I was really happy that so many of you liked the look of the Metallic Lustre Acrylic Wax from DecoArt that I added to my latest scroll saw projects. After allowing it to dry a day, I continued to finish off the project.
I know we live in a world where we want immediate results on everything, but sometimes we just need to wait a little bit and let things do their job or run their course for the best results. Not only when crafting, but in many situations in our lives.
After posting my blog about the Metallic Lustre the other day, I had many ask questions as to whether the wax would be permanent or a good base to paint subsequent layers on top. I was happy that before I did this project, I had called DecoArt to find these things out for myself and to be sure I was using the product properly before I blogged about it and told you all. I didn’t want to misinform you or send you down a path that would bring poor results. Doing my homework paid off.
I was told that it was best to use thin coats of the Metallic Lustre, and then let it set or dry for several hours or overnight. Yes – it is a ‘wax’ but not in the traditional sense that it contains oil. It is acrylic based and therefore actually does 'dry’ (unlike traditional waxes) and can be set. Since it is highly pigmented and has an amazing amount of shine, I find that in any application, just a very thin coat is necessary to achieve beautiful coverage and effects. I also found that by applying it too thick, it not only has trouble drying, but can rub off or flake off, depending on if you have 'chunks’ or not. For this reason, it is best to put it on very sparingly and build coats if you desire more color. But I find that one coat has been clearly enough to give a maximum effect and see little point in adding more.
After I allowed the pieces to 'set’ overnight, I touched them to see if they were dry. I even rubbed pretty hard with my dampened finger and nothing came off. Good. That is how I wanted things to be. But just to be sure, I sprayed the pieces with a light coat of DecoArt Matte Spray Sealer to seal them in. (a LIGHT coat!) This did not seem to dull the shine of the Metallic Lustre at all, and I felt better that it offered an additional layer of protection.
Once again, I got busy with other things and waited until I felt the pieces were fully dry (this is where the PATIENCE comes into play!) I had plenty of other work to do yesterday and had no trouble letting the finish set. By the time I was ready to proceed, it was after 10pm and several hours after I sprayed. I tried to scratch a little corner with my nail and much to my delight, nothing came off! GOOD! I was ready to add some beautiful crystal rhinestones to finish off the pieces.
I began with the lovely SLD522 Heart and Soul Candle Tray. As I said, I absolutely loved that Rose Gold and was anxious to see how it would look finished. I chose to add some beautiful light pink hot fix rhinestones that I purchased from Rhinestone Canada. I had trouble with choosing a color, as I was fighting myself between the light pink the Aurora Borealis and clear. I even considered using peach, as it would compliment the color nicely. But I finally decided that the light pink would be the best match with the Rose Gold Metallic Lustre on the heart motif. So I went with that.
The result was just lovely:
You can see in the above photo the difference between the 'plain’ and 'blinged’ piece from left to right.
I felt the stones really added some beauty and elegance to an already pretty piece:
The overall appearance of the piece looks beautiful and professional and it brought it up another notch, I feel:
I got tired after finishing that part up, so I called it a night. I will be continuing to add some stones to the ornaments that I showed the other day and I will have photos for you tomorrow. I did want to report on the Metallic Lustre though because so many of you were interested in it.
Today I am working on another project using the Metallic Lustre. I will be painting over it and I will also share my results with you in that respect. I want to both paint and stencil over it, and I am encouraged by this process that I showed here that all will work out well. Having a little patience with things seems to be the key to success.
I hope you all enjoy learning about these products. I am thrilled with them and have lots of ideas as to how to incorporate them into both woodworking and painting. They are fun and certainly add a lot of beauty!
I wish you all a very happy Wednesday! It is snowy here in Nova Scotia and a good day to stay inside and create! I hope you have a wonderful day wherever you are!
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