Some Assembly RequirED....

One of the most important decisions in the making of my tramp art pieces, is color choice.  I really like to have my pieces appear time worn, colorful but antiqued, and richly colored  Sometimes, when a commissioned piece is ordered, the collector is specific about the colors wanted and other times, I rely on my own color choices to guide my creations.   As I look back over my pieces, I definitely tend to use some of the same colors consistently but continue to try to introduce new, rich colors into the mix.  Oh how I love deep orange, reds, teals, and blues.

When I make my color choices, I tend to lean towards the brighter range.  These brighter colors, sanded and antiqued result in the richer shades that I love so much!  I tend to limit my pieces to 3 or 4 color choices, as not to create a pieces that looks too busy and takes away from the art work or photo it is displaying.


After each individual piece is painted, I do another dry run placement on the frame.  This step is probably not necessary but is due to my obsession to make sure everything fits properly and to catch missing pieces before I get to far along.  Having my work space at my kitchen table, my many tramp art pieces are sometimes dispersed and stolen by my cat!!!  We constantly compete for the table space. Bad kitty!  Good thing she is so cute.

Before assembly, I choose to take care of my sanding and destruction.  This step is easier for me to do at the individual piece level.  Easier on my hands too.  There is a fine balance between too much sanding and just enough.  Especially along the edges, a nice sanding job can really provide a place for the antiquing medium to take well.  I sometimes will actually destruct with a hammer and large bolts leaving some interesting patterns on the wood.

Then the assembly begins!  This step gets really exciting.  To see how the colors work together and to see that original sketch come to life is very satisfying.  I have recently started to predrill most of the pieces which has cut down of broken pieces exponentially.  Santa is going to have to get me a mini drill for this task!  My frames are secured with a combination of nails and wood glue, which has proven to be overall the best and strongest choice.  I also sometimes use epoxy for those embellishments that are not nail friendly.

Here is the sunflower frame in the mid-assembly stage, in its bright, fresh, unantiqued colors.  I purposely did not show the crest of the frame so as not to reveal it quite yet to its owner.

 

 

Off to do my magic with the antiquing medium!

 

Happy Tramping    Angie