2019 #9 Arty Wood Blocks: 74 is the eh, Magic Number - with Hot Picks {by Lotte Kristensen}

2019 Topic 9: Arty Wood Blocks

There's something appealing about numbers. I think I could fill a whole wall of collected fonts, sizes and colours. Lotte has created numbers that would work perfectly on my imaginary wall!! ~Leandra.

Hey everyone, Lotte here - blocks don't have to be square, do they??  I do like using odd things as a canvas, whether it's empty food cans or deodorant canisters, and this current topic allowed me to indulge my whimsy and dig out some MDF numbers I've wanted to decorate for a while.  '74' I hear you say; 'what's the deal with that?!'  Well, it *could* be the year Abba won the Eurovision Song Contest..... or how many pennies I found down the back of the sofa..... or the answer to the ultimate question of life, the universe and everything (yeah, I know, some people say that's 42... ;)  But anyway, I had great fun playing with the new Hot Picks, which should be available from your usual PaperArtsy stockist

As I was going to use diluted paint washes, I started off by painting my blocks with a couple of coats of white gesso:

Next, I painted on a coat of Slimed Fresco Finish Acrylic Paint and when that was dry, a watered down coat of Venice Blue Fresco Finish Acrylic Paint.

In the picture below, you can see how the block looks when finished with the top coat of blue paint, and how it looks after being sanded down.  Do wear a dust mask when sanding, as neither MDF nor paint dust is good for you!



After sanding all the blocks, I used my fingertips to rub in some watered down French Roast Fresco Finish Acrylic Paint all over, to 'age' the surface:

And then it was finally time to do some stamping! 

On the first block, I  used the time phrase stamp all over in Watering Can Ranger Archival Ink Pad:

Then the tall clock and tiled floor stamp, again in Watering Can.  For the inside bits, I took the stamp off the acrylic block, and used my fingertips to mould it around the curves:

Finally, the rectangular collaged tiles, again in Watering Can:

When everything was thoroughly dry, I dabbed an embossing ink pad around the edges of the blocks, and added some chunky copper embossing powder:

And that's it!  I was actually quite pleased with the end result, for a change - I love the worn look, as if these blocks are really old and tattered.  But the real question is, what will *you* create??

Lotte x

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