Consistent colours on Obeche

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artframer
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Consistent colours on Obeche

Post by artframer »

Hi.

I've been reading a wealth of topics here on finishing frames such as:
https://www.theframersforum.com/viewtop ... es#p122250
https://www.theframersforum.com/viewtop ... es#p121140
Great advice, views, approaches in all.

So I have some questions:
1) Is there anything particular about painting Obeche I would be well to bear in mind? (Think) I saw in a thread something about it being very porous so a primer of some description is a must on this wood.

Seems many of you stick with what my instinct would be and that's using Artists Acrylics. I'm not sure this is the way to go though, unless you know something I don't, because I want to have a set of 'standard' colours. Colours which unfortunately are not straight out of an artists acrylic tube. They'll be my set of standard colours that I'll mix and then just pick from. My direction of travel at the moment is that they might be a sub-set of say Farrow and Ball paints... 'heritage' stylie colours is "on trend" as they say and will be for some time I understand. I'm not sure I could mix Artists acrylic to achieve the exact same shade/hue each time is my concern. So my questions here are:
2) Do you have any strategies for mixing artists acrylics exactly each time?
3) Would the likes of Farrow and Ball paints be a good way to go in your view?

Thank you. All viewpoints welcome.
Jamesnkr

Re: Consistent colours on Obeche

Post by Jamesnkr »

Stop overthinking it. Just use any old wall paint (acrylic rather than vinyl emulsion). Just slap it on, give it a very quick rub with 240 grit paper and a second coat and some wax. Takes moments.

Unless the wood is really rough in which case a quick rub with 120/180 paper first.
artframer
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Re: Consistent colours on Obeche

Post by artframer »

Good advice James, thank you. Sometimes just need the confidence that simple and quick actually is best.
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prospero
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Re: Consistent colours on Obeche

Post by prospero »

Obeche is maybe the nicest wood for hand-finishing. It does have pores though. If you want a smooth finish you can
fill the pores by painting it with diluted fine-surface filler, then wiping it off as it dries with a J-type cloth.
That's how I do it anyway. If you take your time at this stage it only needs a light sanding to produce an excellent base
for painting. I usually give it a couple of coats of Wickes Smooth Ripple which is good'un thick and acts like a high-build primer.
I use artist's acrylic mainly for the top coats and do mix my own. I'm not bad at mixing colours but if you want a dead accurate
match for ongoing projects then buying pre-mixed stuff is maybe better. I buy plastic containers and generally mix a litre at a time
which goes a long way. If you keep a little painted bit as reference it's not too difficult to colour match once you get the hang of it.
I like artist's acrylic because it's tough as old boots and covers well. I've tried out Farrow&Ball stuff and I have to say it's a bit thin
and watery. You'll need two coats for every one of artist's acrylic. You can dilute artist's acrylic but you can't thicken up a watery paint.
I did once try Little Green 'Intelligent eggshell' and found this very good but haven't used it a lot.
That reminds me- I've got a big tin of it somewhere.....
They do a nice colour range though.

The trick is to keep it simple. I never use more than 3 colours in a mix. The colours I use mainly are:

Titanium White
Mars Black
Yellow Ochre
Burnt Umber
Raw Umber
Raw Sienna
Ultramarine
Hooker's Green
Titanium Buff.
Red Iron Oxide.
Alizarin Crimson

With that lot you can mix anything.

Having said that, I rarely do 'flat' colours. Mostly a base colour with a wash dragged/stippled on top.

If you skip the grain filling you get more of the wood texture showing which can be emphasised by a contrasting wash. All depends
on the effect you are aiming for. If you want an immaculately smooth surface you would have to build up a few coats of gesso. Lot
of time and a lot of sanding. :? Although with gesso you can skip the grain-filling stage.
Watch Out. There's A Humphrey About
Jamesnkr

Re: Consistent colours on Obeche

Post by Jamesnkr »

You can dilute artist's acrylic but you can't thicken up a watery paint.
Actually you can... (sort of, but it's slow) by leaving the lid off. (Top tip from Annie Sloane 'expensive paint for the yummy mummy' manufacturer.) Acrylic doesn't skin.

I have a large pot of black paint that has taken me two years to reach the bottom. It really is quite thick!
Not your average framer
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Re: Consistent colours on Obeche

Post by Not your average framer »

you can't thicken up a watery paint.
That depends upon how much up need to thicken it. Colloidial silica is a suitable additive for thickening paint without causing a change of paint colour. Be very cafeful as colloidial silica is dangerous - don't use it indoors, or even open the container indoors and wear a mask to avoid inhaling the finely ground silica. I would say that a pair of goggles for your eyes would be a smart move as well.

Colloidial silica is used by paint manufacturers to produce matt finish paints and also in acyrlic sanding sealer. I don't use the stuff these days, because I don't have anywhere safe to use the stuff.
Read the MSDS data before you consider using this stuff, inhaling the dust is real bad news!
Don't even think about opening the container until you are breathing through a mask! I'm not joking!
Mark Lacey

“Life is short. Art long. Opportunity is fleeting. Experience treacherous. Judgement difficult.”
― Geoffrey Chaucer
Not your average framer
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Re: Consistent colours on Obeche

Post by Not your average framer »

It is also not uncommon to seal the wood with something suitable before staining, or painting obeche to avoid the blotch results that can be produced due to the fact that Obeche is notoriously prone to being very uneven in it surface absorbency.

Nice clean looking bare Obeche can suddenly look somewhat blotchy after staining, it's not always as bad with paint, unless you are watering down your paint to use it as a stain.

I'm into quick and easy finishes on my cheaper hand finished mouldings and often wash the surface of the moulding with a colour similar to the colour of the bare wood to seal the absorbent areas in the wood and to hide this effect.

I do this with stained pine as well, before staining to give the impression of a more expensive wood type. The secret is to wipe away the surplus wash and to apply the water based stain before the wash has had time to fully dry.

If you know what you are doing you can create some amazing effects with variations on this technique. One of my favourite finishes using a variation on this technique is Parana Pine, which fools everyone. It looks awesome!
Mark Lacey

“Life is short. Art long. Opportunity is fleeting. Experience treacherous. Judgement difficult.”
― Geoffrey Chaucer
Ultima Thule
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Re: Consistent colours on Obeche

Post by Ultima Thule »

Sounds interesting, thanks. Any chance of a pic of a finished piece?
poliopete
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Re: Consistent colours on Obeche

Post by poliopete »

prospero wrote "Obeche is maybe the nicest wood for hand-finishing" :clap: I completely agree.

As well as diluted fine surface filler there are other ways to fill the pores.

Once again, hats off to you NYAF for achieving a finish using Parana Pine that's a wood I gave up on years ago :oops: I would be very interested in learning more about your technique in dealing with this particular timber specifically the reddish areas. :?:

Peter
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Re: Consistent colours on Obeche

Post by Not your average framer »

It's more of a peach colour and there's a bit of a glow about it. The effect is about one layer showing through another. You don't get it looking right in one go, there a bit of fine tuning the layer underneath with the layer on top.

To start understanding this stuff, get some of the artists paint charts from different suppliers and start figuring out which pigments are transparent, semi-transparent, semi opaque, and opaque. Then start thinking about the differences that result from how all these different pigments work in layers.

This is probably where things really started to happen for me and maybe it will be something that works for you too! When you've got an idea in you mind try it out. Sometimes something happens that you were not expecting and often that's when you learn something really significant.

Forum members see some samples of finishes that I am trying and probably think that I just know how to do these things and that's that, but it's not completely like that. You guy's see the one's that really work and look the business, mostly the one's that don't cut it, never see the light of day.

It's all about being willing to experiment and try to create new things. The more you practice the better you get at this.
Mark Lacey

“Life is short. Art long. Opportunity is fleeting. Experience treacherous. Judgement difficult.”
― Geoffrey Chaucer
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