Paint Poured Reverse Canvas : Makers Gonna Make

Color! I know what you're thinking. Most of my projects are neutrals but I decided to play with some brighter colors on a paint pour. True confession. This was a "happy accident" that didn't start out as what turned into this project. 

I was doing a paint pour canvas to try and pick up some colors in a lamp in our living room. The periwinkle and magenta dominated WAAAAY more than I thought they were going to and I did not like it for that space AT ALL ( neither did Mr. Chocolate). So I did what every maker does when they have a craft fail. Re-purpose until you get something you like. 

I've also wanted to do a  reverse canvas project which I've been seeing a lot on Pinterest and in the blogosphere so I decided to use a canvas I wasn't happy with to try and make one. Worst case scenario, I'm out one canvas with which I was unhappy anyway. 

Supplies: 

• 16x20 Canvas ( Mine was from a pack from Michaels when they had them 5 for $10)
• Paints (I used Artist Loft White, Gold, Turquoise and Martha Stewart Poppy, Folk Art Periwinkle and Magenta)
• Zinsser Paint Addititive
• Silicone Oil
• Black Glossy Vinyl ( I used Cricut)

Other tools

• Utility Knife
• Staple Gun

First step was mixing my paints which I continue to experiment with. This time I added a few drops of Silicone Oil (HW section, Lowes) along with the paint additive. 

I re-use paint cups so if you see a color I didn't mention, that's why.

I did the puddle pour method again so you can see the rings of the colors as each new one is poured into the last. 

This is the canvas after tilting around to move the paint. Not my favorite. What to do? Enter reverse canvas idea. My brain. It's how it works. 

What is a reverse canvas? You basically take apart a pre-stretched canvas and reconstruct it using the frame as a traditional frame vs the frame around which the canvas is stretched. The first step is removing the canvas. I chose not to painstakingly remove each staple from the back of the canvas. Emphasis pain because 1.) it was a pain in the neck to do and 2.) it hurt.  I used my utility knife to cut the canvas close to the staples. The remaining strip pulls right off. 

This is the frame that the canvas was on. You can leave it plain or stain or paint it. 

I painted mine black since I knew I would be using black vinyl. I cut a quote I downloaded from the Silhouette Online Store and cut it using Cricut Glossy Black Vinyl on my Cameo. 

After the frame dried it was time to re-attach the canvas. I placed the frame painted side down then laid the canvas on top and attached with my staple gun. The biggest challenge here is getting your canvas pulled taught. The more staples the better seemed to be the lesson learned here! 

Flipped it back over and then trimmed using my utility knife. 

I immediately liked it better with the black frame! After I finished trimming I applied the vinyl and was ecstatic! The canvas I was prepared to toss became my favorite new piece of wall art for my office! 

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A Stroll Thru Life

Mega Paint Pour 30 x 40 Canvas

Happy April everyone. If you love April Fool's Day good on you. Me, not so much! 

Sharing my biggest Acrylic Paint Pouring project today. I shall call her "Canvasouras".  I had so much fun with this one and have to say, it is my favorite one yet. 

Supplies: 

• 30 x 40 canvas (Michaels had these 70% off so this one was $34 less 70% final cost $10.20 and of course I bought 2  and any video of me getting these out of the store while pushing a cart is for sure hilarious)
• Artist Loft Acrylic Paints in White, Raw Umber, Black, Gold, Light Turquoise ( picked up a couple of large bottles that were 40% off at Michaels). The big bottles are $9.99 full price and the smaller 4 oz tubes are $3.99 full price. 
• Zinsser Flow Control paint medium
• Water
• Hand Sanitizer (secret ingredient!)

My first challenge was figuring out how I was going to stabilize my canvas and keep it off the floor. Enter giant Target plastic storage bin, the kind that will hold wrapping paper etc. Inexpensive , had on hand, flipped it upside down and worked great!

Next came mixing the paints. For this, I used bigger cups ( 12-16 oz red Solo drink cups for the white, black, gold and brown) than I've been using and one thing I've learned along my paint pouring learning journey is to get the paints thin enough w/out making them too runny. This is trial and error but I did about 1/2 paint and 1/4 ea paint medium and water. Stir slowly until really well blended. The secret ingredient? Hand Sanitizer! I saw this in a video and wanted to try it. The ingredients really aid in the creation of cells which is something I've been struggling with. More on this below. 

For this one, I did what's called a "puddle pour" which, as the name suggests, you pour your paints to make a puddle on the canvas, layering them as you go. 

I made puddles at each end of the canvas. One was white dominant and the other was brown dominant and I layered the colors randomly, and then took the rest of the the white and black and poured around each puddle on the corresponding side. 

The consistency was PERFECT this time because as you tilt the canvas, the paints flowed and were able to cover the entire canvas and run down the sides. Now for the "secret ingredient" the hand sanitizer. 

People use different mediums to create cells. Everything from WD40 to treadmill lubricant to hair serum etc. I picked up some hand sanitizer for $1.79 at the grocery store. The alcohol content plus the viscosity interacts with the paint to give you the right effect. Since I wasn't sure, I didn't add it to every color and will next time. I also discovered that if you don't securely have the cap on your paint tube, shake it so you can squeeze out the remaining paint, get it on your wall because oops....hand sanitizer gets it right off! Who knew? 

These are the "cells" I'm talking about. It's just chemistry magic. Don't ask me to explain it! I just love looking at them, mesmerized, as they emerge. 

This piece was going in our living room and while I'm known for neutrals, I wanted to pick up the aqua from the globe and tie in the brown from the clock , the chair etc. 

I'm SUPER happy with the results. What do you think? 

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Adventures In Paint Pouring, A Beginner's Journey: Dirty Pouring

My fascination ( obsession? ) with paint pouring continues. I am hooked on this! No two pieces are alike and watching the paints as they interact is hypnotizing and meditative. Seriously, I had a really bad day last week and doing some paint pouring completely changed my mood. 

What's that picture at the top? It's actually the inside of the cup I used for this technique called a "dirty pour". 

My simplified explanation of the dirty pour is you layer your paints in the cup vs a clean pour where you pour each color individually. In either process you need to mix each  paint color in its own cup. 

Supplies: 

• Surface to paint. I used an Artist Panel ( aka a piece of wood they get to charge more for) 
• Paints and flow additive
• Cups 
• Stir sticks
• Paper towels or rags
• Lots of stuff to cover your work surface

I got out some paint colors to play with. I had someone in mind for this if it turned out OK and I didn't have to smash it with a hammer, so I went with her colors. 

For my first couple of pours, I used Liquitex Pouring Medium, but at $16.99 a bottle ( before 50% off with an additional 20% off total purchase coupon from Michaels) that's going to get a little pricey while I learn how to paint pour. I'd seen something called "Floetrol" mentioned as a good alternative. This is available at the HW store. I went looking for it but they only had a bigger size than I wanted to get (because what am I going to do with it if this piece turns out hideously ugly and the aforementioned hammer smashing was needed?) BUT they did have this Zinsser Paint Booster stuff shown above that I bought for $7.85 at Lowes. 

Looked like the same contents as the Floetrol to me and MUCH bigger than Liquitex for half the price. SOLD! 

I had a few of these "Artist Panels" in my stash from when Aaron Brothers Art and Frame was going out of business ( RIP AB! I know you're inside Michaels now kinda but I really liked your stores. Sniff) but basically, it's a piece of wood. 

I decided to play with this vs a canvas this time. 

Prepare your paints! So one thing you want to do is make sure you have all your mixing etc. done before you pour because well, you'd have nothing to pour? I've been playing with a ratio of 2:1 paints to additive. The Paint Booster stuff is thin so I think I may up this to 3:1 for the next one. 

Mix each color in its own cup. I have found I like the wide craft sticks the best for mixing. Personal preference. No rules! 

These are the colors I ended up going with. You can see for this 8x10 surface, I didn't need to fill each cup. Now it's time to prepare your pour. Take a clean cup and pour in your first color. Add pours of your other colors, color by color. Again: no rules!! Some people do it making concentric circles ( pour each color dead center of the last). Other people drizzle and drop their color layers. I did everything. Pour. Circle. Circle. Drizzle.Drop. Drop.  Repeat until you have enough paint that it looks like you'll probably cover your surface. For this size piece I filled my pour cup a little more than half full. 

 I actually started with black then blue then green then white ( and just realize this looks like sour cream over guacamole or am I just hungry) and somewhere in there are purples and lavender. Once you're happy with your pour cup, place your surface on top of the cup and flip so the cup is now on top. This is understandably called "the flip" ( oooooooh aaaaaaaaahhhh).

 You can see the paints start to work together as they run down the insides of the cup. Isn't it pretty?!

The next step is , and this is the part where if you didn't protect your work surface then you still have time ...."paint pourer lift that cup". Your paints will take off and go making their way across the surface. You can help this along by tilting your panel in whichever direction is needed for the paint to spread. This is where you want to have gloves on if you haven't up to this point.

This is the wet paint after I tilted and turned to cover the entire surface and the sides. I love sitting there watching the paint continue to interact and form new patterns and colors. I could sit for hours.

Since this isn't an exact science with precise measurements I had leftover paint. So I thought I'd use the same colors to do a clean pour. I didn't take pictures but this was done by just drizzling the remaining paints since I didn't have enough to do layered puddles.  The flow additive really made a difference and the paints flowed much more freely than with the Liquitex (which could have been more to do with me not using enough additive).  Blah blah blah...I love the result!

I'm loving this journey because I don't think there's a final destination! Now what can I do with that pretty pour cup ??