The Verdigris Pot

In college I took a Surfaces class, which was a night class where we learned awesome faux finishes like marble, granite, crackling and sponging (hey it was like 12 years ago when sponging was the IN thing haha).  I took a $1 Walmart special and made this dorky terracotta pot look pretty dang cool.  I still have the pot, it holds our spare change on our entry table.  I've included the recipe on this post too!  If you try it out let me know, I would love to see it.

Verdigris

Patinated Metal

The results of naturally occurring corrosion affect brass, copper, and bronze.

Prepare the base surface by painting it with a bronze or brass colored paint. Spray paint works well for this base coat. Multi-colored metal tones make a good background for the succeeding layers of thick pastes and powders.

Tools and Materials:

2 verdigris pastes: 1 pale mint green (latex paint, one pale sky blue (latex paint).

Deep blue-green latex paint.

Yellow ocher spray paint.

Denatured alcohol.

Whiting (Art Supply Store).

Paint brushes.

Rough terry cloth rag.

Prepare the verdigris pastes (pale blue and mint green) by mixing the denatured alcohol and the latex paint to a 1:2 ration. Sieve in whiting until the mixture is the consistency of butter frosting. Denatured alcohol evaporates quickly, so you may need to add more as you go along to keep the mixture workable.

Step #1:

Brush a 1:4 mixture of deep blue-green latex paint and water over the bronze or brass colored base coat and allow to dry. Some of the bronze and brass undercoat will show through.

Step #2:

Work the pale blue and pale mint green verdigris pastes over the surface together. Vary the thickness and texture to create a random effect.

Step #3:

White the verdigris pastes as drying, use a yellow ocher spray paint to apply small, light patches of color randomly across the surface.

Step #4:

Flood the surface with water to expose the underlying colors. Apply with a brush, just let the water wash over the top of the mixture, do not work it in.

Step#5:

Take some whiting or plaster powder and lightly sprinkle it across the surface, pressing it into the damp and sticky mixture. Pay special attention to the recesses.

Step #6:

When the mixture is half dry, wipe some- not all- of the raised areas with a rough cloth to expose patches of underlying color. When perfectly dry, seal with clear finish.
(I got this recipe from my instructor at BYU-Idaho, that is all the reference I have for the recipes origin)