Ok - one of my good friends asked me on Facebook how I got the leather effect so real and I thought I would share it here.
The Art of F***ing It Up on Purpose. Now i used to have a tendency to aim for perfection - straight lines, perfectly blended colours etc but lets face it when has nature ever done that? Leather wood, linen are all natural products that are manipulated by man and no matter how hard we try you just can't make a uniformed perfect finish and isn't that why leather and wooded items like furniture are so appealing to us rather than synthetic imitation items that are 'perfect'?
So here is my method of 'f***ing it up' to look real.
Disclaimer:Now you will have to forgive me if this technique has already been discovered by someone else - I tend to just do my own thing and post it if it works. I know there are a few lost souls out there that get their knickers in a twist about these things. First off preshading - you'll notice that I don't really give a damn about over spray, keeping a straight line or splodges from a heavy trigger finger- pretty shoddy work.
Next up is a quick blast of Deck Tan - thinned to help blend in the black.
Spot the thumb print! yes we are keeping that!
Time to mix some coloursI went for an orangey brown mix and thinned it to about 1:3 ratio - applied in several layers.
Hmmm hang on a minute - thats looking rather respectable!
The next step is to give it a coat of Vallejo Satin VarnishIt has a milky finish to it while wet but dries completely clear.
WashesI used the Mr Weathering Stain Brown on this chair and applied a very heavy coat - we aren't going for a pin wash here gents but almost complete saturation!
Now by some Vodoo magic the weather solution doesn't seem to like the varnish and it distorts cracks and mottles giving you this effect!
This is then locked in with some more satin varnish.
Compared to the real deal....I think that's a job well done
