Jaci Dawn

I strayed away from mini portraits of animals this past month. I decided to work on some projects that have been gathering dust, but which are near to my heart. My “rescues”: creatures I have found at yard sales or thrift stores that have been sorely abused by the previous artist.

My first rescues were this pair of plastic dove decoys. They were plain gray and boring. I decided to do a confetti of tissue paper and liquid starch (the glue), They just gather dust.

My second rescue was Daphne. I blogged about her restoration here. She has been painted twice since I rescued her, and I consider her my “mascot”. She hangs out inside the house during the rainy months and outside in the nicer months. I used house paint on her. You can purchase little cans that hold 8 ounces (one cup) of paint at any hardware store. I keep a variety on hand.

I picked up this poor wooden dog at a yard sale. His restoration story was published here. I “painted” him with tissue paper and liquid starch. A coat of polyurethane topped him. He’s just been gathering dust while I decide what to do with him.

I found this poor duck in May of 2018. It was dressed in a Santa suit, of all things! I removed the cape and hat, but it was still a sad looking duck. It wasn’t even a proper duck that one could identify in a bird book. It has languished in my studio for the past four years, waiting for me to decide what to do with it.

I opted for the tissue paper and liquid starch approach.

The back “feathers” are not done with tissue paper, but with the remains of a bald-faced hornet’s nest I found on a hike. I finished him with a simple coating of interior varnish purchased at the craft store.

It needs a name.

I told all this to one of my creative friends and said I was thinking of selling them as “Jaci’s Rescues”. She thought I should create an entire “orphanage” of the rescues. I need a catchy name, though. And little “biographies” of all the rescues.

I also need to visit a few thrift stores in the near future to all to my Zoo.