Becky Melton, Author at Painting: On The Rocks

An Open Book

Becky Melton — Fri, 20 Sep 2024 13:39:03 +0000

Not all brick books are closed books. Extra wide pavers can make great open brick books. These brick books were made from 11 inch x 7 inch paver bricks. The brick edges were painted to look like the open pages. We have a wooded area with lots of woodpeckers and trees. Finding species identification books that seem to have been left in the woods adds some mystery to a walk in the woods.

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Fairy House Rocks

Becky Melton — Fri, 10 May 2024 11:53:56 +0000

Invite a village of fairies to your backyard with these hand painted fairy houses. You can do this for yourself, so find a nice rock and paint a home for the fairies in your garden. Create a tiny community to delight your visitors and the local fairies.

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How to Make Book Bricks for your Little Free Library

Becky Melton — Tue, 19 Dec 2023 17:27:35 +0000

By Megan Hanson

Here is a great tutorial for making brick books on Little Free Library website.

How to Make Book Bricks for your Little Free Library

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Brick Books for the Garden

Becky Melton — Tue, 19 Dec 2023 15:06:04 +0000

Painted brick books are a hit at the Lake Lure Flowering Bridge in lake Lure, NC. The books celebrate the works of literature that inspire us! Visitors love finding the bricks tucked in the gardens. You can add a brick book with your favorite tile by painting your own, or order one from the Lake Lure Flowering Garden.

How to Paint A Brick Brick

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Painted Brick – Firefly Lantern

Becky Melton — Tue, 02 Aug 2022 14:03:05 +0000

Paint a whimsical surprise for a path in the woods. Design inspired by Mimsy’s Place design

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Owls Design Painted on Scalloped Landscape Edger

Becky Melton — Tue, 02 Aug 2022 13:33:05 +0000

The latest scalloped edger is an owl design adapted from a Sharon Bond pattern Silly Halloween Owls. I wanted this to be a summer design, so no Halloween like the original design.

Stars: The stars were made by dipping a sponge in white and wedgewood blue paint and dabbing randomly. When the paint dries, fill in with midnight blue to make star shape.

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Painted Landscape Edgers – Mushroom Design

Becky Melton — Mon, 11 Jul 2022 12:10:37 +0000

Painted Landscape Edgers for the Garden

Painted Landscape Edgers add color and whimsey to the garden. I painted this landscape edger with brightly colored mushrooms to decorate the entrance to the woods. Painting the landscape edger is easy to do and looks great under a tree in the garden. For only about $2, you can buy a landscape edger at the local garden supply store and create this design.

» More Ideas for Painting Scalloped Pavers

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Painting Gourds

Becky Melton — Thu, 07 Jul 2022 13:16:24 +0000

Gourds have nice smooth surfaces and are easy to paint. Our neighbor was kind enough to share some gourds grown in his garden, so I was delighted to have a chance to try painting gourds.

Here is how I painted my gourds. This first experiment didn’t turn out so well, as they deteriorated quickly in the weather. The gourds will last longer indoors, but I hung my gourds in trees. Painting is a learning process.

Steps for Painting Gourds

Choose a design: If you don’t already have a design in mind, explore the web and Pinterest for ideas for your design.
Choose a gourd: Choose gourds that have no cracks or holes and have been drying for about a year. Some people drill a hole, so the gourds can be a birdhouse, but I didn’t drill a hole in my gourds.
Prepare the gourd: The gourds will be gray and dirty. Lightly sand and clean the gourd. Be careful not to break the gourd, as they may be brittle.
Apply a base coat: I used acrylic craft paints from the craft store. Use a background color that works with your design. If you want to take advantage of the natural black spotted surface, use a clear base coat.
Paint your design: It helps to place the gourd on a cup, so you can get to more surfaces of the gourd.
Seal your design: Your can use 2 to 3 coats of spray sealer, or paint on coats of clear polyurethane. Do this in a well-ventilated area.
To hang the gourd: We used a Dremel to drill a hole thru the top of the gourd. You can thread some twine, long screw or post thru the hole to create a way to hang the gourd.

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Time to Fly South Painted Brick Project

Becky Melton — Fri, 17 Dec 2021 19:59:00 +0000

I made this cute little painted brick using the “Time to Fly South” Pattern from Sweet Patoodies designs by Sharon Chinn. The pattern is only $2 and you can download a PDF with a tracing sheet and directions right away.

Supplies

A brick
“Time to Fly South” Pattern from Sweet Patoodies
Acrylic Paints and Brushes
Carbo n Paper
Spray sealer

Directions

This pattern is created for a wooden box, so these directions are adapted for doing it on a brick. Paint a base coat on your brick, so the carbon paper will stick to the paint. Follow the directions that come with the pattern to apply each layer. When dry, spray with sealer. This brick can be placed outside in your garden and it should stay nice for a long time.

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How to Paint Bricks That Look Like Books

Becky Melton — Fri, 29 Oct 2021 22:34:00 +0000

A fun and different way to decorate and add interest to your garden is to paint bricks to look like your favorite classic books. It’s easy to paint bricks, they withstand the weather and are quite charming.

To paint your own book bricks, find a book, or print a picture of a book. (Google Search and Pinterest are great resources for inspiration.) You will need acrylic paint from Amazon or the craft store and some brushes. It’s not worth spending a lot of money on the brushes, because the they will not last long when you are painting on the rough brick surfaces. A straight edge ruler or paint stick is helpful to draw pages and cover edges. Use carbon paper to trace the lettering and design. You can paint your design on a brick or paver of your choice.

If you make a mistake, it’s easy to paint over it. Acrylic paint washes away with water when still wet, so cleanup is easy.

A few coats of clear sealer will make your brick book weather proof. Be sure to spray your brick in a well ventilated place. I use Krylon Acrylic Spray Paint – Crystal Clear, available at Lowes and Amazon, but there are lots of other brands. I have not tested them to see which is best. If you have experience with sealers, please share what you have learned in the comments section below. I would love to hear what you have learned.

There are lots of blogs and tutorial videos on how to paint bricks to look like books. Here are just a few:

Paint your brick look like a real book.

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