Introduction: Flat Screen Fun Surround 2
Ok... I used a plain white primer paint on both front and back of the MDF board and the wooden supports. (Water based primer, quick drying.) Painting the back of the screen, means that when you have a back light , The reflection of light makes a softer glow around the outline, making it look nice to watch the TV with.
First I used a blue marker pen to make a simple outline of what I wanted. Then very, very thin coats of paint over the top. (Several layers) I painted each layer 'WET' and smeared and mixed the wet paint while each layer / coat of the paint was still wet. This gave a faded / old style look to the paint finish. (This is what I prefer, but you might want a more 'perfect' finish to suit your own style.)
Then I used various other paint colours I had left over from other projects. Just whatever I had in old cans of paint sitting on the shelves.
The idea was to make a 3-D effect using the 'Trompe l'oeil' painting technique, a trick of the eye..!
So I painted shading and shadows with a dark Blue. Then lighter colours of Cream and Green to high-light other shapes. I basically let my imagination guide me and painted something that 'Looked-A-Likely' an old theatre or old stage setting. It was a like I was painting an old stage painting in a theatre or an old Hollywood movie background.
The 'Trompe l'oeil' technique means that the screen looks pretty to look at when there is nothing on the tv. It also helps with covering up the High-Tech look of the shiny black glossy plastic of the tv case. (Which I find looks more like Darth Vaders helmet..!) It also hides the coils of 'spaghetti' cables and wires that are connected to the tv, dvd, usb, the electrical wall socket, the internet, the washing machine, the street lighting, on and on and on..!
Other ideas for a screen surround are....... The Taj Mahal, The New York Skyline, The Disney Castle, The White House, Buckingham Palace or perhaps even The Kremlin! Do you have an idea yourself? Anything you can imagine..!
(PS. I used the spell-checker on this one... Smile!)
Step 1: Primer Painting
White primer on both sides of the screen.