Stylized Painted Box - Part 3

I started to add embellishment to the box I have been painting.  It is one of those ideas where one thing led to another.  I had purchased a workbook to learn how to do Zentangle.  It is a a great way to relax and take your mind off things.  As I started to work with the workbook, I noticed a resemblance to Moroccan art.  I was needing a small wooden box, so I decided to paint one using the skills I had picked up doing the Zentangle.   That is how things all got started.

When I was practicing with a pencil and paper, I was having trouble imitating the leaf pattern I was seeing on examples of Moroccan art.  It was not until after I started painting that I was able to get things to come out as I wanted it.  The brush stroke is basically a 45 degree line and then the tip of the paint brush is laid down from the base of the line and laid flat to get the curved shape.

Anyway, I started to paint.  I did everything freehand other than the borders.  I used a ruler to mark them and then painted them without using tape.  It gives the box a more primitive look that way.  Things aren't symmetrical.  But then, not everything in nature is evenly space either, and that was the look I was trying to produce.  I suppose that if I were to do the project again, I might mark the midpoints. 

I have done most of the painting on the top surface of the box.  I have the front floral design painted, but have not yet gone back to paint the flowers blue.  I may do some shading on all the flowers, but that will be after everything else is painted.  It is still a work in progress.

Stylized Painted Box - Part 2

In the last few days I have managed to get the base coat on the entire box and have added a few borders.  That took a lot longer than you might think.  I've also been practicing making floral patterns for the remainder of the box.  It is far from finished.  I did not start painting the floral insets yesterday because it is one of those times that is is better to have a fairly long period of uninterrupted concentration.  It may be Wednesday before I get to the point of having enough time to sit down and work on it.  I guess that my big concern is that if I have to walk away in the middle of the section that it would be noticeable because of the changes in the strokes.  If I have time to do one whole section, I think that it will come out looking better.

I painted the box with burnt umber.  It was scrubbed in with a bristle brush.  I like the way the shading of the plywood picks up darker or lighter amounts of pigment.  It reminds me of a shop that was near my home when I was growing up.  It was a Pier One import shop.  The shop was redolent of sandalwood. It was filled with exotic pieces of decorative art from far off countries.   Much of the art was made from rough dark wood with inlays of mother of pearl.  At the time it seemed so different from anything I knew.  I'm attempting to recreate those patterns in this box.

By the next time I post I hope to have at least the top panel painted.  I already have some of the lines drawn on the box with a soft pencil.  I'm not really sure how well they will be followed at this point.  I'm not quite satisfied with the design.  I know what I want, I'm just not quite sure how to get there.  Time will tell.

Stylized Painted Box

Last blog post I had written that I wanted to add more pattern and texture to my art work.  I had been working with a Zentangle workbook.  I am really excited to be working with something new.  And of course, I can hardly wait to try to adapt it to my own style.  I like to learn a new method and then see where I can go with it.  For my first project I decided to do a painted wooden box.  I actually needed a small wooden box for keeping a few items.  It seemed like it would be fun to paint the box rather than purchase an already decorated box.  It would give me a chance to put my new skills to work.  Once again I am working on a small project.  This box is 9 inches wide by 6 inches deep by 3.5 inches high. 

I was so excited to get to work on this project that I started painting on it before I took the time to
remove the hardware from the box.  Since I took these photos, I have removed the hardware so that I can paint the rest of the box.  I started with a medallion and added a lotus floral motif.  I made the medallion them by using a compass rather than use somebody's pattern.  I removed the metal corners on the bottom of the box because I thought that in the long run that it would scratch my furniture.  I plan to add felt to the bottom of the box.  At the moment, the top corners are still on the box.  The box is not very expensive and the pieces are flimsy.  They are also nailed in place.  I'm concerned that by removing them they won't be able to be put back in place.  Sometimes it is just better to leave things as they are.  If I damage them while removing them they may not go back in place
well.

I also painted some borders around the floral motif.  I marked them with a ruler and then hand painted them without using any tape.  The lines are not as straight as if I used tape.  I want this box to have a very antique painted look to it.  Straight lines have there place, but sometimes they make things look overly ordered rather than hand painted.  That is about as far as I have gone with that project.

I thought I'd show a page of my work in the Zentangle workbook.  The top two items and the right hand item on the second row (Labeled numbers one, two, and three) are my copies of the Zentangle workbook projects.  The second row left and bottom experiments (Numbered four and five) are me adapting it to my own ideas.

More on the painted box on Sunday.