Friday, March 28, 2014

Before & After Painted Rocks and Stones: Furry Pets


Both smooth and pitted rocks come alive when painted as furry pets. 


Two, smooth elongated rocks were the perfect shape for painting a pair of ferrets.


The shape of this large, smooth rock allowed me to nicely place a dog and two puppies.

Puppy Love


I used pitted rocks for this cat and kitten. Notice how the painted fur strokes camouflage the pits.

Sleeping Cats



For this ginger kitty, I used an unusually-shaped rock and attached two smaller pebbles for the paws.

Ginger Tabby Hand-Painted Rock


See more before and after painted rocks:

 © Cindy Thomas Painted Rocks

Wednesday, March 19, 2014

How To Paint Shabby-Chic Rocks and Stones



Pretty, shabby-chic painted stones are an easy rock-painting project for both Easter and year-round display.

Supplies
  • Smooth stones - any shape (oval rocks will look like painted eggs)
  • Acrylic paint in a muted color (I used "Light Buttermilk")
  • Black 3D fabric paint (also known as puffy paint)
  • Brush
  • Pencil
  • Sandpaper
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Supplies used for shabby-chic painted rocks

How To Make Shabby-Chic Painted Rocks

Cover your stone with acrylic paint and allow it to dry.

Cover the stone with acrylic

Using a pencil, draw a swirly design on your painted stone. You can go around the edges, down the middle, whatever you like.

Draw a swirly design

Use the black 3D fabric paint to outline your sketched swirls. (You want the line to be raised.) Allow the fabric paint to dry for 4 hours.
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Outline the swirls with 3D paint


Once the black 3D fabric paint is dry, cover it with your original color and allow it dry.

Cover the swirls with the original color


Use sandpaper to carefully scrape off some of the paint on the raised design so the black shows through.

Scrape off some paint from swirls


Ideas

Paint different, muted colors and vary the placement of the swirl design.


"Mod Podge" flowers or other vintage images onto the stone.


Display your shabby-chic painted stones in a pretty dish or bowl.
 


Tips
  • Vintage paint colors are pale and muted - good colors to use are dusty rose, pale green, yellow ochre, cream, etc.
  • Practice with your 3D fabric paint first; it can be tricky if you've never used it before 
  • Matte 3D fabric paint works better than shiny but you can use either one as long as it's black
  • For a raised line, hold the 3D fabric paint bottle like a pencil and angle the tip while outlining your design
  • I did not use a sealer on these rocks because I wanted them to look "old" and the sealer would add shine
  • When you Mod Podge a design onto the rock, tear around the design's edges rather than cutting; the design will blend better into the stone. It also helps to add some of your paint around the design to camouflage the edges   

Helpful resources
Note: When you click on certain links in this post, I may receive a commission for the purchase of products. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

The inspiration for this project was a DIY idea for Shabby Chic Easter Eggs by Sylwia Serwin.


© Cindy Thomas Painted Rocks

Thursday, March 13, 2014

Rock Painting Tip: How to Identify Colors from a Photo

 
This recent rock painting project called for cadmium yellow deep acrylic paint. I did not own that color and I had no clue what it looked like other than a shade of yellow.

An internet search for cadmium yellow deep returned several different shades.


Which of these deep cadmium yellows was I supposed to use?

Here's a helpful tip to identify colors and color match using the Microsoft Paint program and the color picker tool.


For my example, I'm using a photo of Cadi, my favorite Corgi.

Open the photo you're working from in MS Paint or other painting program and click the eyedropper (circled below).




When you click on a section of your photo with the eyedropper, the color of that section appears in the "Color 1" box (circled below). You can then use the brush tool or draw a box and fill it with that color. Do the same thing for other sections of your photo.

 
Now you have the hues you need to paint your rock project. You can print the photo and use it as a guide for purchasing your acrylic colors or use the photo as a guide for mixing your own colors.



Useful Resources

A special thanks to Lisa from ROCK ART USA for the idea and Shirley for permission to use Cadi's photo. 

© Cindy Thomas Painted Rocks

Tuesday, March 4, 2014

Rock Painting Ideas: Birds Painted on Rocks

Spring is just around the corner and bird song will soon fill the air. I'm collecting ideas on a new Pinterest inspiration board. It features tips and ideas for painting birds (other than owls) on rocks and stones.

Ideas: Birds Painted Rocks



I enjoy painting birds on rocks because of all the beautiful, bright colors I can use. If you are new to rock painting, there are many simple, whimsical ways you can paint a bird on a rock.





Visit my Pinterest Rock Painting Ideas and Helps board for more tips, tricks, ideas, and patterns to use for painting rocks, stones and pebbles.






© Cindy Thomas Painted Rocks