#oil based varnish

[bmpmp3]

oog

[cboffshore]

"Bridal Portrait of Uncertain Origin"

Artist unknown, circa the Fall of the Preeminent (estimated)

Oils on bespoke canvas, silk tulle, gilded oak frame

Shortly after the last Yin-Yang Eclipse prior to the Merge, this portrait was discovered in the attic of the Temple of Airjitzu, despite no records of the portrait ever being displayed inside. Indeed, "Bridal Portrait of Uncertain Origin" lacks any solid provenance or provable history. The materials and techniques used only further obscure the truth; perhaps the only thing certain about it is that it exists.

Examination of the structure of the canvas and gilded wooden frame indicate classical techniques from the end of the Era of the Stone Warrior; however, chemical analysis of the paints, varnish, and other materials used to finish the base revealed compounds identical to substances readily available in civilian art supply establishments of pre-Merge urban Ninjago, specifically those available shortly before the portrait's discovery.

Further complicating matters, the image itself is a web of self-contradictions and mismatched details. The subject's pose is highly informal, but the portrait itself - from the level of detail in the oil paint to the larger-than-life scale - is lavish enough to suggest a formal reason for its creation. The subject's attire, too, is highly unusual. Of all known ceremonial attire in the realms, the blues, sharp lapels, and floral motifs rendered here most closely match traditional Djinjagan royal wedding garments (hence the portrait's given title). However, the presence of only two arms, human legs emphasized by a jumpsuit, and the highly unusual structure of the outfit preclude it from being truly Djinjagan in origin and match no other known ceremonial garments from any realm.

Despite all of these bizarre qualities, perhaps the most intriguing part of the portrait is the silk tulle veil flowing out from the painting to drape over the edge of the frame. Independent analyses by multiple art historians found absolutely no point of the connection between the veil and the canvas; the fabric seems to proceed from the image itself, as if the frame is in fact only a window sill separating the viewer from the bride. Furthermore, chemical analysis of the veil revealed trace quantities of organic Latrodectus sotoii venom - a toxin found only on one island in all sixteen realms, which was nowhere close to the portrait's point of origin. Combined with the spiderweb embroidery on the veil, as well as the subject's trio of spider shaped brooches and venom-coated raised hand, the presence of this toxin may be the most reasonable thing about this portrait.

(Now: notes from the artist.)

The process for this one was utterly unlike any other artistic project I've ever done. This all started with me thinking back over a past Skybound analytical piece of mine and thinking how fun it might be to try putting it on an actual person instead of the template croquis I designed it on. (Also: seeing how my texturing methods have evolved!) One Dallon Weekes photo and a Reel about quick contrapposto armature doodling later and I was off to the races.

Initially, this was only supposed to be a souped up edition of the original look - the second image shown just above these notes. Then, while I was trying to figure out how I wanted to display the veil, I wondered: wouldn't it be neat to let it drape out of the frame? Except for I didn't have a frame involved at that point.

At which point I decided, well.... let's make a frame happen. There was already a decidedly haunted portrait energy coming off of this thing (fully intentional, but that's what happens when two of the albums you associate most strongly with your Skybound work are Vices and Virtues and Violent Things), so I thought: let's put it on display. Let's let the veil creep out to meet actual gallery air. Furthermore, why not give it a scary ass, borderline SCP ish existence? I do love an excuse to try and write a museum plaque.

Put another way: If you walked into a gallery and saw an oversized portrait of you on one of the worst days of your life that never happened, except for all the details were wrong (but just right enough to suggest the artist knew what she was doing), would that be fucked up or what?

Some other assorted notes about this:

The design of the gallery space itself was inspired by an image of Crystal Bridges, an art museum in Arkansas that I'm hoping to visit later this year on a trip I'm taking to that area. I've had a family friend hyping it up for years now, and I've looked into it a lot; it's an incredible space. In the fictional lore of this painting, it ends up in a Crossroads art preservation institute of some kind that hangs on to art and artifacts from throughout the realms that crashed together in the Merge. (I couldn't quite squeeze that into the plaque writeup without sounding clunky.) Crystal Bridges, an American art museum with a dizzying range of works, inspired that idea and seemed the most appropriate place to base my fictional gallery on. Here's the image I used as reference, taken from a Google result from their site:

There is, in fact, text on that plaque on the wall. It's too tiny to read, but I promise that's text. Barring a few minor changes, it's the same as in the writeup; I typed it out, screenshotted and removed the background, and laid it out on the plaque. Much easier than trying to draw out teeny individual words.

Something else I couldn't fit into the plaque but tried to imply via the details was that this piece survived whatever collection it was originally in and made it through the Merge inexplicably intact, much like Nya's memories of the deleted timeline still hanging on even after the full reset. Weird as some stuff in this world is, there truly is no escaping it. Better get some nice lighting on it and try to get to the bottom of it. (I do also think it's funny how I bent over backwards trying to help this unnamed plaque author curator character trace every possible origin path when the motive for making this was just... fun. I just did this for fun and then I tried to make it look so grand and terrifying.)

The outfit in the portrait is faithful to the original design, with a few tweaks: the web collar is now gold to stand out against the veil, the veil itself is much longer, there are now two more spiders on the skirt, and there's a birdcage-inspired crinoline under the skirt. That last one was a technical decision, as the lace this time around didn't feel like it could hold itself up. Also, it's a convenient source of more symbolism if you need one.

That's about all the notes I have for right now - if I think of others, I'll be sure to add them. If you have any questions or comments, the inbox is always, always open.

Thank you for stopping by the exhibit.

[hervey-gervey-chip]

DIY AGE-OF-SAIL INSPIRED FOULIES

part III: the process

it’s been a couple weeks since i finished making the alterations i wanted to make to the bibs before waxing, but we finally had an open shop day at school where i'm not bothering my buddies over at the Lady Washinton (though let’s be honest, the only reason i’m not there now is because they’re in anacortes and i dont wanna do the whole drive-ferry-drive thing). HOWEVER, that means i got to spend 4 hours painting my overalls with hot toxic soup. as far as the soup recipe goes, I did actually end up changing it again. in my first post i said i’d do varnish, and the second post i said black paint. i was going to measure everything out nice and had oz quantities i was going to adhere to, but i forgot my measuring cup… lets be real though, it’s probably more historically accurate to just throw shit in a pot and go. I’M MEASURING BY VIBES FOR SCIENCE!! the final recipe went something like this:

1lb microcrystalline wax

~1 cup mineral spirits

~3/4 cup tung oil

~1/2 cup rust-oleum oil based enamel paint (black)

~2 tbsp pine tar

I probably could have done more pine tar but the class bucket was basically empty and i didn’t want to walk down the hill to get more. I also know that pine tar takes fucking forever to cure, and even a small amount smells incredibly strong (though i certainly don’t mind, i actually prefer to be covered in the stuff most times- it’s more a courtesy to the non-tall shippers who aren’t used to the incredibly concentrated stink of 10 campfires burning directly into your nostrils). the reason i added the pine tar is because of it’s anti-bacterial and anti-microbial properties, since once the bibs are cured i really won’t be able to wash them. also, from my (limited and haphazard) research, you don’t need a lot to reap those benefits.

i put the wax in a double boiler, and once melted, added the oil, thinner, and paint/pine tar all at once. once it was all sufficiently combined, i started painting it on, let it cool a little bit, and then went back in with a heat gun and brush to help the solution impregnate the fibers of the cloth. oh also. make sure you are in a well ventilated space AND WEAR A RESPIRATOR (see the i-learned section below). i did 2 coats all over in this manner, and then a third over the knees, butt, and ankles for good measure.

oils and tar over any kind of fibrous material can take weeks to fully cure (as i have learned well from rigging), so i am expecting to leave my garment and it’s accoutrements hanging in the shop for about 3 weeks before they reach any kind of wearable or testable condition. everything seemed to soak in pretty well, but i left the shop before everything fully cooled so i’ll do another update at the beginning of next week- i’m anticipating that i over-waxed and there will be some residue i will have to deal with (though in what way is to be decided).

cleanup was pretty easy, considering my proclivity for giant messes with any project i engage in- lots of mineral spirits and several rags seemed to do the trick.

some things i learned/would do differently:

oh my god this recipe makes so much. like. so much. i had like 2 cups leftover and i did 2 coats on my overalls, pockets, AND a 1’x3’ piece of spare canvas. if you were just waxing a pair of pants, halving the recipe would still probably be more than enough

putting the cold liquids into the hot wax makes it congeal a little bit, but you can’t tell when the black paint makes the entire contents of the pot turn, well, BLACK. id put the transparent stuff in first, let it all melt together, and then add the black paint so that there wouldn’t suddenly be so many solid particles all at once

MIX FREQUENTLY. photo 3 shows the difference. i had mixed it really well at the beginning, but once it was all (presumably) a single solution, i stopped worrying about mixing it. the thing about paint/varnish/buildable coatings is that the reason they are buildable or have any sort of pigment is because of the suspended solids within it. this means that over time, the solids will coagulate at the bottom of the container, which is why you have to shake nail polish or stir paint before using it. this also means that i should have been mixing every couple minutes as i was painting it onto the bibs, so i ended up with a very pigmented mixture at the end, and a relatively translucent mix at the beginning. up until a certain point, i was getting a pigment that was not opaque but i was happy with, so i didn’t think too much of it until i was putting on coats that looked more brown than grey or black. anyways, mix your shit.

so… cotton burns. i was painting one leg at a time and then heat gunning it before moving on to the next leg. the wax/oil solution seems to make the fabric more resistant to burning, so the painted bits can take more heat than the untreated cotton next to it. if you, say, for example, (i definitely DID NOT DO THIS) get distracted by a particularly riveting tiktok your friend sent you of a snail vibing on a car windshield while your heat gun is blasting on high 2 inches from your pants, the raw canvas may or may not start smoking. i switched up to painting the Entire back or Entire front before heat gunning, and that seemed to solve the problem (also no more snail tiktoks)

respirators are kind of important. i was in a giant shop with vaulted ceilings next to a wide open garage door and i still had a bit of a headache after 4 hours of standing unprotected next to a pot of hot poison.

photo descriptions:

setup

setup part 2: electric boogaloo

pant ass- upper section 1 coat unmixed, lower section 1 coat mixed

spare canvas in the midst of coat 2

back of spare canvas after coat 1

back of spare canvas after coat 2

waterproof test!

finished garments and spare canvas, ready to cure

cleanup

[drinker-of-paint]

those docs are sick as hell. did you use posca markers? comma also anything to seal the design on?

So I'm not an expert by any means but I'm happy to share my research

Also I wore them out and about on a misty rain day today and they seem to have held up but only time will tell

So from the research I did custom designs like this work best on certain types of docs (it said 'smooth leather' was best, and there was one that it absolutely doesn't work on so deffo look that up to be sure not to ruin your docs if you already have a pair you're thinking of decorating) I'm not really sure if mine count as smooth leather cause they're kind of matte and they might have been talking about a specific type but anyway- that's something to keep in mind.

Next said to prep the area you're painting. There's a few things you can use but i ended up just wiping some nail Polish remover (in place of rubbing alcahol) over the area with a cloth and leaving it to dry for a minute (don't go overboard with it though- you want to find the happy medium of taking off some of the oils so the paint can bond with the surface but not so much that you leave the area looking damaged or drying out the leather too much, that can cause long term damage)

I played with some designs and placement of the different eye sizes in my sketchbook before I was ready to brave putting paint on these brand new doc martens 😂

May have been a me thing but I do recommend it so you're as confident as possible with what you want to do every time you put the pen down. Depending on the type of fabric you can use tissue or a cotton swab with more rubbing alcohol to correct mistakes with posca but I couldn't find anything that worked for mine so I was just really careful.

Next unless you're really brave it's probably a good idea to use a soft pencil to draw the pattern to trace, then when you're ready to put posca on it (I used the type with the pointy plastic nib- makes it much easier to get sharp points) just really take your time with it

if you're adhd like me and feel burnt out after doing one side definitely take a break and come back to it when you're zoned into it again because when you're out of steam is when you'll start making mistakes and rushing things 😂

When you're all done and happy, and you're sure it doesn't need another layer for full vibrancy, (though fewer layers is preferable) posca dries really quick but just to be completely sure I let them sit for like half an hour.

Now I should preface this by saying i couldn't find literally anything about sealing posca on your docs online, most I could find were people saying just be sure to prep the leather and it'll be fine, but idk I live in England it's wet as fuck here I don't know if I trust that.

I did find one thing from posca saying you can use water based varnish to seal it on leather but idk if that was really talking about shoes? I don't have any varnish but I'm probably going to get some just to be safe.

I DID though use a layer of some of my sisters hairspray, because it was literally all I had to hand, which at least to me did seem like it made it more sturdy when I ran a fingernail over it but I don't know if I trust getting them too wet with only the protection of hairspray

Anyway this was a super long response overexplaining more than you actually asked 😅

but i thought this might be helpful to put out there for others who are trying it for the first time because I couldn't actually find anywhere that had clear instructions in one place, hope it helped 😂

[pyjama-aeldari]

Painted another corpse fanatic today, so captured the process if some of you were interested. Yes, I still need to finish the base.

1. Base coat in scarlet/ rhinox hide mix

2. Black / khorne red stripes

3. As before, but make a lattice.

4. In the cross sections paint a black square.

5. A thin line vertical of Averland Sunset and white. I do this a bit bold, don't worry we'll knock em back in a bit.

6. As before, but horizontal

7. Using black, create a thin lattice in the scarlet boxes, vertical and horizontal.

8. Get brave. Apply a coat of matt varnish. Let it dry and cover in AK Streaking Grime. Let this dry and with a brush and white spirit brush to the bottom of the model.

9. Apply an oil wash of black and brown. As before let dry and dab off.

You're done. Add pigments if you like for extra dirt.

Full credit, I adapted my process on this tutorial by @kujopainting

[maniakminis]

What techniques do you use to get your T28 guys to look so magnificently dirty?

I wish you asked this a week ago, I had just finished painting a bunch of Fodder. Luckily for you the backlog is never ending, so I painted some more guys and took pictures!

The short answer is: Texture Paint, Drybrushing, and Oil Washes. But here's a more in depth tutorial with pictures. For this technique none of the specific colors or brands matter so I'm going to be very general about what to use.

Before priming, I applied texture paint to the the model's coat, and his rifle. The dirt texture on the rifle will help sell the rusty appearance later. For pretty much every different color on the model I will paint it a dark color, then drybrush/rough highlight the same color in a lighter tone over it. Since the majority of the model is his coat, I paint the entire thing dark blue, then drybrush a lighter blue over it.

Next I paint all of the base colors for the rest of the model. Dark Grays for the boots and hat. Brown/Beige for the sash, skull, and hands. Dark brown for the leather and rifle. Dark gold for the shoulders and tassel on the hat. Once dried, I drybrush or dab rough highlights on these same spots with a lighter tone of paint. Light gray for the hat, bright gold for the shoulders and tassels, light beige for the bone. For rusty metallics, I drybrush silver over the brown painted rifle.

Grass tufts are carefully superglued onto the miniature. Do not overglue and be sure to let it dry properly before continuing. Too much glue will fog up the surfaces and ruin the paintjob! The miniature is then varnished with gloss clear coat. Wow, look at that shine!

Now its time for the turnip oil! I have a shade wash I created by mixing Brown, Red, and Black Oil Paints with Mineral Spirits. I mix it thoroughly and test a small drop on a paper towel to make sure its not too thin or too thick. If you've ever spilled Agrax Earthshade, you know the consistency of the wash you're looking for! This is applied over the model to pick out the details like any other shade wash would, as well as give it that really dirty look.

Again, make sure the model was covered in Gloss Clear Coat first as it helps the Oil Wash spread out on the miniature and get into all the recesses. After the model dries, you can dip a cotton swab in Mineral Spirits to reactivate the oil wash and move it around as necessary. If you're happy with how everything looks, apply a final coat of Matte Varnish (Or Gloss or Satin, whatever your preference) to seal your miniature and done!

Ready to die an unglorious death for the Roots! Thanks for the ask, I hope all this makes sense, I've never done a tutorial before. Happy Hobbying! :D

[the-great-zalmoxis]

Here are the steps and some tricks that I use to make water bases for my minis! (〃´▽`〃)

Thank you @lisuune for asking!~☆ I hope this will be of help!

1st step is to decide what the base "water" colour is!

For murky pounds you can use browns and beige, for a swamp, I use dark greens, olive, and sepia, for deep water the best would be shades of blue, depending of the depth that you want.

I'll use this mini as an example. I had some fun pouring cheap acrylics mixed with regular white/school glue (not obligatory, but I added a drop of silicone oil for the eye effects). I cut a plastic bag in two and let the acrylics dry. After acrylics dry, they turn to plastic, which is easy to cut and glued on the base.

(I need to flip my cutting mate, sorry for the mess (ó﹏ò｡))

Always let painrs dry in a well ventilated place.

2nd step is to decide what sort of "water" you shall use.

I am mostly using two materials, but there are a few others as well. I never tried them, but I read that people use transparent glue, varnish medium, or medium gel. I personally have experience with resin (both UV and regular epoxy resin) and clear acrylic.

(! Always work in a well ventilated space with resin ! It is super important, the fumes are toxic! Wearing gloves with resin is a must!)

When pouring, you can use a silicone mold for the base, or as my silly ass did the first time, use a little tape to create a dam (this only works if you intend to pour just a little).

Depending on how much you need, you can use: acrylic and epoxy resin for projects where you need a lot. Those allow you to pour multiple layers that will merge marvellously!

The trick is to be patient to let it dry, and pour very slowly to avoid air bubbles. Usually, a spritz or spray of alcohol is enough to eliminate the surface bubbles!

While acrylic is way safer and friendly for beginners, resin allows you to do neat tricks.

Use UV resin when you don't have to use a lot, because it doesn't layer as nicely as the regular one that needs to dry to gel (harden).

You can leave the UV resin under sunlight, and it will harden, or you can use an UV lamp, or flashlight, which will cause it to harden in seconds!

I made here a watter ripping by using a compressed air can and curing as it was blown into place. (*sensible chuckle*).

If you have fishing wire or transparent tread, you can pour a few drops on it and cure it for a cute splash effect!

As an extra, I use putty to make the "solid ground". I really like the Green Stuff world rolling pins, but a 3D printed one can work just as fine! (Don't forget to cover them with sculptor vaseline, or just water. For me, I prefer starch, that is why mine are so dusty)

I saw some beautiful basing kits from GSW, that I will absolutely buy to try. They have them for all kinds of terrain, including water, swamps, lava etc.

Happy basing !~♡

(｡･ω･｡)ﾉ♡

[bomberqueen17]

switchplate covers update/tutorial

So the thing to keep in mind with this is that we gotta see how well the wear. A switchplate cover is a pretty high-traffic thing, and subject to a lot of wear. If these get too dingy I'm absolutely going to have to go buy fancy ceramic ones or something.

But. That said. Here is my final result, and below the cut is how I did this, partly because I want to remember how it worked LOL.

[Image description: A combo lightswitch/outlet with a black three-prong plug plugged into it, set into a white subway tile wall with a wooden breadboard leaned against it. The plate cover is painted with a mottled effect to look like a turquoise gemstone, complete with inset glitter to mimic the pyrite inclusions found in some raw turquoise.]

A better view of the glitter:

[Image description: Another turquoise-painted outlet faceplate on the background of a rumpled white dropcloth, my fingers visible tilting it toward the light so the flake glitter catches the light from the window.]

So I searched up for tutorials and found a few, each of which was like "can't believe nobody else has done this"; I'm sharing the most helpful one here. What was thee very most helpful thing, though, was the writer's pointing out that many different configurations of turquoise exist, so you can just pick a reference image and build off that. I did not in the end come very close to my reference, but decided instead to make it look sick as hell. LOL. I was just having too much fun doing whatever I wanted. So these are not super realistic! But then you wouldn't... make an outlet faceplate out of real turquoise, so I felt like I wasn't fooling anyone. Anyway--

How To Paint Faux Turquoise.

So the first thing I did was find some very fine-grit sandpaper (I think I got 320? I found a mostly used-up sheet of it in the basement and just used the unused edge from where it had been fastened around a block, LOL) and went over the whole front surface of each plate I was going to paint, and then I washed them with dishsoap and hot water and dried them with a dish towel, because I figured finger grease, hand dirt, and sanding dust would keep the paint from sticking. I started with white plastic ones, the kind you get for up to a dollar at the hardware store.

Then I got a plastic container lid, put dollops of various of my paint samples in it, dug out the craft paints I got cleaning out Auntie's basement and the sole tube of acrylics (Mars black) I could still find from the last time I did any painting, and went to town. The first couple, I did the pale shades and let them dry and came back to add the darker marbling. But then I was like, these are latex/acrylic, you don't have to build them in layers? So I just did the rest of them with all the shading in more or less one pass.

Acrylic art paint and latex housepaint are both water-based, so there's no conflict with using them intermingled. I've combined them before, I used to do a lot of sign painting and it works fine. Housepaint's runnier, idk. Don't mix oils and latex, is the thing to keep in mind; they just don't stick to each other real well.

I went to the art supply store to get some water-based varnish, because all i had was polyurethane and that's oil-based. It'd probably work as a topcoat but I was worried and the internet's advice conflicted. I wanted to go get better glitter anyway, so I did. I happen to live near Hyatt's All Things Creative, so I take every excuse I can get to go there.

I bought some sick-ass glitter (over in the resin pouring section, hell yes), and puzzled thru the various offerings. (@sassaffrassa's advice proved invaluable on this thank u.) I got just-- "Gloss varnish acrylic medium", the Hyatt's brand, for four dollars and sixty-nine (nice) cents, and then because I was feeling spendy, I also bought Krylon spray-on glossy varnish. Belt and suspenders, y'know? Also to make the brush strokes less obvious.

The critical thing, though, about the gloss varnish, is that it says right on the bottle that you can either incorporate it into the paint as a medium to enhance the sheen, OR brush it over the finished work as a protective coating. Dries absolutely clear. So I knew, THIS is how I'm attaching the glitter. I'd been thinking like, mod podge? elmer's glue? mix it into the paint? No.

[image description: the gloss varnish bottle. It is this product. The relevant text says "can be used either as a medium to enhance the sheen levels of acrylic paint or as an over-varnish on finished artwork to provide a non-tacky, protective gloss coating".]

So I carefully got open the little bottle of glitter (no sneezing! it was "white gold flake" style and cost eight bucks for like half a gram. to my knowledge it's not actually made of gold but it was priced like it was) and painted little fine patches of gloss varnish onto the spots I wanted glittered, and then used tweezers to apply glitter just in those spots, and mooshed them around with the little varnish-covered brush until they stuck where I wanted them. (I put them on the darkest bits of the veining, because that was what my source image looked like, mostly. I wanted to be really liberal but then I thought, no, a little pop of glitter is more exciting actually. Still not sure, but it does look good so. They say measure that shit with your heart but I went light because I figured I could add more later, and then I didn't.)

Then I came back at the end and painted more gloss varnish just over the glitter, just to make sure it was all really stuck down and wouldn't flake off with wear.

Let that dry for a couple hours, then used a larger brush to spread gloss varnish as evenly as possible over the entirety of each plate. It did leave visible brush strokes, which I didn't mind. The art shop guy suggested using a really soft brush to minimize that, and I was like "yah sure ok" but then, well, I didn't, I just used the brush I had.)

But then I let that dry overnight, and in the morning I put the plates all in my giant overspray cardboard box, and gave them each a liberal coating of the spray varnish. (Yes of course I have a giant cardboard box I keep in my basement to spray paint things in. I know it says use in a well-ventilated space but what I do, see, is I do that and then I leave the room, which is almost as good. LOL it's 24F and snowing I'm not doing it outside.)

That bottle says two hours until handling on it, so I left it two hours, and then I put up the plates that were in spots where the painting was done or wasn't happening, hence my example image being against a tiled wall.

The screwdriver immediately scratched the first one a little bit, but not super obviously. But I kind of would expect a screwdriver to scratch just about anything, so that doesn't mean much.

I won't guarantee how well these'll hold up but if you were interested in doing something like that, there's how it worked. (Hi, future me, you're welcome for writing it down lol.)

I'm sort of sorry for no more process pictures but honestly most of it was following whimsy and doing what I felt like and kind of drawing on what I hadn't realized was a lot lot lot of hours of past paint-handling in my life, so pictures wouldn't help anyone else recreate this. But it did remind me that I love to paint and should do that more. So, I'll try, I guess.

[erotetica]

Blogging this wicker restoration for some reason

My mom got ^this cool basket off ebay! She's very dingy (the basket not the mother) on the inside + handle tho:

So 1st step was a wash.

Filled the sink with maybe a quart/liter of warm water + 1tsp/5ml of Dawn dish soap (chosen for its oil-cutting abilities) + 1/2tsp/2.5ml of Dawn Powerwash (meant for burnt pans but I find it's a fast-acting general grime remover, while still gentle, given it's intended for use on teflon cookware without damaging it.)

After a gentle scrub with a horse hair laundry brush (they're softer), this was the result:

(Her base is thin oak planks; to be safe re: warping, I immediately blow-dried her, with an actual hair dryer & not a heat gun, bc I was also worried abt loosening any glues)

So. Better, but now we can see we're dealing with a worn finish (note the sheen/color vibrancy difference between the 2nd and 3rd pic) on the inside and handle.

Sometimes a wax buffing is enough to get vibrancy back in wood (& I'm fairly certain she's entirely wood, & not another plant fibre wicker with a wood base/handle), and that's what I was hoping to get away with,

But!

As I handled this thing, the wicker was so old + brittle that twig ends were breaking off. So to extend her life (& be able to actually put shit in it), I'm just refinishing the inside.

Hoping this will a) revive the wood coloration, obvs, but also b) that the varnish will soak into the very thirsty wood & give it some strength.

Varnish updates tomorrow!

[k00296471]

Disrupt

•I hoped to cover the fridge and the painted food inside with a clear oil based varnish to make it look glossy, but I ran out of time.

•Here, I am grabbing a slice of cake to eat, but I then see a note saying

" Do not touch, this is for guests"

•I've added energy drinks cans, too.

•I added hinges by putting wire through the doors and through the fridges side. I didn't use real hinges because I was afraid they would tear the cardboard. Now the doors are finally doors!

•I added alfabet fridge magnets. Made from cardboard. They spell out binge eatting. Which is what my project is about.

•Also, I added a plug and socket

•I spray painted the fridge doors and body blue on the outside and white on the inside.

[usafphantom2]

Producing JP-7, the fuel that powered the SR-71 Blackbird, caused a nationwide shortage of bug spray. Here’s why.

The SR-71 Blackbird

In the 1960’s, the US Air Force (USAF) developed the SR-71 Blackbird, a plane that could travel more than 3 times as fast as the sound produced by its own engines.

SR-71 T-Shirts

CLICK HERE to see The Aviation Geek Club contributor Linda Sheffield’s T-shirt designs! Linda has a personal relationship with the SR-71 because her father Butch Sheffield flew the Blackbird from test flight in 1965 until 1973. Butch’s Granddaughter’s Lisa Burroughs and Susan Miller are graphic designers. They designed most of the merchandise that is for sale on Threadless. A percentage of the profits go to Flight Test Museum at Edwards Air Force Base. This nonprofit charity is personal to the Sheffield family because they are raising money to house SR-71, #955. This was the first Blackbird that Butch Sheffield flew on Oct. 4, 1965.

Throughout its nearly 24-year career, the SR-71 spy plane remained the world’s fastest and highest-flying operational aircraft. Flying at Mach 3+ from 80,000 feet, it could survey 100,000 square miles of Earth’s surface per hour. And in the off chance an enemy tried to shoot it down with a missile, all the Blackbird had to do was speed up and outrun it.

Its engineering was so cutting edge that even the tools to build the SR-71 needed to be designed from scratch.

JP-7, the SR-71 Blackbird fuel

In fact, given that the Blackbird became so hot because it cruised at a speed of Mach 3.2 conventional jet fuel could not be used in it. A jet fuel with a high flash point, and high thermal stability was required. To satisfy this requirement Shell produced a special blend of fuel called JP-7.

Specifically, JP-7 fuel (referred to as Jet Propellant 7 prior to MIL-DTL-38219) was developed for the Blackbird’s Pratt & Whitney J58 (JT11D-20) turbojet engine. During flight, the SR-71 could attain speeds in excess of Mach 3+, which was the most efficient cruising speed for the J58 engines. However, very high skin temperatures were generated at this speed due to friction with the air. A new jet fuel was needed that was not affected by the heat, so JP-7 jet fuel, with a high flash point and high thermal stability, was developed for this purpose.

JP-7 fuel production caused a nationwide shortage of bug spray

According to the SR-71A Flight Manual, “The operating envelope of the [J58] JT11D-20 engine requires special fuel. The fuel is not only the source of energy but is also used in the engine hydraulic system. During high Mach flight, the fuel is also a heat sink for the various aircraft and engine accessories which would otherwise overheat at the high temperatures encountered. This requires a fuel having high thermal stability so that it will not break down and deposit coke and varnishes in the fuel system passages. A high luminometer number (brightness of flame index) is required to minimize transfer of heat to the burner parts. Other items are also significant, such as the amount of sulfur impurities tolerated. Advanced fuels, JP-7 (PWA 535) and PWA 523E, were developed to meet the above requirements.”

Producing JP-7, the fuel that powered the SR-71 Blackbird, caused a nationwide shortage of bug spray. Here’s why.

This print is available in multiple sizes from AircraftProfilePrints.com – CLICK HERE TO GET YOURS. SR-71A Blackbird 61-7972 “Skunkworks”

Flit mosquito repellant

Noteworthy, JP-7 production caused a nationwide shortage of bug spray.

Shell Oil developed JP-7 in 1955. Manufacturing several hundred thousand gallons of the new fuel required the petroleum byproducts Shell normally used to make its Flit insecticide, causing a nationwide shortage of that product!

One of the ingredients in JP-7 just so happened to be a crucial part of Flit mosquito repellant. Bearing in mind the huge amount of fuel we’re talking about here, Shell didn’t exactly have enough supply to meet the newly increased demand, so mosquitos everywhere caught a lucky break!

JP-7 had a high flashpoint. It was not flammable and every time an SR-71 needed fuel, tankers were always there, they were terrific and deserve high praise.

SR-71 Blackbird JP-7 fuel used by the Boeing X-51 Waverider

Today the JP-7 fuel is used by the Boeing X-51 Waverider in its Pratt & Whitney SJY61 scramjet engine, with fuel capacity of some 270 pounds (120 kg). As with the SR-71, the X-51A design super-cools this fuel (cooled by extended subsonic flight in the stratosphere; prior to acceleration to supersonic speeds); then, when in supersonic flight, the fuel is heated by its circulation through heat exchangers which transfer to it the heat load of the interior spaces of the airframe. The fuel is then pumped through rotating mechanical parts of the engines and auxiliary mechanical equipment, providing both lubrication and cooling. Finally, at a temperature of nearly 550 °F (290 °C), it is pumped into the fuel nozzles of the engines.

Be sure to check out Linda Sheffield Miller (Col Richard (Butch) Sheffield’s daughter, Col. Sheffield was an SR-71 Reconnaissance Systems Officer) Twitter X Page Habubrats SR-71 and Facebook Page Born into the Wilde Blue Yonder for awesome Blackbird’s photos and stories.

Photo credit: U.S. Air Force

@Habubrats71 via X

[dark-fuckprincess]

Painting has begun on my zone mortalis terrain! Several different coloured sections are planned. These ones will be silver, and an off white section is in the process of being base coated

Painting process for these walls is all follows

Prime black

Sponge on Rhinox Hide wherever you like or where you think rust would form. This is one of the steps with the purpose of suggesting rust.

Sponge/Drybrush on Leadbelcher heavily.

Paint details with some warm colours. (We are here). I used Scale 75 Decayed Metal and Dwarven Brass, as well as ProAcryl Burnt Red.

Later, I'm going to gloss varnish and oil wash, paint the lights with an airbrush spraying white and either one of the ProAcryl reds, contrast orange or blue. I plan to use a mix of lamp black and burnt umber, with more burnt umber in the mix. I prefer a warmer tone generally.

Then I'll matte varnish it.

After that, I'll hit it with some rust effects and pigment powders to represent rust.

[andmaybegayer]

Just finished up at PONK.SPACE, a by-the-hour shared workshop in Holešovice

Absolutely fantastic shop, they were running an introductory welding class in the metal shop today.

Final fit-up on Galena (yes it's still not finished. I know.) bringing in the wood frame to fit with a belt sander.

Looking damn fine if I do compliment my own handiwork, positively nautical. Ironwood remains a true pain in the ass to work with, in the future remind me not to work on projects in ironwood and white oak, which was what Galena frame Mk.1 was made of.

Remaining tasks: polish up the brass plate and seal it with... something, probably clear varnish, so that it stops tarnishing when you look at it. Print, laser cut or otherwise manufacture a base for this. Oil the wood. Last step there probably also going to be done at PONK so that I can just borrow their oils and also do the last sanding pass without having to do stupid shit on my balcony.

[oleanderfeathers]

Here’s Varnish’s brother!! I drew this ref at midnight last night 😭😭

He’s based on when oil does like the rainbow thing when it hits water- I think that it’s fitting for an inkmare kid. I hope you guys like him!!

[hervey-gervey-chip]

DIY AGE-OF-SAIL INSPIRED FOULIES

“Cold, wet, sleep in your wet clothes no other way to dry them,” is the sentiment expressed by Capt. Irving Johnson in the 1929 film Around Cape Horn. As much as I understand the reality of having so little space that hanging wet clothes between watches below-decks is near impossible, I also would very much like to make note that rain gear did exist aboard ships long before the invention of our modern rubber and synthetic foulies. It was, in fact, quite common for sailors to go such lengths as impregnating the fibers of their clothing with things like tar, spermaceti, alum, lime, paint, and even lead (Putman).

My frustration with rain gear has been rather consistent through my life aboard boats; I find that the comfortable, flexible bibs wet through relatively quickly in the rigorous conditions of tall ship life, and the more rigid weatherproof fisherman-style bibs don’t allow me the range of movement I like to have in the rig. Therefore, I have turned to look into historic methods to attempt to create my own, re-waterproof-able foul weather gear. (Side-note: I hate that I am often not able to maintain or repair modern waterproof garments when at sea for long periods of time due to the inaccessible processes that went into making the clothing waterproof in the first place). That said, the methods listed above are not safe or accessible to me in our modern world, so I must create a more contemporary recipe based on both the needs that I share with my sailing ancestors, and our present available safe materials.

In Tyler Rudd Putman’s article “Whalemen and Waterproofing IV: The Recipes,” there are two materials mentioned that I can and do have access to: linseed oil and varnish. I am also aware of tincloth items sold by various companies -a canvas cloth made waterproof by the infusion of a beeswax and oil mixture into the fibers. And so, I have a jumping-off point. In my efforts to make this piece of gear as waterproof as possible (since I will be putting in valuable time and materials to make it) I turn to Youtube University to see if anyone has improved upon the linseed-oil-and-beeswax solution. Lo-and-behold, someone has! The Lone Woodman posted a video 6 years ago entitled “THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO MAKING TIN PANTS,” where he goes into detail about the molecular structure of different oils and waxes in order to find the optimal combination of durability, water resistance, and flexibility. His final recipe is:

16 oz microcrystalline wax

2 oz Tung oil

6 oz Tung oil finish

8 oz mineral spirits

As you may notice, he includes Tung oil finish in the mixture: an oil finish with added varnish components and drying agents. An interesting alignment with the information gathered by Putman regarding rain gear in the age of sail. For this reason, I have chosen to forego the tung oil finish, and instead adjust the ratios to make an oil-wax-varnish mixture that will hopefully add extra uv protection and help with cure time for my own garment. My final recipe I have come up with is:

16 oz microcrystalline wax

6 oz Tung oil

2 oz varnish

8 oz mineral spirits

Now all that I have left to do is make the thing, and report back on whether or not we, with our modern technologies and fabrics, have overlooked an incredibly simple and effective way of keeping ourselves dry.

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