[jillsy]

Don't know if this is one of those "beaten to death" subjects, but a girl's gotta wonder!

Anytime I paint, I always love to do a nice, rich paint finish. If I try to do a wash, it never looks completed to me and I have to paint over it some more! I've seen others who prefer washes and those who prefer the natural look.

My question is not to decide which is right or wrong, but rather to discover the "why." Which way do you prefer and why? Any specific reasons or is it just a matter of taste? Or are you just too cheap to use more paint? HAHAHA! Dont get mad, I'm just teasin'!

jillsy

[Lynn O. Doughty]

I really don't think anyone sets out to paint a piece with one technique. If they do I think they're missing the purpose of painting. While I use washes in certain areas when painting my figures I don't do it on purpose but only for the reason that it looks best. Other areas of the same piece will probably have a greater amount of paint. My main aim in painting a piece is to bring it to what I consider it's full potential. If thats by washes...Great! If it's by a solid coat of color ....Great again! If it requires the slathering on of a couple coats of latex house paint....whatever it takes. Just recently I applied a thin coating of very fine gravel to a small surface area of a carving to get the effect I was after. I'm open and willing to try just about anything to get where I'm going. To me that's the fun of making the journey.

[Eddy Smiles]

Jillsy...Thanks for the asking the question. I'm going to sit back and be a student on this one.

[Kenny_S]

yep, To each his own. Guess it really depends on the piece itself. Some look great painted but maybe if they weren't painted, they would have looked better.
Personally, I like natural but know that sometimes leaving it natural does no make the carving "pop". Lynn said it best though.
Deciding which method is best is where I am lacking also. Trial by error.

[xsailer]

Jillsy,
I always have liked color and do color work in my paintings. But in wood I'm beginning to think a little different. After spending so much time and effort in carving the wood into a piece of art I almost hate covering it up with color. If I was good enough with my tool work to not have amature/unecessary tooling marks in the wood I would problably not mind showing off that work with a plain unpainted finish. I use as an example the master Marv Kaisersatt.

[wood-whittler]

jillsy,


i prefer washes in my painting because i like the grain to show thru the paint when i add my antiquing to the peice.you said when you paint in washes the peice looks unfinished, this may be because the peice was not washed before painted and when acrylics are used they need to be toned down with either blo or minwax natural 209 stain with burnt seinna mixed into it,after the peice has dried, this is my method others will not agree with me but this is what works for me.

bart

[Paul_Guraedy]

Jillsy,

Interestingly, I have found that asking "non-carvers" about how I should finish the carving on my work table almost always say that I should leave it unpainted. They even say this after having looked over the carvings I have kept. They like the unfinished pieces (cedar and black walnut) but, make the most comments about the painted ones. My wife joins in and sums it up as, "I don't want to have to tell people that this is one of your carvings and not one of the cast pieces that we have collected over the years. I also do not like to say, that piece is not one of his carvings, it is pottery."

I, being the carver, still get to decide on "color". I am not sure whether to call what I do, "painting with washes" or "washing with paint". Whichever, I usually do it with watercolor and slowly build up until I reach the level that I am looking for in that particular carving. My preferred carving subjects are birds of prey and I do a lot of light burning and stoning on them. I like for these features to be emphasized and antiquing is not satisfactory for me. So, washes with watercolor is the best method I have found for getting me to where I want. Since I carve with tupelo or basswood, grain showing or a natural wood finish are non-issues.

[jillsy]

These are all very interesting; glad I asked!

sxsailer, I know what you mean about not wanting to cover up what you carved with paint. On the flip-side, I consider painting just as fun and as important on my particular carvings (mostly Santas). Also, since I'm both an amateur painter and carver, I rely on both to enhance the piece.

[xsailer]

jillsy,
I don't remember seeing an unpainted Santa. Have tried just staining one piece to see what the results would be? I suspect you might get favorable comments. I've thought about doing the same thing but when I'm sitting there thinking about it I keep comparing what it would it would look like with color added. One of these days I'm to just going to stain it and live with it a while. If after several days/weeks I don't like it I'll take some pictures of it and paint it. Then I'll compare pictures to painted version. I often look at Marv's carvings and try to imagine them painted. They would look good but.....

[Nancy-ID]

I too do everything Lynn said. Whether or not to paint or leave natural or use washes still comes down to personal preference I think. When I look at santa carvings I want to see bright colors, as long as the paint hasn't made it look plastic. When I look at realistic animals or birds I want to see true colors, blended properly which I think requires washes to achieve. It can take many coats of washes to get the brightness or depth needed, but you won't get the plastic look. I would never paint woods that have their own beautiful colors and grains, thats where I would go natural. My brain thinks weird but lets see if I can eplain this one. To me, realistic has to be painted in the correct colors, blended, etc. Although shows have catagorys called "Realistic Natural", I can't go with that one. I call those "detailed, correct, natural carvings". Ya just don't see animals running around out there in "wood grain"! Probably none of that makes sense but I know what I'm thinking