Monday, December 8, 2014

The best brush for painting details on furniture


Good morning from "tropical"Sydney! It's like someone's dragged this little corner of the world closer to the equator: high humidity and afternoon thunderstorms. Not very good for when you are putting a new roof on your house. Luckily there's a break in this morning's rain and I think the roof tilers will finish it all in a couple of hours. Our builder and I will both breathe a sigh of relief with the house being water tight.



Last week a painted a sweet little timber plant stand. It's very old and is missing a few pieces of the timber trim but I love the shape and think it will be pretty in a corner of my house somewhere. 


I painted a simple fleur de lis on each of the four sides. The plant stand is painted in a light grey (ASCP Paris grey with white mixed in it and the fleur de lis is ASCP Pure White). Several years ago I made my own stencil of a fleur de lis using a print off the internet, a scalpel and some thick mylar. I don't actually like stenciling because of the blurred edges you get. Instead I use the stencil to trace the pattern lightly in pencil and then I hand paint the design. 







If you are hand painting decorative detail on your furniture, a lovely brush to use is a Talkon Dagger brush. It is an elegant brush that creates beautiful curves for flowers and fleur de lis.  You can buy these from art shops or the internet for anywhere between $5-$30. The one I'm using cost around $9 from Tilly's Art Supplies in Rozelle.





I use the paint from the lid of the tin and gently dip the end of the brush into it, then with a steady hand I paint the detail. Don't worry that the first coat of paint doesn't look good. It never does.



But after a couple of coats of paint it will look lovely.
What's your favourite brush to use?

Today I'm heading out to pick the tiles for the bathrooms and laundry. Wish me luck
Fiona xx 

Sharing at 
Miss Mustard Seed

3 comments:

  1. Fiona, this is a lovely piece and it was great to see the imperfections on the close up photographs..it really helps to give perspective on my own pieces...I love the fleur de lis painting and all the helpful tips you give like where to purchase brushes and which are best to use! Thanks so much! xxx

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    Replies
    1. Thanks Di, yes sanding will smooth out all the brush strokes etc but I haven't yet sanded this piece as I haven't decided how to seal it (I sand after waxing rather than before. Also this timber is very rough as old and crackled but I didn't worry much as it's just a little plant stand- so this is much rougher than I would paint for a piece of furniture. Cheers Fiona

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