"The Shapeways Project" ~ Part 4

The tree is painted and I am pretty happy with the way it is coming together.  Below is a picture of the colors I was working with.  (I'm not sure why I added the glue in the photo, I did not add glue to the paint, LOL)  I used Hippo Grey, Burnt Umber, Toffee, Dark Chocolate and Spanish Olive.   I also used some of my Doc O'Brien's Weathering Powders. (Grungy Gray, Dirty Brown, and Mildew Green).  I love working with these, they add a lot to a project.

 

 

 

I started out by adding a very thin wash of Burnt Umber to the whole tree.  I worked in small sections and wiped off the excess paint with a paper towel as I went along.  The clay soaked up the wash pretty fast, so I had to work quickly.  After that I went back with a thinner brush and added a second coat to the deeper cracks in the tree.  The main purpose of this step was to get some color in the "bark" and highlight the details.  I then let this dry for a couple of hours. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Next, in a small cup, I made a mixture of Hippo Grey, Dark Chocolate, a small bit of Toffee and an even smaller amount of Spanish Olive.  I don't have an exact measurement for this, I just sort of played around with it until I got a good bark color.  I added some water to the mixture to make a wash, but this time it wasn't as thin as the first coat.   I also worked in larger sections this time before wiping away the excess paint. 

 

 

 

 

After this was dry, I went back and did some highlighting with my aging powders, mainly around the bottom of the trunk.   I also painted the base around the bottom of tree to prepare for the landscaping.

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is the view of the back of the tree.  It's hard to tell from the pictures, but I added a little bit of the green weathering powder to one side of the tree to look like moss.  I may go back and add more to make if show better.

 

I even added a broken limb.  ;o)  I just painted it with the Toffee and did minimal aging so it would look like it happened not too long ago. 

 

 

Well, I hope you like it so far.  Next is landscaping and leaves....lots and lots of leaves.  Maybe when the family comes over for Christmas I will put them all to work punching leaves for me.  Ha! 

 

Merry Christmas to you all!

*Jeannette