ArteKjara

Step by step example:
Make a plexiglas toy ball for the Christmas' tree

I report here step by step work sequence to realize a plexiglas toy ball decorated using decoupage underglass technique.

In this example I shall use a plexiglas ball 10 cm in diameter

Acrilycs colours: Maimeri

Of course you can click on the pictures to enlarge them.

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Materials

Get a plexiglas ball, they are made of two halves closing together like a small tin. Cut out the paper figures with angels and cupids.

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The scraps of paper

The scraps of paper are flat objects, while the ball's surface has bends, so on the paper there will always make wrinkles. To avoid this we will make, on purpose, some cuts on the figure in order to let it stick onto the bending surface of the ball. These cut should be invisible, so let us make them along the drawing lines, for example, in this picture, the cut is made along the angel's arm and goes on along the face's border. We can also make some cuts along the feathers of the wings.

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We shall proceed similar with the other angels: let's make the cuts along the drawing lines, for example along the legs.

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Glue

Let's spread the glue inside the ball.

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Let's put the scrap into the ball using a brush.

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Like any under glass decoupage we must look the work by the side it will be seen. We must get rid of the air bubbles between the scrap and the plexiglas surface, so let's push them using the fingers, wet with the glue, toward the border of the figure. We shouldn't push too hard or there will be too little glue between the scrap and the surface and there will come some big air bubble because of the eddy. Read the article about the decoupage under glass technique for more details.

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Retouching

It often happens in decoupage technique, that we have to retouch the picture once we have glued them. In under glass technique these retouches must be made before gluing. Now we put some glitter onto the angel's hands, like he's spreading snow from the sky.

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Let's glue the angel we have just retouched so that the lacking legs are set on the bottom of the ball. And let's glue the other angels too.

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Painting: the clouds

Once the glue has dried, let's clean the inside of the ball with a cotton flock a little bit wet, paying attention not to damage the figures, just the plexiglas surface. Then let's paint the white clouds using just fingers or if you prefer a brush. Near the lacking leg of the angel let's shade the white of the cloud.

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Retouches

Let's paint the golden bows if some cupids are holding them.

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The snow

Using a teeth brush let's paint the snow flakes.

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If we like we can also glue some glitter together with the white flakes.

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That's how it looks like now.

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The sky

Now we must paint the blue sky. We'd better work looking the ball by the side it will be seen. Let's paint a light azure around the clouds.

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Let's proceed with a deeper azure and then blue.

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So the clouds will appear clearly.

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The ribbon

Now we can assemble the two halves of the toy ball and decorate it with a silver ribbon.

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The Artist's Guide is published under Creative Commons Licence.