Ever since I was a child, I have been fascinated with barns. My grandparents lived on a farm and I loved spending time there with them. So there are lots of great memories tied up in barns and farm scenery. Because of that, I love painting on barn boards.

You can put about anything on barn boards and have a very simple yet lovely decoration. Most people can appreciate the rustic look that harkens back to the very roots of our heritage. Consequently, I often do small gifts for just about any occasion on barn or other rustic, unfinished boards.

We are in the process of tearing down an old barn on our property and salvaging/recycling as much of the wood as possible, so this is a the forefront of my mind right now. The boards are all 100 years old or more and have charm and a patina all their own. I have all kinds of things planned for these boards!

You can often get old boards from someone who has an old barn that is in disrepair. You may be fortunate enough to get them for free if the people understand that you are going to make use of them! Even very small pieces can make cute little filler pieces. Several rustic pieces grouped can make quite a statement. Try adding some detail with some rusty nails and/or rusty barbed wire.

Painting on raw wood is a little different from many things you will paint on. First, know that it will tear up brushes faster than almost anything else, so try to use old, stiff brushes. I use white bristle brushes for filling in large areas. These will stand up a little better to the wood.

There usually isn't much preparation necessary, except to be sure the boards are clean. You can brush them with a stiff brush (a wire bristle works great) or can wash them if necessary. Outside under the hose is a good way, using a brush to remove the dirt. Be careful!!! Old boards are notorious for splinters! Let them dry before painting. If you like, you can spray them with a light coat of clear acrylic sealer. Be sure to do this outside or in a well ventilated area. Keep sprays away from small children.

The best paints to use, I think, are tube acrylics if the wood is very rough, or bottle acrylics if it is smooth enough. The tube paints fill in small holes and valleys in the wood so you don't have to do more than one coat. Sometimes you have to scrub the paint into the cracks so oils can be a little more difficult to handle. And if you need more than one coat, the acrylics will be dry much faster.

Keep your subject matter simple. The rougher the wood, the more simple it needs to be. Small details will be more difficult to put in, so keep them to a minimum. Use contrast within the subject to help make them stand out, rather than trying to include small details. Things I like to do include perhaps an apple or two, some lemons, some cactus, an old pair of boots, an animal or bird ... anything that I can keep fairly simple.

Use a piece of chalk or small brush to do your sketch directly on the board. Fill in the medium value color then add darker values for contour and the lightest touches for highlight and sparkle. If you need a little background, do that first, of course (see my article on painting backgrounds here: Painting Back To Front).

A light coat or two of clear acrylic spray over the dry paint will add a polished feel and help to preserve the work for many, many years.

If you have questions or ideas, please email me or post them in our forum. Someone else out there is wondering the same thing!

Join us next week,
Paula Devore
Painting Editor