How To Create The Look Of Galvanized Metal

“Inspiration comes and goes, creativity is the result of practice.” 

                                                                            ~Phil Cousineau


Last week I gave a sneak peek of our family photo wall gallery and to let you see the wood letters I had hung.   I wasn't quite sure about the B and the K, which I thought might be too light.  Long story short, I decided to try my hand at making these letters look like galvanized metal instead of wood.  

Now

Before

I started by painting each letter with black craft paint, letting it dry completely. 

Then taking a 3/4 inch flat craft brush, and using a metallic craft paint (I chose Gunmetal, but any shade of medium to dark gray would work, just make sure it's metallic), I dipped the tip of the brush into the metallic paint and dry brushed around on the sides and top.  Go in different directions, let areas dry and go back again and again until you have the black covered.  You don't want the black to show as black, but at the same time, you want it to show through lightly in areas.  See the photo below...

After dipping my brush in the paint, you can see all the places on my palette where I wiped off some of the paint...

I chose to add a touch of rust in a few places on each letter.  Again, let the metallic paint dry thoroughly.  I mixed Burnt Umber and Light Cinnamon together and used a small dappling sponge to rub in along a few edges.

Here's the before...

Here's the after...

This is at the bottom of our stairs and it's just a very dark corner, so getting the right lighting isn't easy.  But I love the galvanized metal look so much better and it goes right along with all the old black and white photos...

I think next week I'll finally be able to show you our completed gallery wall.  I've got to get all the photos of our furbabies hung and a few frames straightened, and then I'll be finished with it!

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