Happy Jack, the Candlestick!
by Vera Collier 2019
Add your own Halloween embellishments to make this happy fellow your own.
Supplies
Surface
6 3/4” candlestick SKU-01-P486 and 2 1/2” wood ball SKU-01-B586 from Cupboard Distributing www.cdwood.com
Designer note: you may substitute a paper mache ball for the wood ball, just make sure the size is proportionate to the size of the candlestick
Project Supplies (available at most craft stores)
Tim Holtz Ideaology Halloween Tokens
Halloween colored tinsel
Black, orange, white butchers twine
Small felt witch hat
Paints
Decoart Americana
Burnt Sienna
Canyon Orange
Golden Straw
Lamp Black
Olive Green
Pansy Lavender
Plantation Pine
Royal Purple
Warm White
Glamour Dust paint in Tiger Orange and Black Ice
Brushes
10/0 liner
1/2” wash
#4 flat
#2 and 4 rounds for basecoating
1/2” angular shader or your favorite shading brush
Crescent brush or your favorite brush for dry brushing
Your usual acrylic brushes. (Unless specified, use the best brush for the area you are painting)
Supplies
Decoart Americana DuraClear Matte Varnish
Decoart Americana Matte Spray Sealer
Tacky Glue
Preparation
Sand, seal and sand the candlestick and wood ball.
Painting instructions:
Basecoat the wood ball with several coats of Canyon Orange. Once dry, lightly draw pencil lines on the ball to separate it into six segments. With a 1/2” angular shader, float Burnt Sienna on both sides of each line. Allow to dry, the lightly dry brush Golden Straw to the center of each segment to highlight.
Trace the face features on the ball and paint them with Lamp Black. Add tiny sets of creature eyeballs in the eye and mouth openings with the large end of a stylus and Warm White. Allow these to dry, then add tiny dots of Lamp Black to the centers of the white dots.
The candlestick segments are based as follows (you can refer to the diagram below.)
Top - Lamp Black
Section 2 - Canyon Orange
Section 3 - Lamp Black
Section 4 - Olive Green
Section 5 - Warm White
Section 6 - Pansy Lavender
Section 7 - Canyon Orange
Section 8 (base) - Lamp Black
Shade between each section as follows:
Canyon Orange is shaded with Burnt Sienna
Olive Green is shaded with Plantation Pine
Pansy Lavender is shaded with Royal Purple
You may add whatever details you like to each section, or follow the picture for ideas. I added little black dots with a stylus to the small orange section at the top and on the Warm White section towards the bottom.
Using the end of a brush I did evenly spaced black dots on the Pansy Lavender section. Allow to dry, then add an Olive Green dot with a stylus to the center of black dot. On the Orange section towards the bottom, I painted wide, black stripes with a #4 flat and using a 10/0 liner paint Warm White lines on the black base.
Trace or freehand a cobweb to the Olive Green center section and paint it with thinned Lamp Black, using a 10/0 liner.
Allow paint to thoroughly dry. Glue wood ball to top of candlestick. Varnish entire piece with several coats of Duraclear Matte varnish.
If you desire, paint the black sections with the Black Ice glitter paint and the orange sections with Tiger Orange glitter paint. you can go right over the black parts, the glitter paint will dry clear.
Once varnish and glitter paint dries, embellish as you desire. I glued several colors of glittery tinsel around his neck and then added a metal token with butcher twine.
Add a ribbon around the hat brim and glue the hat to the pumpkin head.
Craft stores are full of fun Halloween embellishments this time of year. Check out the seasonal aisle, jewelry and scrapbooking sections for spooky embellishments to add to your Happy Jack!
From Vera... I started taking painting classes in 1988 and never dreamed that I would eventually start designing. My design journey began when I submitted a Christmas ornament to Decorative Woodcrafts as part of their ornament contest. My little church design ended up winning 2nd place in the religious category and was published in their annual ornament issue. That project gave me the confidence to start my designing journey.
©2019 Vera Collier