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Tuesday, January 12

#Cre8time Adventures in Landscape #Resin Paintings... by Sandra Strait

Hello! Sandra here to continue my adventures in 3D resin painting. I've been experimenting (and got my Christmas presents done, too) with the technique, and decided to try it with a more traditional style of painting – the landscape.


Supplies:
  • Amazing Clear Cast Resin
  • 4 x 6 Postcard
  • Paint Brush
  • Duct Tape
  • Golden Acrylics – Green Gold, Chromium Oxide Green, Phthalocyanine Green, Quinacridone Nickel Azo Gold, Iridescent Bright Gold

This was surprisingly simple. Although, it took seven days because each layer of resin had to cure, I think actual painting time was about 1/2 hour.

I made some mistakes, none of them fatal, but I'll know better next time.


To start, I used a postcard to use as my base and a
photo reference from my brother's North Carolina farm. 


I mixed up the two parts of the Amazing Clear Cast Resin, letting it sit so any bubbles would clear, while I did my drawing and painting. Please CLICK HERE to view mixing/preparation.


I drew an outline of the scene, numbering sections of it, each section corresponding to the layer I wanted. I scanned the numbered outline, and reprinted it as a guide, then erased all the numbers.

I painted the base layer on the postcard. At this point, the sky was the only section I was really worried about, because the rest would all be painted over. Once the paint dried completely (about 10 minutes), I created a mold by sticking duct tape all around the postcard (mistake #1), to hold the resin.

Then I poured the resin so that the postcard was completely covered with about 1/8 inch of resin and set it aside to cure.


Each day, I painted another layer. Mistake #2 happened while the 3rd layer was curing. You can see from the photos, how each day I added a few more trees, varying the colors. In the first couple of layers, I kept the colors lighter, and had no real details. In the last two layers, I painted the darkest colors, the most specific details, and I used the Iridescent Bright Gold, which just grabs your eyeballs and demands your attention. These are common techniques for implying distance, even if you aren't doing a 3D painting.

So what were my mistakes? Number 1 was using the duct tape frame to hold the resin. I've done this before with good results, but the postcard was too flimsy as a base, and the tape buckled giving me uneven edges. I wasn't expecting completely straight, but what I got was beyond sanding down.


The second mistake was that I set my piece on a flat surface, but it wasn't safe. Somehow, it slid down on one side, so that my resin cured thicker on one side. This just got worse as the layering process went on.

I'm not sure when the 3rd mistake happened, but I think about the 4th layer. I missed a bubble that formed on the surface. It isn't surprising. I can't actually see the bubble because it is soooo tiny, and I can't feel it. But it casts a shadow. It happened just at the skyline, against the blue, and it looks like there is a distant UFO coming over the hill. It isn't incredibly noticeable, but annoying all the same.

So my conclusion – next time use a sturdier base. Maybe a mixed media board or canvas. The duct tape might be okay with the sturdy base, but I'm still trying to think of something that would work better. And, last of all, I'll make sure I've left the piece where it will stay completely flat until the resin is thoroughly cured.


It took about 20 minutes a day, including the time for set up, mixing the resin, waiting for bubbles to pop, and painting. A good project for the person, who has several days to get a something done, but very little time in any given day.

For more complete instructions in using Amazing Mold RubberAmazing Casting Resin and Amazing Clear Cast Resin, see the videos at Amazing Casting Products website.

To see more of my watercolors, Zentangles and resin projects,
please visit my Life Imitates Doodles blog. ~ Sandra

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