Don Ray, Reclamation

      Sis and I went to an estate sale recently, and I found an Don Ray pen and ink drawing. Don Ray was a Texas artist that was noted for painting western themes and landscapes, who passed away in 2006.
     This was not a purchase; it was a rescue. I found the drawing neglected and grimy with a healthy colony of black mold growing behind the glass. Originally, the drawing was framed in a simple black picture frame under glass with a white mat.Very pretty it must have been; but now, the drawing has yellowed and foxing had occurred. I still would like to display the piece. My cleaning amounted to throwing away the mat and cardboard backing and dabbing the picture with alcohol.

     Using the materials that I already have on hand, I cut a new mat and covered it with fabric making sure that I used a color close to the yellowed drawing.

     After sanding the picture frame, I took it outside and sprayed it with brown Rust-Oleum. And just as the paint began to tack up, I burnished the frame with crumpled gold foil. You can, also, let the paint dry then size the frame and add your foil for a more even look. But I wanted a more sketchy look, so I skipped a step. 

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     1) I would like to create a weathered wood look to the frame, so I applied plaster around the inset of the molding. 

     2) After the plaster dried, I sanded back until I was satisfied with it leaving a little of the gold, cowboy-glam background peeking through. Then I sealed it with Polycrylic.

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     3) After the sealer dried, I stained the molding with a water based stain. 
     4) Then, I wiped the stain back to where I felt happy with it. 

And here is the outcome...rustic. 

And here is what it looks like finished. 

     Actually, the picture and frame looked nice at the rustic stage, but I couldn't resist adding some knots and some wood texture to the frame.

     I think Don Ray would approve. I asked, but I only heard from someone named Houdini.