Scutum Construction - Edging and Painting

[sulla felix]

it could be that the spina is one of the bifurcated types which IIRC can date to the Hadrianic period (Carlisle).

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b242/ ... kins-1.jpg

from Mike Bishop's website...
http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b242/ ... bars-1.jpg

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b242/ ... Umbo-1.jpg

Yes, I suppose it could be. Interesting thought. This drawing looks like an eagle, although the "tail" feathers could be bifurcated spinae I suppose?

[sulla felix]

Thanks for sharing the tip Robert. I actually found that the clips held the rawhide in place very well, and after allowing some time for drying I was able to drill and stich no problem.

[Matthew Amt]

Looks great so far! One thing I do when clipping wet leather to a rim is to put cardboard or thin wood shims between clamps and leather. That keeps the leather from drying with distinctive clamp shapes embossed into it! Not that I can see any problems like that on yours, just a tip for the next guy.

A coat of wax may help the patchiness of the paint. On that I tend to cheat a little and use Sno-Seal, which is basically bees wax with an emulsifier. Smear it on and use a hair dryer or heat gun to melt it into the surface.

Keep up the good work!

Matthew

[sulla felix]

Thanks Matt, and another good tip. I was very concerned not to over soak the rawhide, which is probably why I did not get indentations where the clips were applied.

Do you find that one coat of Milk Paint usually works? The instructions suggest that you can sand down the surface, using fine grade paper of course. I have been tempted to do this, and then apply another coat.

Thanks also for the tip on waxing.

[Christophorus Rubrum]

Hang on, looks great and as already said, nice to see different draw on shield

[Matt Lukes]

I've never been happy with the coverage and opacity of one coat of milk paint myself Barry- two does nicely though. I've found it's best to mix up a fresh batch for the second coat though; in the time it takes the first to dry, any paint left over changes somehow and you get a sort of hazy appearance if you use it again- not the nice colour of the first one.

And nice work :wink:

[Magnus]

Am I bad because I'm still using modern paints?

[sulla felix]

Thanks Matt L,

I have now applied a second coat of both the red and yellow and I am much happier with the coverage (will post a couple of pictures later).

Magnus,

It was very tempting to use modern paints, but I wanted to give milk paint a go, and I am glad I did. The colours just seem to have a "different" quality to them. As to whether milk paint is any more authentic than anything else, I will leave the experts to argue that one!

[Matt Lukes]

It is- apparently the ancient Egyptians used it- but I don't think anyone would fault the use of modern acrylics, etc. Not unless you do it and talk about major authenticity that is :wink:

[Hibernicus]

We mix milk paint in small batches but have learned that refrigerating the left over mix works well in preserving it for several days... it will dehydrate in the fridge but more water can be added. If you lid the container the paint lasts even longer.

You can achieve some interesting results with thin washes, multiple layers.

And, I suggest doing some experimenting on some scrap rawhide if you want to do subtle shading.

[sulla felix]

OK, second coat of salem red and highlights to the eagle, followed by beeswax coating:

[sulla felix]

And here it is several hours later with excess beeswax removed and the surfaced polished somewhat:

[Matthew Amt]

Looks terrific! Since I tend to see an eagle in that column base carving as well, I think it's an excellent interpretation.

Um, are you planning to paint in more details over the wax coating? Because milk paint is supposed to have a porous surface. Not sure it will take on wax...

And yes, Magnus, you are evil and despicable for using acrylic paints. Go home at once. Nyah, nyah! All seriousness aside, I'm surprised you haven't gone over to milk paints, yet! They do look different, and they aren't a lot of trouble (not like mild steel versus hand-forged iron, for instance!).

Valete,

Matthew

[sulla felix]

Thanks Matt. I have seen a fair number of photographs of the base carving, the clearest I think being in HR Robinson's Armour of Imperial Rome.

I am not planning any more details - this is minimalist art (based upon my minimal art skills!). Not convinced that Romans would have outlined everything in black (very superstitious people).

The milk paint on linen did have a very porous surface which made application of the beeswax very easy. Getting a nice even coat is not so easy however, and after several trial attempts I cheated and mixed the melted beeswax with turpentine.

[Gaius]

Do you know of any seller of milk paint in Europe? How do it works? I mean you have the paint in its powder form and...what follows? How do you dilute it? In what media? It is a primer necessary?