Archive for ‘Technique Thursday’

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March 17, 2011

Extreme Glitter on Fabric?

Welcome to another installment of ASK PLAIDIE LADDIE!

Plaidie Laddie, loyal Plaid pooch and one of our blog contributors, wants to answer your most burning painting questions. Every week he’ll pick a question out of his virtual mailbag and answer it (with a little help from me, since he only has paws). This week’s question:

“Dear Plaidie Laddie, I would like to use FolkArt Extreme Glitter to accentuate fabric.  Is this possible?  Will it be washable?” -Gina L. from Virginia


Dear Gina, thank you for your question.  I did a little research (the scientists at Plaid are so busy right now!) and found out that FolkArt Extreme Glitter is not washable – however, if you are not planning on washing your fabric piece, then using Extreme Glitter is perfectly fine.  A great example is this gorgeous wall hanging from Melissa at 100 Billion Stars.  She used fabric to create a wall hanging, and then used Extreme Glitter in certain areas for some “bling” action. 

This picture shows more of the detail.  Isn’t it pretty?  Visit Melissa’s blog post here, and if you have any other questions about Extreme Glitter, visit the FAQ’s here.

Sincerely, Plaidie Laddie

Posted in FolkArt Extreme Glitter, Home Decor, Technique Thursday | Leave a Comment »

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March 10, 2011

How to Make Clouds with a Stencil Brush

Welcome to another installment of ASK PLAIDIE LADDIE!

Plaidie Laddie, loyal Plaid pooch and one of our blog contributors, wants to answer your most burning painting questions. Every week he’ll pick a question out of his virtual mailbag and answer it (with a little help from me, since he only has paws). This week’s question:

“Dear Plaidie Laddie, I’m about do a painted project with a nature scene and I’m wondering if you have advice on how I can paint clouds.  I want them to look natural and a regular flat brush doesn’t get me the look that want.  Can you help?” -Suzi C. from California

Dear Suzi!  Never fear, I’ve got the solution to your problem.  I’ve asked one of our resident experts, Plaid designer Julie Lewis, how she does her painted clouds and gets them to look so natural.  Her solution is to use a stencil brush!  Let’s illustrate with blue paint so that you can really see how it works.

Use a stencil brush that fits the size of your clouds – use a smaller brush for smaller clouds and a larger brush for larger ones.  Dip your brush into the paint puddle lightly (don’t cover the brush) and then “pounce” the stencil brush up and down on the side to tap off some of the paint.  You want the brush nearly dry when you are doing this technique.

Lightly swirl the brush on your surface.  Keep adding paint, tapping it off and then swirling again.  Use less paint for more whisp-y clouds.

Yay, loook at the pretty clouds!  They will look fantastic in white, don’t you think?

Sincerely, Plaidie Laddie

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March 3, 2011

Reverse Painting on Glass

Welcome to another installment of ASK PLAIDIE LADDIE!

Plaidie Laddie, loyal Plaid pooch and one of our blog contributors, wants to answer your most burning painting questions. Every week he’ll pick a question out of his virtual mailbag and answer it (with a little help from me, since he only has paws). This week’s question:

“Dear Plaidie Laddie, I have a glass plate that I want to paint for serving food at a party.  I don’t think it would be good to put food directly on the paint though – is that correct?  How can I paint a plate that is food safe?” -Karen H. from Washington

Dear Karen, Great question!  Painted partyware is so pretty, but we here at Plaid don’t recommend placing food directly on painted items.  There IS a solution though – reverse painting on glass!  I found a tutorial for you by Cathe Holden of Just Something I Made for Living Locurto.  The tutorial is for reverse sign painting on glass, but the same method could be used for glass plates as well.  If you paint on the BACK of the plate, you can place food on the top of the plate without fear!  This tutorial uses Apple Barrel Gloss (which works well), and we also have a special paint formula made just for glass: FolkArt Enamels.  Whichever paint you use, you’re really going to enjoy painting on glass, and this tutorial makes it so simple.  Have fun at the party!  Save a biscuit for me!

Sincerely, Plaidie Laddie

Posted in Apple Barrel, FolkArt Enamels, Party Ideas, Technique Thursday, Tips & Tricks | Leave a Comment »

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February 24, 2011

How to Create Crackled Backgrounds for Your Photos

Welcome to another installment of ASK PLAIDIE LADDIE!

Plaidie Laddie, loyal Plaid pooch and one of our blog contributors, wants to answer your most burning painting questions. Every week he’ll pick a question out of his virtual mailbag and answer it (with a little help from me, since he only has paws). This week’s question:

“Dear Plaidie Laddie, I love taking photos.  Are there any fun backgrounds I can create with my leftover craft paint?” -Kathy J. from California

Dear Kathy, First of all, I discovered your answer on StumbleUpon.  If you haven’t ever tried it, it’s a great social bookmarking tool that allows you to mark your favorites and then finds you additional favorites based on your selections.  It rocks!  I bookmark a lot of painting sites, and I found one with your answer.

A Lemon Squeezy Home recently did a post on creating fun backgrounds for your photography, and one of them I particularly liked: the crackle background.  Christie uses FolkArt Calypso Sky (one of my favorite colors!) and some additional supplies to create the beautiful background you see above.  There are also some other interesting techniques you could use with craft paint for more stunning backgrounds.  Visit the entire entry here, and have fun creating!

Sincerely, Plaidie Laddie

Posted in FolkArt Acrylic, Technique Thursday, Tips & Tricks | 1 Comment »

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February 17, 2011

Loading Your Paint Brush

We’re going to switch up Technique Thursday a bit – rather than simply presenting painting techniques, we’re doing an online “column” called:

ASK PLAIDIE LADDIE!

Plaidie Laddie, loyal Plaid pooch and one of our blog contributors, wants to answer your most burning painting questions.  Every week he’ll pick a question out of his virtual mailbag and answer it (with a little help from me, since he only has paws).  The first question:

“Dear Plaidie Laddie, How do I load my paint brush?  What is the right amount of paint to put on my brush?” -Linda K. from Kansas

Dear Linda, I’ll answer your question in a few parts – I’m first going to show you the wrong way to load your brush.  NEVER dip the brush straight down into your paint puddle all the way up to the ferrule (silver part that holds the bristles onto the brush).  You will quickly gum up your brush and will make it difficult to clean.  You will also have a lot of paint to spread out on your project - this technique can get messy very quickly!

This is the correct amount of paint to have on your brush.  Only go about halfway up the bristles with your paint.  It’s better to have less paint on the brush and come back for more than to have too much.

The way Plaid designers load their brushes is to dip the bristles lightly but firmly into the side of the puddle of paint and then pull out.  Turn over and repeat if you need more paint.

Practice a little and you’ll get the hang of it.  Hope I’ve helped!

Sincerely, Plaidie Laddie

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January 20, 2011

Adding Interest with Paint: XOXO Letters

How do you dress up simple wood letters and make them fantastic?  You need to pay a visit to the Craft-O-Maniac, because she recently painted these “XO XO” letters and they now make the perfect Valentine’s decor!  She actually painted a basecoat of one color, rubbed on paint of a contrasting color and then wiped it off.  This is a great strategy for adding interest to a project – when simple painting in one color just won’t do the trick.  Another great idea for these letters is the white polka dots in various sizes.  Visit the Craft-O-Maniac’s blog entry here.  What could you paint with these simple techniques?

Posted in Holiday, Home Decor, Technique Thursday | Leave a Comment »

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January 13, 2011

Terri O does Faux Stained Glass with Gallery Glass

Do you know Terri O?  This crafty expert and two-time Emmy winner has been using Gallery Glass for over 20 years, and she recently filmed a video showing you how to do it.  Plaid loves Terri because she’s creative, outgoing and her “can-do” attitude takes the fear out of crafting.  We’re so excited that she made this Faux Stained Glass video and we had to share.  You won’t believe how fun and easy it is to use Gallery Glass for home decor and accessories.  Check out her video here.

Posted in Gallery Glass, Technique Thursday, Videos | 1 Comment »

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December 2, 2010

Using Liquid Leaf to Embellish a Surface

I am so inspired by how designer Karen Embry used Liquid Leaf to embellish simple resin birds.  Do these look like a million bucks or what?  Karen loves to add to her holiday decorations every year, and especially loves to use items found on her flea market/thrift store treasure hunts.  These birds were 62 cents each!  I’m going to be honest, I had no idea that Liquid Leaf worked on resin.  The technique is simple, so visit Karen’s blog here to see the steps.  What do you have around your house that needs a shiny coating of Liquid Leaf?

Posted in Holiday, Home Decor, Technique Thursday | Leave a Comment »

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November 11, 2010

Technique Thursday: Holiday Ornaments with Metallics

Have you ever tried FolkArt Metallics?  Last year’s holiday season didn’t involve any metallics for me, but this year I’m embracing shine.  Let me tell you – I’ve jumped in with both feet.  I love metallics, and FolkArt Metallics are *very* shiny.  I use them in moderation (accents), just because that’s how I roll, but you could paint an entire project with them if you wanted to.  If you’re interested, I suggest you watch this Candie Cooper video done for Plaid that will show you how to complete a fun mini-crown ornament and add metallic accents.  The results are simple but stunning!

Posted in FolkArt Metallic, Holiday, Technique Thursday, Videos | 2 Comments »

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October 14, 2010

Technique Thursday: Giving Life to Thrift Store Frames

I’m a HUGE fan of Things With Wings.  This family of four (one mom, three daughters) creates gorgeous paintings and mixed media art pieces with FolkArt and Mod Podge.  I love so many things about their work, including the special finishing touches like the frames that they use.  I was thrilled to find out that many of the frames and surfaces they use are thrift store finds, and I was even more tickled when I saw that they did a blog entry on how to find these treasures.  I’m feeling very inspired right now to head to the thrift store and get a shopping cart of frames.  If I don’t like them?  I can paint them.  Please visit here for all the details on how the gals from TWW find their frames.  I guarantee you will want to drop everything you are doing to head to the Goodwill.

Posted in Budget Crafting, Decoupage, Designers, FolkArt Acrylic, Recycling, Technique Thursday | Leave a Comment »

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