Time To Paint

 This has been my week.

 

 Project "Cottage Quest" is officially underway.

It was decided that the kids rooms would be the first to tackle. All three of our not-so-wee ones wanted to swap rooms. For several years now dear daughter had been envious of the boys' walk in closet while the boys often dreamed of creating some very cool Comic-Con inspired displays on the built in shelves dear daughter's room hosted. Considering, however, dear daughter had previously employed these same shelves as her personal doodle canvas it was definitely time to paint!

   

 The first step in the process seemed easy enough, I simply told the kiddos,
"Pack up your stuff!"

Dear daughter seemed to grasp the concept well enough but the boys.....

 

 ...NOT SO MUCH!!!

 

 We persevered however and eventually.....

 

 .....cleared enough wiggle room to proceed to the next steps.
Thank goodness our resident bichon was on hand to assist!

 

 We removed the carpets and all those pesky little staples they use to tack down the padding.

 

 We spackled.

We sanded.

We vacuumed.

And of course......

 

 WE PAINTED!!!

 

We painted the walls, the floors, the trim, and the bookshelves in colors dubbed things like "Flowering Herbs" and "Summer Festival."

 

And then, when all was said and done guess what I did?

I swept the floor.

It was the greatest feeling.

  Remember I had thought cottage housekeeping would involve no more than the sweep of a broom or the swipe of an apron's edge?  It seems I'm headed in the right direction!
 

Now I just need to bring that reality to the rest of the house...


 

Made a Lily - Step 7

Step 7 - Paint by Number

There's a change in scenery today as I've set up shop in the sun room for our painting fun.

There's a wee bit of business to attend to, however, before we break out those brushes. Take a peek at your doll pin. Some come with a pre-drilled hole through which the pipe cleaner arms can later be inserted. If your yours doesn't, have no fear. . . . . it will only take a minute to make one yourself. First off measure down approximately 3/8" from the "shoulder" indent of the doll pin and mark the spot.

Get out your drill (or borrow one from a friendly neighbor) and have a go at it. The size of the drill bit can vary so long as the hole it creates is big enough for a folded pipe cleaner to fit through. One suggestion. . . . . . put a piece of scrap wood under the the clothespin before you drill! Maybe it's just me but I always seem to have a heavy hand and drill through to the surface beneath as you can see on the scrap wood here (or on the banister of our porch but please don't tell dear hubby since he hasn't noticed yet!)

It's not a bad idea to test out a length of pipe cleaner just to make sure you've got a good fit

Whether you've drilled or not it's always a good idea to give all the wood pieces a once over with some sand paper. You'd be surprised how rough they can be in areas.

Now it's time to paint!

#1 - The Body

Which flesh colored paint and a wide flat brush start painting the doll pin, head, and two small beads. The stand is going to be a different color so set it aside for the moment.

To make the process easier I put the small beads on some old brushes which act as make shift handles.

Similarly, I use an extra doll pin to hold the head.

If you don't have an extra doll pin hanging around a pen wrapped in a tiny fabric scrap works well to hold the head steady.

When painting the body parts be prepared to give each piece at least 3 separate coats. Depending on the grain of the wood in the head and the pin these may require even more in order to get complete coverage. Since it's best to let the paint dry between each coat there will be a tad bit of waiting involved. I highly suggest making yourself a cuppa and gathering something sweet to sample during these wait times!

#2 - The Stand

This little piece will be visible from the bottom of the lily pad. When selecting a color for it you'll need to decide whether you want it to match or contrast with the fabric. This is also the location where I write the Lily's name and sign my own so if you intend to do the same make sure to stick with a color light enough for the pen to show up on.

Paint the stand as well as the bottom portion of the peg with several coats of the color you selected.

Eventually the two pieces will be put together as shown above.

A quick aside for those of you that are making a stand alone clothespin doll as opposed to the pincushion version. . . . .with the stand alone version you'll have more flexibility as to the dress length which could mean the legs will show. If that's the case you may want to have a bit of fun with the doll pin by painting the leg portion an alternate color, into striped legging, or with a pair of pantaloons like I did.

#3 - The Hair
Drawing a few sketchy lines to indicate your hairstyle of choice will make the actual painting much less stressful. I like to have a bit of curl to the style but the choice is up to you. Take a peek here for oodles of inspiration.

To paint the hair it's best to switch to a thin pointed brush for more control.

Color in the lines!

#4 - The Eyes

The same little brush used for the hair would be great for making two small ovals in the eye color.

WARNING! Now that your using the same brush with a variety of colors it will need to be washed quite often. If you've still got your cuppa hanging around...WATCH OUT! Although from experience I can tell you it doesn't affect the taste much.

#5 - The Mouth
A simple little heart shape will do it.

#6 - Rosy Cheeks

This will require a brush change.

I suggest one of your raggiest and worn so that you won't mind. . . . .

. . . . .doing this to it!

You don't want it to be loaded with paint so after you dip it in the pink smash it around on alternate surfaces until it's almost dry of paint.

A few dabs on the cheeks will give that rosy glow.

#7 - Pupils
Make sure the eye color is fully dry first and then add a small dollop of black to each oval.

#8 - Eye Lashes and Nose
Hope that cuppa was caffeine free since this next step calls for a steady hand! Most often I use the tiniest of brushes but a fine tip permanent pen is an alternative you might want to consider. It will give you quite a bit more control but my recommendation comes with caution since I've had some issues with the pen lines smudging a bit when it comes time to gloss. The only solution I've found so far is to make an initial gloss coat with a very light hand, minimal medium on the brush, and only one sweep of the brush across each painted surface. Once dry, a second coat can be put on with no problem.

Today I threw caution to the wind and went with the pen to make the spidery lashes and tiny nose.

#9 - Highlights

Doesn't every girl want their hair to shine? A few swags of white along the direction of the curls will do just that for your Lily!

#10 - Something Extra

Not sure what to call these next dot additions but your going to need a toothpick to make them. Do a few practice dots by dipping the toothpick into the hair color paint and then dabbing it straight down. You should be able to get a few dots out of each dip. If your having trouble getting the dot shape try sanding the tip of the toothpick down to a flat edge.

Once your dot making skills are perfected start start applying them all along the highlight swoops. Still not sure what to call these. . . . .

#11 - Sparkle!
By now the pupils should be completely dry so take up that toothpick again. Being that your an expert dot maker at this point you'll have no problem adding the finishing touches of white to the eyes and mouth!

#12 - Gloss
Best to have those beads on those old brushes again for this step. Give them both a coat of gloss and then. . . . .

. . . . .do the same for the head and pin. Remember to use care if you went with the pen! The base, however, should be left as is until after it's been put together with the doll pin and signed. It won't be long now!

In fact we're going to put the body tegether with the lily pad next week. See if you can't get your hands on a glue gun and a skien of floss in the flesh color in preparation of the event.

Made Use of My Painted Buttons

Hmmm. . . . . seeing the little buttons in a whole different light today and I think I like them. Could be I'll give another go at painting some more. . . . .minus the coffee!

Made a Few Too Many Cups of Coffee

Found a packet of wooden buttons I'd picked up ages ago and decided it was about time I painted them up. Little did I know what an endeavour I was getting myself into! Only three out of the ten buttons were successfully completed and while I'd like to blame the condition of my brushes on the poor painting skills displayed on the other seven, the truth of the matter lies in the amount of caffeine consumed by one little old me. My hands had the jitters!

Even taking a photo proved beyond my capability! In the end I set the camera down on the table, lined up the shot, and snagged my youngest to press the button.

Tomorrow I'm sticking to herbal tea!

Made a Mess

What started as a little painting project. . . . .

. . . . . soon spread across the kitchen table. . . . .

. . . . . .unfortunately now it's time to make some dinner!

Made Some Color Choices

Boy did this day fly by! Afraid this little line up was about the only thing I made today. Bet you can guess what I'll be doing next!