Kittens and frame toning

Here are these little guys. They are our new kittens. We lost a cat and have waited months before replacing him. Now we have these two, they are Izzy and Toast . (Toast is on the right). I am home from a long painting trip up in Maine. Here is a picture from the trip. It was shot at Acadia National Park. When I get the picture finished in the studio I will post it.

I am teaching a workshop on Cape Cod this week. This one is through the Cape Cod Art Association. I am excited about it, I like what has become my yearly trip to the Cape. I will probably post a picture from the workshop on the blog. Sun, Sand and an audience. Who could ask for more?

The September workshop in New Hampshire is beginning to fill, and I am looking forward to that as well. It is going to be really a nice time of year to paint in the hills of New Hampshire. New England is GREAT in the fall. Legendary. If you can come, here is the sign-up sheet.

OK, thats enough of that. I know you all come here to learn something, so here is a little something............. I use both 23 carat frames and mass produced metal leaf frames. Below are two metal leafed frames made by Omega. They are made, like so many things these days, in China.


When I get them out of the box, I feel they are too brassy and perfect looking. So I tone them myself. Here's how I do that. I mixed a small amount of raw umber with a lot of Liquin and threw a little green in there, very little. Then I painted that onto the frame and ragged it off with a paper towel. Incidentally the frame to your left is the one I have toned. There is stuff called cotton rag waste that works even better, but a paper towel or an old cotton T shirt will work. Then I pounced the whole show with the tip of a big house painters brush. That brush has to be in good, clean condition. Pouncing means stomping it, like you might a stencil. After that I mix up a dark gray-black note, also heavily thinned with Liquin and then dragging my thumb across its bristles I spray some flyspecks onto the toned frame. I usually have to pounce all of that a little more to get it to look unified and natural. When that Liquin drys the toning will be bulletproof. The next day, I wax the whole thing with Butchers wax in a can. That gives it a soft luster.

That takes an ordinary production frame and makes it look like a more valuable handmade frame. I guarantee you , that you will have to work at this a bit to get your frames to come out right, but if you don't let it dry on the frame, you can wipe it back several times for another try.

There,useful!