June 12, 2014 

Hello John here AGAIN Around the Shop @ #GatsbyTimber

Had a great day today.  Today I documented a flying pig sign I do.  I have a order for one and wanted to show you how its done.  I missed a couple steps, but you get the picture.  If you have any questions please let me know :) 

Ok so lettuce begin lol.  By the way I keep working on this cool hope sign and a huge whale I been working on so here is what happened today! 

First my Sweet dog "Liv" a retired race dog was resting before our busy day !

LIV

 

 

 

 

I need some coffee to get going.  My favorite cup is from a outstanding cafe in Athens GA called "Mamas Boy"  I do not eat there any more since changing my eating lifestyle.  It was such a yummy place while I was eating on the dark side ! 

Ok Here is the Pig I will be re-creating for today's customer Mary :) Etsy Shop #gatsbytimber 

This is a fun little pig to make!  Looks great anywhere bbq joints, mom's kitchen, diners, baby rooms, etc.

This is a hand drawn design I made.  I cut these out of sanded ply wood with a jig saw and scroll saw sometimes.

Here is the pig cut out.  I forgot to document all the cuts.  First thing I do is the tail.  I drill a hole then insert the jig saw to cut out the center of the curly cue.  If you do this last the tail is so fragile it can completely snap off the pig! From experience I have learned this.  I pass this on to you now!  If you lose a tail guess what???  YOu have to start over ML (maniacal laugh) That waste time and wood :)

Next above pics.  I sketch out all the lines of the pig freehand whoot whoot !  Up next we are gonna dremel the lines.  If you leave pencil lead on the surface it will show through the paint.  So it must go ! 

see what I did there we got rid of the pencil and laid down some Knarley lines that give depth and also give us a little canal for our paint to sit in.  Now lettuce distress it a bit.  We gone hit dis with a Hammer a lil bit!  "Hammer dont hurt em " if you do not know what that is bless your heart. 

Alright you done hit it with the hammer.  Not too hard you can break the pig so use restraint here.  Mercy shown is Mercy received.  You just wanna bang it up the dents and scratches will look really cool once painted.  I use both sides of the hammer.  The blunt end makes fat dents the claw on the back makes skinny dents and scratches.
Now lettuce put some pink on the pig!  This color kinda looks like a bubble gum pink.

Ahh yeah looking good!  I paint the pig only leaving the wings and feet because they get a different treatment. 

I use a plain white on the wings.  Looks good and its on and POPPIN  !  I did not take photos of the brown I used on the feet.  It is a leather brown color looks really nice on the pig.

Now what I do is paint in all the dremel lines we made earlier.  Its time for that !!!  On the pig we use brown and on the wings I use silver.  See what I did there , good.  The feet are done with the brown as well.

I apologize I did not show the finished product.  It looks just like the pig on the right.  I will tell you how it is completed though.  At this point I sand and distress the pig to take some paint off and scratch it up.  Distressing looks best after you practice a bit.  You cannot do it too uniformed or it looks like bad lol total Fail.  You want the true distressed look.  Don't over do it resist the urge to keep going. I use the leather brown paint or stain to make the pig look dirty, old , and antiqued.  I dab on paint or stain let it sit for a few seconds and rub it around with a old cloth/shirt.  The longer you leave it on the darker it will be so be careful until you get the hang of it.  Once you get that done the Pig is complete.  You can seal it or leave it be.  I personally like to seal the decor because things can splash on it or just things happen that could mess up your hard work.  So consider that.  So hope you enjoyed this let me know if you have any questions or comments.  gatsbytimber@gmail.com

Ok bonus I wanted to share with you a new sign I am working on.  I don't know how to put this.....but eh it is kinda a big deal.  It is a big sign well (whale) 2 signs actually.  It's a anthropologic lettered top with a huge patriotic whale below.  It is not yet complete but stay tuned.

 Apple Red paint

Taped up and painted

I like the way it looks.  I feel it is a little too clean ya know too perfect.  I wanna dsitress it and age it a bit. 

The technique is simple.  Sanding rubbing , and then I add a stain to give the old aged look.  Like the pig I will dab the stain on then either I dab with the cloth or wipe it hard to smear it.  You want it to look genuine and that will take practice.  You can do it!  Like I said it is not finished. I want to finish the Whale with something cool.  In the area on the head the blue part It is needing something.  I am thinking gold stars or gold something. The whale will hang below the HOPE sign.  Stay tuned  !    I plan on having these up for sale in my shop soon  https://www.etsy.com/shop/GatsbyTimber

 That is all for today I will try to be back tomorrow :)

#gatsbytimber #vineyardvines #whale


“Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again,but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” -Jesus