Welcome Fall by Pamela Cassidy
Updated: Aug 26, 2019
Fall is such a beautiful season in New England. The foliage is rich with colors that inspire creativity. This ‘welcome sign’ will be a welcome addition to your fall decor. It’s a fun project for painters of all levels and can be applied to any surface of your choice.
I began painting over 15 years ago. As a busy mom of three young boys, I craved a little time to myself and began taking decorative painting classes. I primarily use acrylics when I paint, but I enjoy working with oils as well. Over the years, I have been humbled by so many talented artists and gifted instructors from who I’ve taken classes. This allowed me to broadened my knowledge and skills, and enabled me to occasionally teach in small class settings. I am very excited to now create my own designs, and I hope you enjoy painting this one as much as I did.
SUPPLIES
Wood Pallet by Art Minds Available at Michaels Craft Stores, Item #10409691, 17”x11”x0.6”
DECOART AMERICA
Antique White 58
Bittersweet Chocolate 195
Burnt Orange 16
Burnt Sienna 63
Cadmium Yellow 10
Cranberry Wine 112
Hauser Dark Green 133
Hauser Light Green 131
Hauser Medium Green 132
Heritage Brick 219
Light Buttermilk 164
Marigold 194
Spiced Pumpkin 310
Tangerine 12
Traditional Burnt Umber 221
MEDIUMS
Delta Ceramcoat All-Purpose Sealer, Product #070050802
Liberty Art Acrylic Matte Varnish, Product #LS28550 BRUSHES
Loew-Cornell 7400C Angle Shader ¾ inch Scharff 155 Angle Shader ½ inch LaCorneille 7600 Oval ½ inch Loew-Cornell 7500 #8 Filbert Loew-Cornell 7000C #4 Round Loew-Cornell 7000C #2 Round Artist’s Loft Vienna 10/0 Liner Master’s Touch 425 Oval Mop ½ inch Loew-Cornell 410 Stippler ¼ inch Craftsmart 2in. Angle Brush
MISCELLANEOUS SUPPLIES
Tracing Paper White Graphite Paper Pencil Paper Towels Stylus Palette Paper Water Basin Helpful Tip: I have indicated on the line drawing where to shade and highlight. ‘X’ indicates a shade, ‘-‘ indicates a highlight.
Download Re-scanned Line Drawing Here
PREPARATION
Seal wood or surface of choice with wood sealer. Trace line drawing onto tracing paper. You will need two pieces of tracing paper to accommodate the drawing if you are doing it at 100% of size. Transfer lettering and main lines of pumpkin and stem (not inner section lines) to surface. Sunflowers and vines will be added later.
INSTRUCTIONS
STEP 1. Using the ¾ inch angular, with strokes going top to bottom with the shape of the pumpkin, base both pumpkins with Burnt Orange. Using the #4 round, base the stems with Traditional Burnt Umber.
STEP 2.
Transfer on section lines of pumpkins. Using the ¾ inch angular, float Heritage Brick along the inside sections as shown in photo #3 to separate pumpkin sections, and then around the stem where it sits on the pumpkin, behind the right pumpkin to separate the two, and along bottom of the right pumpkin. Tap the ½ inch mop on your wet floats to soften any hard edges. Using the same brush, float a highlight on the outside of the sections with Tangerine. Using the #4 round brush, add texture to the stem by dragging in some highlights. This should be done with a dry brush and a light touch. Base leaves on stem with Hauser Medium Green using the #8 filbert, highlight with Hauser Light Green using the ½ inch angular, and pull a thin vein line using the 10/0 liner brush.
STEP 3. Transfer on remaining pattern (sunflowers, stem, leaves and vine) except for vein lines in leaves. Sunflower petals will be painted using Marigold, Cadmium Yellow, Burnt Sienna, and Lt. Buttermilk. Starting with the rear petals, double load your #8 filbert with Burnt Sienna and Marigold, and base with this darker value. Once the rear most petals are painted, wipe out extra paint on a paper towel, and with a dirty brush, move onto the other petals using Marigold and Cad Yellow, randomly making some petals lighter than others. The goal is to have the rear petals in a darker value, and the foremost petals the lightest; the variations of color should separate the petals. Once all petals are painted, if you feel there isn’t enough variation of color, use your ½ inch angle brush with Burnt Sienna to float in shading between petals. At the base of the petals, use your ½ inch angular to float a shade of Burnt Sienna around the center, and use your mop to soften if necessary. With Burnt Sienna, use your #4 round to gently pull in some color in the center of each petal. This should be done with a light touch and a dry brush to avoid the color being too harsh, similar to what was done in the stem. You can now randomly add in highlights with Lt. Buttermilk. This can be done with either a float or a dry brush. I added my highlights on the lower Sunflower only, but you can add them to your liking.
STEP 4. With the ¼ inch stippler, pick up Bittersweet Chocolate, off load slightly on a paper towel, and gently pounce in your sunflower centers. Clean the stippler on a paper towel, do not rinse, and gently pounce in soft highlights with Burnt Orange followed by Marigold. Using the ½ inch angular, base leaves in Hauser Medium Green. Use the #2 round to base the stems in the same color. With your angle brush, float a shade with Hauser Dark Green at the base of leaves 1 & 2 of the upright sunflower. Shade leaves 3, 4, & 5 to separate. Shade leaf 3 at the base around the sunflower petals. Shade leaves 4 & 5 at base to separate from left pumpkin. Using the same brush and Hauser Light Green, float highlights on the upper edges of all leaves. Use your ½ inch angular to float a shade with Heritage Brick between the pumpkin and leaf 3. This will further push your pumpkin back behind the leaf. With your #2 round, using a dry brush, lightly drag in some Hauser Dark and Hauser Light along the sunflower stem to give texture. Transfer in vein lines. Using your 10/0 liner and thinned Hauser Dark Green, pull in vein lines. Paint should be an inky consistency to avoid dragging.
STEP 5. Using your #2 round and your 10/0 liner, use Bittersweet Chocolate to paint in the vine. Main sections of the vine are a bit thicker, the offshoots are thinner, thus the need for two brushes. Pull in some highlights of Antique White. Use the #8 filbert double loaded with Hauser Dark and Hauser Light Green, and pull in the small leaves. This can be achieved by laying your brush down on the surface, pulling slightly, and twist to form the point of the leaf. You can also paint your leaves by basing in the darker color and highlighting in the lighter. Use the point of your #8 filbert to dip dot your berries in Cranberry Wine. Allow these to dry thoroughly, with your stylus pick up some Spiced Pumpkin, and add a highlight to each berry. STEP 6. Using your #2 round, fill in lettering with Antique White. Paint should be an inky consistency to avoid dragging and have good brush flow, but avoid using too much water.
FINISHING TOUCHES STEP 7. Allow your painting to dry thoroughly. I prefer letting mine set overnight, but if you are in a rush, you can thoroughly dry with a hair dryer, making sure the berry dip dots are set well. Once dry, varnish with Liberty Art Acrylic Matte Varnish using the 2 inch craftsmart brush or a large brush of your choice. I like using a larger brush to avoid brush lines. I never use a foam brush to varnish because it creates bubbles in the finish.
I hope you enjoyed this project!