Kitchen Table Memories on Wood Slats: DecoArt Maxx Gloss

Howdy Dear Artsy Friends!

We had a lovely Thanksgiving with my brothers and their families here at the ranch. No turkey though except wild ones! The guys wanted prime rib. My favorite part of the meal is always the yummy family recipe for dressing/stuffing. We only have it once a year and I always wonder WHY??!! 

Thinking back over the years...some of my happiest times were spent at kitchen tables.  Not just in the family, but with friends too. 

And not only for eating - for crafts and games - for anything and everything! Mama had a huge kitchen table and now I have it. It's very special to me - to all of us.  So when a friend asked for me to paint this sign... it seemed like the perfect project. 

The sign is 2 ft by 4 ft.  Hubby used slats from an old fence.

Here is one of the old broken fence posts before it was sanded down to the wood grain. Yes - I totally agree.  It is hard to believe that ugly thing turned into such a beautiful piece of wood for this sign. It took 3 old posts for this sign.

I typed the words on my computer and traced them onto the wood with DecoArt Grey Transfer Paper.

But first, I used DecoArt Americana Multi-Purpose Sealer for the wood.  It really made the wood look lusciously rich. 

Lots of folks prefer larger brushes for a project this size but not me. I stuck with my great Dynasty script/liner brushes. Hehehe - you can tell I use them a lot by the way they look in my picture!!!

I chose DecoArt Americana Decor Maxx Gloss White China for the letters. This was my first time using this product. It worked wonderfully.

Here is another picture in the sunlight. See the fingers?? It's a pretty big sign. Now it's on it's way to a lovely home in Ft. Worth Texas. It was a fun project and I was thrilled to do it for a friend. :)

As always - thanks bunches for stopping by.

This holiday season I sure hope you can enjoy making...

"Kitchen Table Memories"!

Hugs. j. 

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Anything But Cute Challenge Blog, Featured Artist Post RUSTIC GLAM

Howdy from Joi@RR.  

Today is a particularly happy day for me because I am the Featured Artist here on the Anything But Cute Challenge Blog.  

 Sure hope you can go see the post - including a photo of me!

This month the Anything But Cute Challenge is RUSTIC GLAM.
There's still TIME to participate in this yummy challenge here.

At our ranch, rustic is undeniable! But glam? Well... a yellow flower on a cactus is glam!  A new baby calf is glam!  A deer resting in the pasture is glam! Heheheh - it's likely my definition of glam is much different than Niki, the hostess, had in mind for this challenge! However... if you have seen my artwork, you know that I love a bit of glitter, glitz and pizzazz . . . so, without any further ado . . . welcome to my RUSTIC GLAM creation.  

I began with a 12" x 30" rustic piece of barn wood. 

Using a stencil for the lettering; I drew in the design by hand. 

And began painting in all my little designs with DecoArt Media Black Gesso. My liner brush by Dynasty sure helped! 

Here is the RUSTIC part before the GLAM arrived on the scene.  Oh, my stars . . . those trees are crooked.  Ok, Joi - just don't think about that . . . perfection not needed . . . proceed forth to the finish!

I had drawn in a double layer of mountains and thought it would be fun to use some type of texture there - maybe even a stamped texture. I had been humming the song Silent Night and decided the project needed some music - right?! 

I found lovely music in the Victorian Romance Deco-Page paper set by DecoArt Americana.  I tore the notes and placed them using DecoArt Media Matte Medium. After they were dry, I went back around the edges with some Titan Buff Fluid Acrylic to make it look a bit more unified with the line of the mountain ridge.

The open tree needed a bit of glam, too. I stamped one of the Susan K Weckesser Unity Journal Doodles inside.

Remember, a deer resting in the pasture is glam. How could I not include one??! Out came an old stencil that has no name any more and an ARTplorations Christmas Reindeer too. 

To bring my deer to life . . . . here is a fun concoction of DecoArt Media Texture Sand Paste and Carbon Black Fluid Acrylic paint - YUMMY! 

For a bit more shimmer, I used DecoArt Metallic Lustre on the trees and across parts of the background. It's very hard to see in this picture, but it definitely added some glitz to the rustic wood!  

For transforming my tipsy trees... I chose DecoArt's Snow Writer.  It's so amazing to play with this snowy wonder.

The moon just seemed to need a bit more glam so cheese cloth mesh was added with matte medium.

Seldom can I do mixed media without adding a bit of crackle! I loved the DecoArt Media Crackle paste on the triangle trees and snow!!

Last but not least... the wild splish-splash of DecoArt Glamour Dust - black ice & ice crystal - from top to bottom!

Here are the products used for this rustic winter wonderland glam.

And a few close-ups!

Wish you could see it in person - it shimmers!

Wishing each of you a calm and bright Thanksgiving and Christmas season . . . with hugs. j.

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Also excited to share with: 

A Vintage Journey

November Challenge: Cracking Up

The vintage barn wood has cracks - of course!
Plus I added crackle to the triangle trees and the snow!

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