Wow, that came out beautiful!! One long scene made 3 gorgeous little scenes, I love those! I’m really glad you posted this. I still want to try the strip method, I’m thinking maybe a desert view.
PALETTE KNIFE PAINTING, ATC Swap, Due Oct. 3
- Thread starter CiCiCreates
- Start date
Gorgeous!!
I made this for the currently running Sunflower swap, but wanted to share it here since I did it with a palette knife.
Welcome, IridescentSiren!
It does look pretty thick on the single koi. Maybe we’ll say if it can’t into a sleeve, then it would be too thick You would also want to be sure it was completely dry, pressed up to the plastic sleeve. I love the image and technique, but the texture may present a problem. I’ll leave it to you, I love the whole concept, the perspective of looking down at the pond, and the colors themselves. So glad you joined!
I've mailed some fairly thick ATCs over the years... but they take careful packaging and a little extra postage sometimes. One thing that helps is to "even it out" by placing a layer of cardboard over the ATC, with a cutout area to accommodate the thicker area. With acrylic paint, I'd put it in a sleeve and then attach the cardboard cutout.
Furthermore... the postal "rollers" may end up flattening things a bit. The main thing is to avoid a thick spot that can cause the card to get caught in those rollers. I've been surprised at some of the things that made it through the system while others got ripped. You never know. AND a non machinable stamp might help... but I've read that some post office respect the "Nonmachinable" stamps and others... don't.
Good news! The koi fishes are staying! It got "flatter" as it was drying overnight. Just going to let them completely dry/cure for a few days before packing them.
also, Thank you Cici for the kind feedback. 
Thank you so much for sharing this tip LuAnnP!!! I got "lucky" that it got flatter as it was drying overnight, but definitely keeping this in mind if I ever come across with thicker paint parts on a card.
Thanks, Luk, may I post pics for you when they arrive? I’m guessing lots of happy little trees?
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I would like to sign up - went shopping this afternoon for impasto paste to add to my acrylics.
This is my first attempt, when fully dry it will be cut down to 2 ATCs. The hills, shoreline, water ripples and trees were all done with a palette knife while the reflections were pulled down with a rough brush.
This is my first attempt, when fully dry it will be cut down to 2 ATCs. The hills, shoreline, water ripples and trees were all done with a palette knife while the reflections were pulled down with a rough brush.
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Beautiful, Donnacr.
You really figured out palette knife painting.
You really figured out palette knife painting.
Yes please. a few mountains too.
Welcome Donnacr!!!! Great first attempt, thanks for sharing. Signing you up now.
Thanks for the compliments on my first painting. It was the result of HOURS of watching videos, trying to understand what the technique involved. A lot of them were way too artistic for this little black duck - I had to find those with more of an abstract view of realism. hence my 2 attempts.
This will also be cut down to 2 ATCs. I mixed a lot more of the impasto gel medium with my paints this time - very obvious in the angry water. Should I add a blue wash for the sky?
What are people using as their bases for their paintings? The 2 I have shown are painted on gesso primed cotton canvas sheets that I found in my stash and so will need to be backed by something when I cut them down.
This will also be cut down to 2 ATCs. I mixed a lot more of the impasto gel medium with my paints this time - very obvious in the angry water. Should I add a blue wash for the sky?
What are people using as their bases for their paintings? The 2 I have shown are painted on gesso primed cotton canvas sheets that I found in my stash and so will need to be backed by something when I cut them down.
Donna, I applaud your tenacity iin studying those videos so faithfully. I really like what you have come up with so far, you know, so many people are afraid to even try this technique, they feel overwhelmed just thinking about it. As a host who has been learning along with her players, I am encouraged by the interest shown by the number of signups and pictures of their work. I really LOVE your angry ocean with its impasto appearance, and regarding the sky, I usually paint that first so I don’t have to paint around the horizon surfaces. I would say go for it if you feel confident, or that it would bother you to leave it alone. So far, all my knife work has been done on Bristol cardstock, I haven’t tried anything else. Well done on these early attempts!
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Just finished my first “strip” via Jo’s method. It really was easier with more area to paint on. I got a bit carried away with the desert vegetation, this is a very verdant desert, lol! This pic is a bit fuzzy, but you can make it bigger with your fingers and it gets clearer as well. It is painted with palette knives, edge, tips, and whole blade, plus toothpicks minimally, on Bristol which was cut to 4” x 12”. I can get 4 ATC-sized images out of it, it will be interesting to see what looks best.
