HOW TO GET THE WHITEWASH EFFECT ON YOUR PLASTER CASTS
Here are some instructions which will enable you to get that whitewash effect that we have on some of the pictures of the casts made from our moulds like this one:
(By the way - if you want to buy the above mould then visit our website!! You'll find the mould listed there!)
This effect is really quite easy! Here's how I do it.
I use waterbased paint - (either those round blocks of childrens paint or tubes of acryllic paint). The trick is to use a watered down version on your plastercasts. Simply paint the whole thing in a watered down paint and the paint will settle in the parts of the cast that have the deeper detail.
If you find that you haven't watered down your paint enough and the whole thing looks one solid colour - no worries! Once it's all painted all you have to do is put your painted cast under a running tap and rub it with an old sponge. This will wash off most of the paint near the top of the cast and leave the rest of the paint in the crevices.
HINT:
Make sure your hands are clean before you start painting. Why? Because if you've got slightly greasy fingers then this will stop the paint from soaking into your casts and you'll get finger marks on it!
ANOTHER HINT:
Make sure your plaster is well and truly mixed before pouring into the mould. Why? Because if it's not mixed correctly you sometimes get lumps as you pour. These lumps tend to sink to the bottom of the mould. (Remember - the bottom of the mould will eventually be the front of your cast). The lumps can cause bubbles, but as well as that if you're planning on painting the whitewash effect then these lumps will have set harder than the rest of the cast and this will mean that the paint won't soak in evenly, so you'll end up with an uneven effect.
The above picture shows a plaster cast that has been painted with black paint then washed under the tap to produce the whitewash effect. Don't forget though that you could use any colour. Here's a picture of one that I've done in brown:
The rest of the details on the above version were painted on once I'd done the whitewash effect in brown.
One thing to note whilst I'm on the subject of brown - (!!!) - is that you could also simply paint the whole cast in brown to make it look like wood. Here's a picture of some Praying Hands that I've painted:
