Bighorn Sheep: On the way to the blue…

© Michele Emerson-Robert 2017

(note - this project is also published on the blog here)

Looking for a spot for a picnic while driving on Red Hill Road near Alpine, AZ, my photographer friend Gay Lynn Sullivan was delighted to capture on film several Bighorn Sheep. The opportunity to not only see them but be able to photograph them is a life time wish come true. When I viewed the framed photo that she was giving as a Father’s Day gift, I knew the U-Paint® Metal Crafts Bighorn Sheep that I had just finished painting would be the perfect addition!

Materials:

• U-Paint® Metal Crafts kit #UP_119 Western Wildlife (includes Wolf, Buffalo & Bears)
• DecoArt® Americana acrylic paints::
       DA164 Light Buttermilk
       DA143 True Ocher
       DA065 Dark Chocolate
       DA067 Lamp Black
       DS17-3 Multi-Purpose Sealer
• ½” flat synthetic paint brush, small round detail brush
• Container for water, soft towel/cloth
• Beacon® adhesive: QuickGrip™, or Power-Tac™, or 527™
• Matted 8 x 10” Bighorn Sheep photo, 11 x 14” Barn Wood-type frame (all available from Gay Lynn Sullivan at Alpine Area Artisans)

Instructions:

1.     Wash the Bighorn Sheep with hot soapy water.

2.     Dry thoroughly with a soft towel or cloth.

3.     Seal the front and back of the Bighorn Sheep with the DecoArt® Multi-Purpose
Sealer™. 
Allow the sealer to dry.

4.     Create a lighter shade of tan by mixing Light Buttermilk with True Ocher (it does not have to be a solid color). Base coat the Bighorn Sheep. 
Allow the paint to dry.

5.     Refer to close up photo for placement. Load the corner of
your flat brush with Dark Chocolate
and apply shading where indicated. (Remember shading goes behind or underneath.)
Allow paint to dry.

Wash brush.

6.     Add highlights with Light Buttermilk where indicated in the close up photo.

7.     Paint the eye with Lamp Black using the small round brush. Allow the paint to dry.

Wash the brush.

8.     Add a tiny dot highlight to the eye with Light Buttermilk.

9.     Attach the painted Bighorn Sheep to the bottom left corner of the frame with Beacon® Adhesive.