Monograms and Mediums

If you are new to the paint series this is day 24 of 31 days of the Power of Paint. If you'd like to see the entire series click  HERE.

Monogrammed and Crackled

I have been loving all of those monogrammed wreaths I've been seeing in blogland. Being a McLain, I figured we'd have to do the Mc to make our family monogram. I purchased these at Hobby Lobby, the 2 different type styles appealed to me. I used a Crackle Medium that I purchased there too. It is usually found with the craft paint or other Mediums. Crackle Medium stands between the base coat and the top coat and creates a crackled finish that lets the base coat show through. In other words, it makes it look like old weathered paint that has cracked over time. Isn't that what we are all going for lately? Old and weathered paint finishes? This is a quick and easy way to accomplish it.

I painted the base this lovely blue that came from the hardware store oophs paint bin for .50 cents. You don't have to use acrylic craft paint, house paint works just as well. After the blue paint dried, I applied the Crackle Medium, just as you would ordinary paint. The bottle says a thin coat for small cracks, a thick coat for large cracks. I just applied it kind of haphazardly. Thin here, thick there. Then let it dry.

This yellow is also from the oophs paint bin. The cracks show up almost instantly and more appear as it dries. I used the Crackle Medium the thickest on the right side of the M, those large cracks are the result.

This is exactly what I was looking for. Resist the urge to paint it solid and perfect. If you use too much paint the result is not as clear.

Like here where I was too heavy handed with the paint, the cracks are small and there are not as many as I would like. This is definitely a trial and error type of thing. Think thin, quick coats working from top to bottom. Originally, I painted the C blue, then crackle, then yellow top coat but decided it would disappear on top of the M, so I applied a second coat of crackle at this stage, let it dry and applied a blue top coat. You could do this several times with several layers and then sand it, can you imagine what layers would look like? Hmmm. Must try it.

Here it is after I hot glued them together and then to my painted and yarn wrapped wreath.

Have you used Mediums? Which ones do you like? {I tried them all, way back when I was in college and going through my artist stage.} Mediums are magical tools that transform regular acrylic paint into all sorts of specialty paints from fabric paint to a thin glaze to thick dimensional paint. They are worth exploring.