Sep 28, 2008

Pumpkin Project

One of the blogs I like to read is by the wonderful Kimba , whose weapon of choice is spray paint.I had kind of forgotten about spray paint, or put it aside, since it's not really "Primitive", now is it? After seeing what Kimba and some others have done with it, and considering the other things I manage to qualify as "Primitive", I have decided to reconsider. So at the risk of losing my somewhat shaky "Primitive" credentials, here's a little project that's quick, fun, and cheap.






Here's what I started with:

Pumpkins and glass candlesticks from the Dollar store.
I would have liked to use different size Pumpkins, but this was all they had, and the price was right.

Spray paint - some I had had already, but I bought a can of Metallic spray in as close to Bronze as I could find

Glue - glue gun, E-600, or white glue, like Alenes

Spanish Moss

Ribbon, strips of fabric, raffia


I've seen some black Pumpkins recently, I can't remember where, and thought they were just terrific. So I started by spraying the Pumpkins with flat black, and spraying the glass candlesticks with the bronze color metallic. That stuff they always tell you about using lots of light coats of paint is true, by the way.

Also, try to pick a day when it's not windy. You can see the newspaper flapping in this photo, which adds to the adventure.














After the candlestick had a good coat of the metallic,
I used the flat black to kind of "dust" over it, to
make it less shiny, and more weathered looking.








Here are the two main parts after painting.
















This is the point where I start putting things
together temporarily, and standing back to decide
if I like what I see, and what it needs. I added
the moss around the stem, and then glued the
Pumpkin to the candlestick, and glued the
moss in place.









After looking at these for a minute, I decided one way to change the size would be to stack two together, so I
used a pencil to make a hole in the bottom of the
top Pumpkin, added moss between the two, and glued,
using the stem of the bottom pumpkin to help
secure them.










Here's the finished project, in the dining room. I tied torn
strips of black and white check homespun around the top
of the candlesticks.

Consider this a jumping off place. There are so many things
you could do starting with this. Different colors, lots of glitter,
different bases, ribbons, raffia, paper letters, and on and on.

If you're not taking photos and writing about it, it should take
about a half hour, start to finish. Have fun! The Dogs and I did!

Sep 24, 2008

Evening


GLORY be to God for dappled things—
For skies of couple-colour as a brinded cow;
For rose-moles all in stipple upon trout that swim;
Fresh-firecoal chestnut-falls; finches’ wings;
Landscape plotted and pieced—fold, fallow, and plough;
And áll trádes, their gear and tackle and trim.

All things counter, original, spare, strange;
Whatever is fickle, freckled (who knows how?)
With swift, slow; sweet, sour; adazzle, dim;
He fathers-forth whose beauty is past change:
Praise him.


Our pasture at evening with the donkeys.

Sep 21, 2008

The Adventure Continues...

Welcome to the new Big Brown Dog Primitives Blog!

This is another chapter in the Primitive Adventure I've been having for many years.
Making things by hand, whether it's my Folk Art creations, or my hand made
Primitive Graphics, is the way I choose to live, and at least it's never dull.

Fall is in the air, here in Tennessee, and it's my favorite time of the year. I love
the cool nights and pleasant days, and the chance to decorate for Halloween. I'm
lucky enough to have lots of Primitive friends, and I have collected many pieces of
wonderful Halloween Folk Art, over the years.



The very Primitive stitchery was received in a Halloween Swap, 5 or 6 years ago,
and it's one of my favorite Halloween pieces.



Be sure to pick up a copy of the free, Primitive "Dog Tags" I've made for you.
Just click on the tab at the upper right of the page, and choose "Download". You
will need a copy of Adobe Reader. If you don't have one, you can get one free HERE

Printables are something new I'm working on, so look for new Halloween and
Christmas items soon.

I'll also be adding more Christmas Banners and Templates over the next few
weeks. Banners are fun to use to give your blog a simple, seasonal, lift. I'm also
happy to do custom work of all kinds.

The dog and I would like to thank you for stopping by, and hope you'll drop in again
soon!