I'm making my dad this thing, you see. It's a wooden disc upon which one water skis, like this:





I've already made the disc and stained it a deep cherry. I want to paint something colorful and water-esque on it to give it some character but I haven't painted since I put down my fingers in 2nd grade and need some ideas/techniques/advice/supervision

I like the look and beach-y color palette that airbrush artists use, such as:



but i want it to match the finish and still have a lot of the wood show though (i.e. don't want the whole surface painted)

this is your canvas:



Whatever gets painted on there will be covered in at least three coats of high-gloss marine spar varnish, so the paint itself doesn't have to be waterproof or anything necessarily. The stain is oil-based, if that makes a difference.

I'd like ideas as to actual content as well as type of paint and technique...it'd be great if I could actually get a few lounge-style responses in a chit-chat thread

thanks in advance

7/27/2011 7:01:41 PM

pretty sweet. gg

7/27/2011 7:05:16 PM

thankye sir

this one is somewhat important because he's getting to the age now that this very well may be the last disc he ever uses (knock on wood that it isn't, I'd gladly make a million more of these while he can still use them)...so I want it to be awesome

7/27/2011 7:12:35 PM

that's a lovely table you're building, I hope the rest turns out as nice

but for srs, how's about a faux inlaied nautical compass?



[Edited on July 27, 2011 at 7:17 PM. Reason : lolz]

7/27/2011 7:13:04 PM

holy shit, bigman you just gave me an awesome idea for when he does get too old to do this in its original form

while i was trying to come up with something witty about what i was going to do with making table legs that wont be used, it dawned on me that when he's old and frail i can just make him a board with a built-in wooden throne

like a surface-bound airchair for old farts. awesome.


anyway, PAINTING ADVICE, ANYONE?


edit: ^ holy crap, that's awesome. inlay is a genius idea but i've never tried it. I made this out of a 4'x8' sheet of plywood though so I don't know that inlay is the best idea for something that isn't hardwood. I think I'll paint this one and try to cut my teeth with inlay on the next one. great idea

[Edited on July 27, 2011 at 7:21 PM. Reason : ^]

[Edited on July 27, 2011 at 7:23 PM. Reason : and probably out of my budget...buying all that different natural veneer can't be cheap]

7/27/2011 7:19:27 PM

that's why I said faux - just fake it with paint and stains

I don't think real inlay would hold up to that activity, but what do I know

7/27/2011 7:59:23 PM

Im sure that with the right prep and finish it'd be stout enough

Nobody on paint though?

7/27/2011 10:39:16 PM

is he an NCSU alum?

7/27/2011 10:40:25 PM

Nope...he started swingin' a hammer at 16 and worked his way to the top of the top. He's always spent a lot of time in/on water though


Ooooh maybe a pontoon plane water landing or something, he's a pilot also

7/27/2011 11:11:54 PM

Would one of you kind mods push this over lounge-side? I'd appreciate

7/28/2011 12:27:18 AM

Hmm.. Maybe acrylic? Only problem is it dries relatively quickly so you wouldn't have the freedom to spend hours getting the blending just right like with some other paints (i.e. oil)

As for technique, I would just practice blending. Orrrrr you could go for a pop art look (I'm partial to that)

7/28/2011 12:32:03 AM

This might be a great time to get a really nice decal from Etsy or somewhere local and then varnish over it. Then you don't have to worry about being a brilliant artist and the wood can show through.

7/28/2011 1:16:22 PM

^^ good idea, practice first. that's just the sort of detail I'd overlook

^ also something I hadn't thought about...is there a way to search etsy for "4-foot circular decals?" haha

7/28/2011 2:03:00 PM

You could just search custom decals until you find a seller you like, then ask for them to make you that custom circular one

7/28/2011 2:06:23 PM

yeah I'm perusing them now...lots of trees hahah


that's an excellent idea, though. I may just end up going this route

7/28/2011 2:07:14 PM

geriatric wakeboarding?

7/28/2011 2:07:46 PM

Yea, i would suggest finding a design you like and having a custom sticker made to put on it.

I wonder if those vinyl wrap things would work? could make it so it is both the design and the clear and could protect the top and bottom from scratches and have a design exactly how you want it

7/28/2011 2:13:16 PM

oooooooooohhhhhh




it's only 27" across though, I'll have to see if they can make it a little bigger...the board is 48"

7/28/2011 2:20:51 PM