Gilded Verdigris Tags by Guest Designer Alison

Hello all.  It's Alison here again from Words and Pictures with the second of my guest appearances here this month.  (If you missed the first, do take a look at my Springtime Shadowbox.)  I went through a number of stages before I ended up with this pair of gilded verdigris tags, but the Craft Parts can take any number of layers being thrown at them, so it's okay if you're feeling indecisive!


Even though I went the long way round to get there, I really like the antiqued burnished metal look I've ended up with.


And although, as usual, I set myself a photography challenge in trying to capture that look, I think you get a sense of the gleam of the gold in the sunlight, as well as the weathered chalkiness of the Distress Oxides and the oxidising Verday paints I was using.

It all started with some texture paste through a stencil onto a pair of tags, covered with a coat of gesso, applied so as to give even more texture to the look.



I added washes of Transparent Yellow Iron Oxide DecoArt Media Fluid Acrylic, along with Pumice Stone Distress Crayon for shading.  I really liked this subtle vintage look, but somehow I couldn't progress any further - other than adding the die-cut cardboard shapes for another dimensional layer.



So next it was on to the Oxides... I challenged myself to step outside my colour comfort zone and try out the Fossilized Amber and Spiced Marmalade, and I found myself really enjoying the golden glow of it.



I thought I knew the two main pieces I wanted to use - from Calico's selection of Flora and Fauna Decorative Wood Flourishes - but I couldn't decide on the finish for them.  You can see here a couple of experiments with some of the Mini Butterflies.  (I only had one each of the Flourishes, so I had to wait until I was closer to knowing what I wanted to do with them.)

And I was also thinking of including some vintage photos at this stage.  I was really tempted - as always - to just leave the Craft Parts "naked".  I do like this version - maybe I should have stuck with it (but with bare butterflies too).



Suddenly I remembered my Verday Paint and Patina - so far mostly used on dollshouse projects - and thought it might be nice to go for a coppery verdigris to contrast with the golden sunshine background.  This is the first coat - a true metallic copper.



Then you add a second coat and spritz that with the patina spray and allow the verdigris to develop as the metal particles in the paint oxidise.  (So we have Oxides and actual oxidisation!)



The verdigris green made me want to experiment with adding a similar shade to my background, so I used washes of Distress Paint (Broken China, Evergreen Bough, and maybe some others in the mix too) to add softer blue-green shadows within the texture.



And having got that far, I decided I really didn't want to cover up too much of these beautiful backgrounds, so the photos hit the dust, and I started to play with arranging the Butterfly & Vine...



... and the Morning Glory Vine & Butterfly with the other elements on the tags.



As I went, I decided I wanted a little more depth and a little more gilding.  So I started adding Treasure Gold in Florentine and Aquamarine to the edges of the Craft Parts...



... as well as to the edges of the tags.  And I also used my Sepia Archival Ink to deepen the burnish of the gilding.



I had to have some spatter of course.  I'd already spattered some Oxide inks in places, but I also used the Broken China Distress Paint.  I really love the look of this as part of the verdigris distressing.



I used a couple of my much-loved WordBands to add the words.



They've each had a touch of the same Treasure Gold waxes to help them tone in.



And they're fastened to the tags (now mounted on sturdy cardboard) with the same fine gold wire which adorns the tops of the tags.



So, it took me a while to get there - and I'll probably go back and recreate some of the earlier vintage look backgrounds for projects in the future - but in the end, I think it's a good look for the Craft Parts.



What do you think?  Should I have stopped at an earlier stage?  Or was it worth continuing down the experimental path?  Either way, thanks so much for stopping by today.

Remember, you can click on any of the links to find the specific items, or you could just go and have a browse at Calico Craft Parts if I've tempted you.  Many thanks to Zuzu and the team and the fantastic Calico Craft Parts owners and designers, Helen and Steve, for having me back to play along again.  I've had a wonderful time.


Alison x
Words and Pictures