Post #437919 by kountzyro on Wed, Mar 4, 2009 8:37 PM

Thank you Benzart, always good to get encouragement from one of the masters.

And Aweulekuula, glad that my creations can give you a smile or two. I have a background as a cartoonist as well so exaggerated forms and a good bit of humor just seem to naturally translate to my work as a tiki carver. Plus, they are meant to give myself some joy with their presence in my home, so its good to know that its obvious to others that they radiate some good vibes!

Now here's some progress photos:

Here you can see the form after it has been hard coated. I tint a primer coat and that way when I skim coat a white plaster/joint compound mix over the surface to cover imperfections I can more easily define where and when to stop sanding and determine if I need more fill. In this case the deep recesses are filled with some painters caulk. And also you can see the raw umber base coating that will form the under layer for the wood graining process.

Next in these two photos you can see the wood grain application. Burnt Umber watered down to an inky consistency and applied with a cheap 2 inch "chip brush". The next step will be a glaze coating of burnt sienna over the whole surface. Then finally some burnt umber and black washes to push back the areas I want to deepen, and to generally tone down some of the burnt sienna's redness.

Finished pics soon.