Palette knife for mixing paints
Stylus
Tracing paper
Kneadable eraser
Palette paper pad (impervious to oil and acrylic)
Mechanical pencil
Graphite paper (non-smudge black and white)
Tack cloth
Q-tips
Waterbase varnish
Wood filler, sealer and glue
Old stiff toothbrush for spalttering
Sponge brushes (1" and 2" for basecoating)
Rubbing Alcohol
SandPaper (#150 grade, #180 grade and 320 grade)
Charcoal pencils (black and white)
Compass, ruler, T-square
Wet ones
Masking tape
Rags (old t-shirts are terrific)
Brush cleaner
Small scissors
Wood surface preparation:
Sand wood pieces with sandpaper.
Wipe away dust with a tacky cloth or wet papertowel.
Can seal wood with one thin coat of water based varnish.
Apply pattern: Trace pattern onto tracing paper. Position the traced pattern onto your surface. Secure it so it doesnt move and slip a piece of graphite paper underneath it. If working on a light surface, use the dark (use a rough piece of paper towel to rub most of the dark off the graphite paper). If you are working on a dark surface, use the white. Use a mechanical pencil or a stylus to lightly trace the pattern. Once the base colors are in repeat the tracing process to add details.
Basecoating: Fill in your background colors with one or two even coats of paint using the largest possible brush for each area. Basecoat should be thin, smooth and even. Lightly sand with fine grade sandpaper or a brown paper bag between coats. Wipe away any dust between coats.
Helpful Tips:
Dots need 8 to 10 hours of drying time.
You only need enough graphite lines to see. Keep it light especially when using black graphite and you can use a kneadable eraser to lift any excess after painting.
Do line work when rested for best results.
Q-tips and saliva pick up paint off of wood.
Small amount of waterbase varnish (tip of brush) added to acrylic paint helps paint to flow better.
For old, clumpy paint, place piece of panty hose tightly over the top of the paint bottle to filter the chunks of paint.
Use roller brushes to base coat surfaces quickly.
You can paint oil over acrylic but do not paint acrylic over oil (causes peeling).
Cut wild hairs on brushes do not pull them out of brush.
Memory Box painting information from Lenore Durlacher:
1. The whole outside of the box (bottom too) must be painted and varnished.
2. The inside of the box does not have to be painted. But if you have gotten paint inside the box - please sponge or basecoat the inside to make it neat.
3. As well as painting, decoupage can be used but do not use embellishments that will not last a long time (beads,etc).
4. Any design is acceptable. Good sources of ideas are coloring books, wrapping paper, cards, children's magazines. Good rule of thumb: if you had lost an infant would you treasure the box.
