Painting an Antique Copper Effect

by DeliciousDrips

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Intro: Painting an Antique Copper Effect

In this tutorial, you will learn a very simple process on how you can create an antique brushed metal effect on your DIY Toy. This can be done quickly with a very unique look to it, and it offers you the possibilities to take this effect and build off it. In this particular tutorial, we will be using the Toy2r Bunnee Qee.

Materials:

1. Smooth flatbrush
2. Acrylic Paint (black, and a metallic color like copper, silver, or gold)
3. DIY Toy of your choice (You can purchase these at http://store.deliciousdrips.com)
4. Paper towel and cup of water

STEP 1: Disassemble the Toy

Remove your toy from its packaging. If possible, diassemble all of the parts to make fore easier painting of hard to reach areas.

STEP 2: Get Blackalicious

2. Paint all of the pieces with a thin layer of black. Its not important that you cover it with a thick layer. Whats more important is that you begin establishing the direction of the brush strokes. Its typically easiest to just paint vertical strokes, but it may differ from one toy to another.

STEP 3: Give Him the Metalica Special

3. Now well be throwing on the brushed metals. Take some black paint and mix it with your metallic paint of choice. You want about a 3:1 metallic to black ratio. Dont mix the paint thoroughly. Just give it some quick stirs, but leave some swirls. Also leave some black thats unmixed RIGHT next to your metallic mix. Cover the toy with the metallic mix while remembering to keep the same brush stroke direction always.

4. Dip the edge of your flat brush in A LITTLE black and the other half in the metallic mix. Work this combination into sections of the toy so you get a bit of a black to metallic gradient.

STEP 4: Bling Out the Edges

5. Now for the final touch. Take one of your smallest paint brushes and use your metallic paint unmixed on every sharp edge on the toy. Any seam or ridge should be highlighted to give it the true rustic look.

STEP 5: Do Whatever You Like

6. Thats it!! Now do whatever you want! We might recommend using a clear coat to finish him off or just protect the base coat before you do anything else.

19 Comments

iheartlbank 13 years ago

looks great! would this and your "Painting an Oxidized Patina Effect" work on a canvas?

zascecs 14 years ago

Cool. Just if you want a really rusty/copper effect, just get an iron toy and soak it wet; it'll get rusty!
=)
yea, that's what i thought

byerights 14 years ago

Theres a technique called Drybrushing where you get a certain amount of paint on the brush, wipe most of it off so you're left with, well, a dry brush, and then just brush it all over an object. Extruding features pick up more paint as more pressure is applied and it gives a great effect.

Speedmite 14 years ago

I have warm and sweaty hands so if it is real copper. I just hold it in my hand for a while or play with whatever it is all day. Sometimes I do this by accident. Such as my copper chain mail. =(

SondraC 14 years ago

While this information is interesting and well written and helpful it limits you to those specific colors in the kit. You can create a metallic look to any object very inexpensively. Just buy the small jars of metallic craft acrylic paint at any Craft Store. It will turn just about any object into a Metallic Antique look. At the same store you can also buy unpainted ceramics to paint or have your child paint. It is fun, inexpensive and habit forming .

macrumpton 14 years ago

I have had good success using metallic powders mixed with acrylic medium.

Ward_Nox 14 years ago

where can you get the bunny fig

Ward_Nox 14 years ago

i ment the blanks sorry should have clarified

calico1 14 years ago

When I go to these links I can't find anyway of buying these items. What am I missing here? Thanks

paintphone 14 years ago

You can just buy chromed paints at home depot comes in silver gold and copper/bronze. Its ment for interior decorating special effects inside your home !

TimTheScarecrow 14 years ago

great tutorial. i plan on using this when i start my first real set of steampunk goggles. two questions. 1. does this paint work on metal? 2. if i were to go to a store looking for acrylic paint would i look in the crafts section or toys or school and off supplies or hardware? p.s. that blackish ball toy with the dog inside looks amazing!

DeliciousDrips 14 years ago

It's just acrylic paint which will work on metal, but I might recommend priming it first so you have a better surface to paint on. I would go to a real art store to get paints so you don't get some diluted crap. You want opaque heavy body acrylic from Liquitex or Golden. Thanks for the compliment. Cheers.

Gakki 14 years ago

That' snot a half bad effect, but I would recomend that with the last step you go with a dry brush technique to avoid those uniform edges.

Doctor What 14 years ago

Awesome effect! This'll be great for steampunk painting!

StrangeRover 14 years ago

That's exactly the first thing I thought of... steampunk!