Friday, October 10, 2008

Ugly Duckling

I didn't take a before photo...but I think you all know what the cheap orange pumpkins from Micheals look like...so I when they went on sale I bought one. The one above is before the crackling
Last time I went into Pottery Barn they had beautiful pumpkins that cost a fortune, but I just loved them...they were ceramic, but were this creamy white with a crackle underglaze. I didn't think about trying to mimic that look until I got into playing with my paints
Heres how I did it. I sprayed white primer, let dry, brushed on spice tan. I notice that there was a lot of texture already on the surface, so I scrubbed on the 2 metallic paints then wiped it off the surface. I really like it, should have left it, but then I really was on the goal of have more white. So I wiped white on it... it was really dull, I didn't like it at all. So I sponged on white to make it more textury (is that a word?) Then I added the 2 step crackle med. When it was dry I rubbed in the metallic paints again, then wiped it off. It ended up looking just like the ones that I saw at Pottery Barn, but only $2 pluss supplies that I already had. Now I'm going to give it a coat of varnish to give it the shine of ceramic. Now I want to go buy a couple more...hope I can remember how I did it...oh yes, I guess I can read my own blog.lol.
It's not a pretty sight, but this is what I used.

12 comments:

The Feathered Nest said...

Laurie! I love the way this turned out!! Such a gorgeous patina now...pretty enough to leave out all the time too! xxoo, Dawn

Nancy said...

I love it Laurie! I have a couple of those bad orange things they call pumpkins...I am going to try this!

Thank-you for sharing
Hugs, Nancy

PS...Love the little black birdie!

The Joy of Nesting said...

Hey Galfiend,

They are really beautiful!!! makes me a bit envious!! Nothing here but a few smallish real pumpkins that are more then old!! :c{

Pattie :c}
Mazatlan Mexico

Susan Hickam said...

wonderful!

Adrienne said...

Hi Laurie -
I love what you did with that pumpkin. Who would ever guess it one of those orange punkins from Michaels? I'm trying to get away from all of the orange-y looks of the season and stick more to browns, golds, yellows and dark greens this year with just a peek of orange here and there. I like the thought of painting the orange away. It's such a beautiful piece I think you could use it for a lot of things throughout the year if you wanted to. Thanks for sharing how you did it.
~Adrienne~

Anonymous said...

Laurie, My hubby picked up a couple of pumpkins for me at Wally World that were 'way cheap! They've been on my craft table for two weeks and the plan was to decoupage them this weekend. Pics coming up on my blog.

I love what you did with yours! It looks like an expensive ceramic one on my monitor!

Diane

Unknown said...

What a lovely idea to do with that bag, and your painting is lovely. I like those charms as well.
Happy Pink Saturday,
Karen

karlascottage.typepad.com said...

what a good turn out! I have been thinking about painting some pink ones, but love the colors you chose.

Kathy said...

Great idea! I love the crackle on the pumpkin...might try it myself!
Kathy

Essential Oil Premier University said...

Love this idea. Who would have thought that a pumpkin could look elegant, but you pulled that off!!


Blessings,

Sher

Cindy said...

Wow, thanks for the link...that looks great! I had been looking for a real white pumpkin but I may have to try this!!! It looks gorgeous! Thanks!

Donna said...

Love the pumpkin idea! I must try this. Thanks!