How To Photos: The Malachite Cat

The way I'd intended to decorate this mask didn't happen.  The outcome was a complete surprise! See below for my partner's Very Clever Way to cut air holes in them,  because they fit so closely to your face.

This project uses a Paper Mache Cat Mask,
*Dharma's Fiber Reactive dyes
Green ( #1 Lemon Yellow mixed with #25 Turquoise) and #119 Red Violet, applied with a Preval Spray Gun
*Spray Fixative,
*Mod Podge and Acrylic gold paint- applied with a brush:

Click on the image for complete Instructions

Tips:
*Take off the elastic band before spraying.  Replace with metallic elastic at the end of the project.

* Use dye concentrate.  Spraying diffuses the color.  Your concentration should be strong enough to see light thru it, in a clear cup; but not necessarily it's true color. The exception is yellow, which should be fairly opaque.

*Sieve the dye when filling the spray gun. (see photo how to)

*The smooth coating on this mask is porous.  It EATS dye.

*Spray your contrast color while the first color has soft-dried;
like within 20 minutes.  That way you'll get both good absorption, but the second coat will also run and flow.

*Sealing the mask before you add gold keeps the gold from absorbing too much.


The "mistakes" on this project

1.  It was supposed to be a high-contrast look; Red-violet over green.  NOT.

2.  It it reminded me of Malachite or Moss Agate.  But "The Malachite Cat" sounded like a great title, even if it isn't a more bluish-green.

3.  The surface coating is fragile; you can see scratches in it, once it's been saturated.  This contributed,
( IMO), to an organic look. Like some of the poor rocks I've cut on lapidary saws.

3.  To pass the "Torchlite Test", it needed shinies or metallics.  But any jewels or trim I tried took away from it's integrity.  In the end, I used metallic gold paint to enhance some of the "veining", and to finish the eyes and nose.  A double coating of Gloss mod podge gave it a polished stone-like quality