

I have painted the wood flag pin.

Close up of face 

Line work details are added.

I spattered my project to add texture.

*** SPATTERING***

To spatter I put a nickel size puddle of paint on my palette. 

I then dip a large stencil brush in my water.

 I blot the brush on a paper towel. 

I then circle the brush in my puddle of paint.

I use my palette knife to repeatedly flick the bristles of the brush, 

pulling towards me using pressure with the palette knife. 

I move across my area as I work. 

Let dry!

I applied several coats of 

Dura Clear Soft Touch Varnish 

to my completed project

Rosemary Reynolds and DecoArt 

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

Helping Artist

and

Blogger Outreach Programs

Thank you DecoArt!

I hope you have enjoyed watching me paint

Catch of the Day!

Happy Painting!

Lynn