Easy Banana Gourd Ornaments provides some great painting tips from Deborah Adele as she creates snowmen and penguins from banana gourds.
No gourd artists can turn down the challenge of creating Christman ornaments from gourds. We give gourd ornaments as brown bag gifts to each other at our gourd artists’ Christmas parties and as gifts to friends and family. They also sell great at gourd festivals and craft sales. Every year is an opportunity to try a new technique or idea. Deborah Adele is one of the best artists for beginning gourd artists who must improve their painting process. She takes you step-by-step and offers some great tips for the sequence of the process and easy ways to accomplish fine details.
Easy Banana Gourd Ornaments /Gettng Ready
In these videos, she uses banana gourds. Make sure they are cleaned of white wax specks by sanding them well. You might want to wipe them down with Formula 49 to condition them if they seem dry.
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Any brand of acrylic paints will work. I might also mention that you can use acrylic paint markers for this project. I prefer the double-tip ones with a brush tip.
Deborah depends on the tiny brushes for her details. Using them takes skill. So, practice with these brushes before you start so you don’t get too nervous.!! She also uses a glass plate instead of pallet paper with a paper towel nearby to remove the excess paint—both great ideas.
She always has a great face on her pieces. I keep several pages of cartoon eyes, hair, beaks, and feet that I downloaded from Google Images for projects like this to help me find the right features.
Here is a list of her supplies for the penguins
- Americana Acrylic Paints by DecoArt
- Lamp (Ebony) Black
- *Snow White
- *Santa Red
- *Antique Gold
- *Emperor’s Gold (Dazzling Metallics)
- Americana DuraClear Gloss Varnish
Paint Brushes
- *#3 Round *#1 Detail
- *#8 Flat *
- #0 Script Liner
- *Scruffy Brush
Tools and Supplies
- Drill w/a 3/32″ drill bit
- Water for cleaning brushes.
- Towel for the table surface.
- Pink Eye shadow or Blush
Easy Banana Gourd Ornaments /Critical Steps
Now, as demonstrated in the video, I will highlight some of the critical steps on the penquin ornament so you can focus on them.
As you draw the lines on the gourd, make sure the size of the feature fits the gourd’s proportion and shape.
Painting begins with a base coat of white. You may need more than one coat, so make sure it is dry before applying the second. Notice that she painted over the pencil marks rather than going around the features.
Watch her simple way of adding shading around the front of the body. She does this on all the figures.
Draw the features back in with a pencil and proceed to paint them. Go slow if you are nervous!
The eyes are drawn in again with sketching movements and a small brush. Push down on the tip and move the line with consistent pressure to get a smooth line. This takes practice!
Easy Banana Ornament/Painting
Next, she uses a scruffy brush to paint the fur around the head. Again, it may take more than one coat.
Deborah also has a unique way of creating dots. She calls them dip dots. Look at your brushes and find one with a circle of the right size at the other end of the brush. Next, dip it into the paint, going straight down. Pull it up, then lay it on the gourd with a slight pressure without moving the brush. She uses this technique to create her little hearts with the liner brush.
Another technique is using cosmetic blush on the cheeks.
Next, she uses a scruffy brush to paint the fur around the head. Again, it may take more than one coat.
Now, you only need to give it a clear finish coat and decide where to hang the string or insert an eye hook to hang it from.
Let’s take a look at the video, Two Penguin Ornaments Painted on Banana Gourds.
Easy Banana Ornament/Starting the Snowmen
Much of the project is the same process as the penguins. Here is your supply list
Snowmen Gourd Ornaments.
Americana Acrylic Paints by DecoArt (www.decoart.com)
- *Lamp (Ebony) Black
- *Snow White
- *Santa Red
- *Winter Blue
- *Victorian Blue
- Americana DuraClear Gloss Varnish
Paint Brushes
- *#3 Round
- *#1 Detail
- *#8 Flat
- *#0 Script Liner
Tools and Supplies
- Drill w/a 3/32″ drill bit :Hairpin
- Water for cleaning brushes.
- Towel for the table surface.
- Toothpicks
- Sweet Potato Sculpy Clay (for carrot noses)
Create your face using the shapes she suggests to fit the proportion of your gourd shape. You might want to change your details after doing a gourd ornament.
Paint your base coats.
The nose is clever. You begin by drilling a small hole in the face in the proper position.
She suggests using toothpicks and Sweet Potato Sculpy.
Any air-dry clay will work here. Insert the toothpick once you form your nose and make it look like a carrot. Let it dry.
Then, put glue near the top of the toothpick into the face and secure it with more glue. Let it dry overnight.
Now watch Two Snowman Ornaments Painted on Banana Gourds
I hope Deborah’s instructions will encourage you to try her technique and guide you to creating your version of these banana gourd ornaments.
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