§ "Circle of Hearts" §
© Via Von ~ Come Paint With Me!™
Victorian Via Von 2004

circleofhearts1.jpg (41284 bytes)  circleofhearts3.jpg (19305 bytes)  circleofhearts4.jpg (29118 bytes)
Click on each photo to enlarge it.
 You may print and use the image(s) as a visual
reference while you paint it.

 

This "Circle of Hearts" design was inspired by a very old and traditional needlepoint pattern from the Victorian era.  It is a very simple design, yet it requires you to know how to:

WHAT YOU WILL NEED
TO PAINT THIS PATTERN

Surface:

A tray that is 8-1/4" Long" x 5" Wide x 1-1/2" High. 

You may:

  • use any surface that will fit the size of this pattern.
  • enlarge or reduce this pattern to fit any size tray or surface piece you have available.

 

Brushes: 

  • 1" Flat or Sponge

  • #4 Flat

  • 1/4" Angle

  • 1/2" Angle

  • #000 Line/Detailer

  • 1/4" Mop

I used the Loew Cornell Comfort Brushes and Maxine's Mop which you can find here at Via Von's.  :-)

Paints:  only 3 colours needed!!

  • Jansen Art Traditions Titanium White

  • Jansen Art Traditions Blue Grey

  • DecoArt Americana Paynes Grey

 

 Additional Materials:
  • Final Coat Semi Gloss
  • Fini
  • VIVA Paper Towel
  • Sand Paper #200 and #600 Grit (or use Super Film instead of #600 grit)
  • Tack Cloth
  • Pencil or Stylus
  • Tracing paper (white or light grey)
  • Palette Knife or toothpick or craft stick

circleofheartsbwgraphic.jpg (71426 bytes)
Click To Enlarge The Pattern Line Drawing
 You may print or right click to save the large line drawing to your hard-drive.
Select this piece to print out in Landscape Format in your printer settings.
You may reduce or enlarge the line drawing to fit your surface's requirement.

I want to take a brief moment to talk about the Jansen's Art Traditions Paints.  You may certainly use another brand of acrylic paint but if you do, I can not guarantee that your piece will look like mine.  Jansen's paints ARE different and you'll see a big difference in your paintings with them too.  They can help you achieve results that are not typically found in other acrylics and I strongly recommend that you try them.  I especially recommend them for beginner painters -- part of the battle of learning to paint can be easily avoided just by using these paints because of the unique way they come off of the brush and onto your surface!  I truly wish I'd had them when I first started painting and all I can say is -- LUCKY ME to have them now!  LOL   Please consider giving them a try too!

Basic Instructions:

  1. Prepare your piece by sanding the bare wood with the #200 grit sandpaper, removing any burrs or bits and rough edges.  Remove the dust with your tack cloth.

  2. Prepare a mix of Fini + Paynes Grey.  The ratio is 1:2 (i.e., one part Fini to two parts paint).  You can use your palette knife or a craft stick or a tooth pick to mix the Fini and paint together.

  3. Using your #1" Flat or Sponge Brush, seal your wood with the sealer+paint mix you made in Step #2.

  4. Sand gently with #600 grit sand paper or Super Film and remove any dust with your tack cloth.

  5. IF your piece looks like it should have one more coat of color (Do you see wood showing through it ? Does it look a bit streaked or something?  -- that's your clue!) THEN, using your 1" Flat or Sponge Brush, give your piece one more coat of just the Payne's Gray ... not the Fini+paint mix.  Gently sand again with the #600 grit sand paper or Super Film and remove any dust with a tack cloth.

  6. You will use your # 4 Flat Brush for the interior's outer trim edge stripe and the trim around the circle of hearts.

  7. You will use your 1/4" Angle Brush for all of the circle of hearts.

  8. You will use your 1/2" Angle Brush for the diagonal planks and all of the corner hearts (interior and exterior.

  9. You will use your # 000 Line/Detail Brush for all the decorative mini petal comma strokes. 

  10. You will use your 1/4" Mop for the drybrush highlighting of the interior corner hearts.

  11. You will use the Fini Glaze to help with all of your floating stroke work and the diagonal planking.  See our Class Room's Seminar Archives on this product for full information on how Fini can assist you with these strokes!

  12. Take a few moments along the way as needed to allow your piece to dry before moving on to the next step.  Refer to the photo enlargement for visual assistance with any of the painting details that may be confusing to you.  Oftentimes, just looking at that "thing" will help you get a full understanding of the written instructions.  :-)

 

Let's Begin!

  1. Lay the tracing paper and pattern on the wood piece.  With your pencil or stylus, copy the pattern's outlines to transfer it to your wood piece.   [Use the interior's large corner hearts' pattern for the exterior corner hearts as well -- they are identical in size.]
     

  2. Dip your 1/2" Angle Brush into Fini (this is also called "dressing the brush") and press it onto a VIVA paper towel to remove excess and then work Jansen's Titanium White into your #1/2" Angle Brush.  Stroke on the white diagonal plank sections, taking care not to paint through the inner circle of hearts.   Let the paint be thin enough to allow some of that Payne's Grey to show through which gives it that distressed look.  :-)
     

  3. With your #4 Flat Brush and Jansen's Blue Grey, paint the circular trim around the circle of hearts and the interior's trim around the bottom outer edge where it meets the tray's sides.
     

  4. With your 1/2" Angle Brush and Jansen's Blue Grey, paint all the corner large hearts (both interior and exterior).
     

  5. With your 1/4" Angle Brush and Jansen's Titanium White, paint all the bottom hearts within the circle of hearts.   Let them thoroughly dry and repeat this step if needed to ensure thorough coverage.
     

  6. With your 1/4" Angle Brush dipped/dressed in Fini, float with Jansen's Blue Grey around the outside and bottom edge only of the bottom hearts.
     

  7. With your 1/4" Angle Brush and Jansen's Titanium White, paint all the top hearts within the circle of hearts.  When dry, repeat this step if needed to ensure thorough coverage.
     

  8. With your 1/4" Mop Brush and Jansen's Titanium White, pad the brush on VIVA to remove most of that paint and then dry-brush a highlight glow on the interior large corner hearts working from the centers to the exteriors of the hearts in a circular motion.
     

  9. With your 1/2" Angle Brush and Jansen's Titanium White, stroke a very rough float along the outside edges of the exterior corner hearts.  If you really want to, you may do a properly smooth and seamless float!  :-)   I just happen to like the rough look for these particular hearts -- it gives them a bit of personality all their own.  :-)  :-)
     

  10. With your #000 Line-Detail Brush, stroke on all the decorative mini-comma strokes and dots on the circle of hearts (notice they are placed on the top hearts only!) as well as all along the top interior and exterior rims of your tray.
     

  11. SIGN your work!

When your piece is thoroughly dry, erase any visible tracing lines remaining.

Then, protect and finish your piece with several coats of Final Coat Semi-Gloss, following the instructions provided on the bottle's label.

THAT'S IT -- YOU'RE DONE!

This project is for personal use only and may be painted for fun or personal profit at craft shows.  The painter may enlarge or reduce one photocopy for personal use only.  Business or Commercial use of any portion of this pattern is prohibited unless written authorization is obtained from Yvonne Reeder of Via Von ~ Come Paint With Me.  Reproduction for mass marketing by any means, including mechanical or electronic or digital is prohibited unless written authorization is obtained from Yvonne Reeder of Via Von ~ Come Paint With Me!™