NEW PAINT ALERT! And I am IN LOVE!!!
Terra Paint is the new clay paint by Dixie Belle!
You may ask how this paint differs from the Chalk Mineral Paint line. Well, let me tell you! I found this paint to be a lot of fun to work with as it is truly an artisan paint!
It is a paint with no rules.
It is thick (very thick) like pudding; however, it can be thinned all the way down to a watercolor consistency. But here is the cool part: it keeps its color meaning it is heavily pigmented! It can also be left in the open air to thicken it up to an almost paste-like consistency which is really good with the use of palette knives and even finger painting!
So, let me tell you what I did here on my Let Them Eat Cake Mini-Armoire.
Watch this transformation!
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After a thorough clean with Terra Clean and a good rinse with water, I laid down my first layer of Onyx. It dries RAPID fast if you aren’t using water.
By the time I had finished my Onyx layer, I was ready to cover it up with a layer of Moonbeam. Again, this dried really quickly.
I was going for a water-washed look and was really counting on a massive amount of white drips, so I chose to paint from the top of the armoire and paint in sections.
After, I painted the top section white and just saturated it with water from my direct spray bottle (the mister didn’t deliver enough water for the look I was after).
Lastly, I continued this all the way down, painting a section and saturating until I reached the bottom.
When I looked up I could not have been more pleased!
The white had thinned and exposed the black. Even some of the wood from underneath showed through! The black reactivated just enough with the water to mix with the white which was giving me a ton of gray runs as well.
The paint was blending naturally and gave me the most beautiful neutral tones!
It’s exactly what I wanted as a backdrop for our Marie Antoinette!
Once dry, I was able to draw my image on the front. I drew it in pencil first and followed it up with a charcoal stick.
Using a fixative spray, I set the charcoal so it wouldn’t mix with my colors once I began painting. Then, I began mixing and playing with the EIGHTEEN new Terra colors to get exactly the colors I had in mind.
Mixing Bougainvillea and Moonbeam gave me the pink for her hair.
Mixing Bougainvillea and Malachite gave me the plum for the center of her dress and the cake plate.
I free-painted her skirt using three blues: Malachite, Cerulean Blue, and Lani’s Lagoon.
Are you loving these colors as much as I am? Just look at the way they add depth and texture!
And can we talk about that cake???
The icing is done with Moonbeam that had been open to the air and it created the most amazing texture!
I used the Royal Damask stencil to add a print overlay to the skirt, stenciling with the same blend of pink that I used on her hair.
For that whimsical feel, I also embellished her clothing, the cake icing, her eyelids, and some of her hair using a glitter medium that I purchased at Hobby Lobby.
The backlit glow around Marie Antoinette was done with a very watered-down Pistachio green followed by a swift blend using a large soft mop brush.
The finishing touch is the phrase (and one of my favorite sayings): LET THEM EAT CAKE!
I created the letter color by using all my blends from the center of my palette. I really wanted the letters to hold every single color that you see on our Let Them Eat Cake Armoire! They are topped with the same glitter medium that I mentioned above.
The entire piece is top coated with Terra Matte. This paint sets beautifully with Terra Matte, Terra finishing wax, and even Gator Hide. It really just depends on what you want your final finish to look and feel like. Each protective top coat leaves a different look and feel.
And that’s it!
I really enjoyed my time with this new paint!
I look forward to growing in my knowledge and use of this very natural feeling product!
Layering and creating lots of texture is something I love, and this paint will allow me to create both with ease!
Have you used a clay-based paint before?
I’d love to hear your thoughts!
Products used:
The Terra clay-based paint will be added once the new paint line is launched in July! Stay tuned!
Love you some Marie Antoinette? Here’s another you might love:
Marie Antoinette Armoire
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People just can’t stand it when someone else is happy and does things as creative as you do. If they don’t like something, just move on. Their negativity hurts them the most. Keep on keeping on Tracy. Love your stuff.
You are beyond amazing, Tracey! Truly. You’re the Queen of Whimsy!
Tracey, loved this little armoire, I am so happy to have found you by accident in you tube, I have painted furniture using Annie Sloan brand have never used Dixiebell, so I am going to try some and see how it works. Thanks for all your videos.
Very cool! Great job!
I absolutely LOVE the piece. You are so talented! This is one of my favorites.
Thank you! It was so fun to create!!!
Hi Tracey,
I think your mini armoire is beautiful!! I love the water technique you used in your background! Keep these fabulous pieces coming, they are very inspirational!
All the best~
Suzy
Thank you so much!!!
I have used clay based paint and absolutely love it. Debi’s Design Diary’s DIY paint is the best clay-based paint out there. She also does a lot of great tutorials showing how it can be used. Did you know you can FREEZE it? It’s awesome.