Miniature: A tortoise shell picture frame

Hello my friends,

After decorating a bunch of gilded and/or ebonised picture frames, it was time for something different. And I hope that you agree thar this is something different. Sadly, the painting in the top picture is not painted by me or another miniaturist. This Mythological scene just rolled out of my printer when I hit the print button. 

But I did make the faux tortoise shell (sometimes called red boulle) finish. This is a small post but let me tell you how I did it.

I have a great book on faux paint finishes but these can't always be used on our 1:12 scale. So some improvisation was needed. I started with a cheap dime a dozen picture frame I bought second hand. It was my intention to redecorate it from the start. Although at that time I simply want to ebonise it by painting it black. 

For a (faux) tortoise shell frame I can choose from 3 different types. With a yellow or golden background, a red background or a green background. I chose to use a red background for this frame. Since most of the original frames with tortoise shell use a red background and it is period apropriate. 

So naturally I started with degreasing and sanding the brown wooden frame. And then I gave it a base coat of deep red. Why choose such a cheap frame? The profile of the wood appealed to me. It would fit into a 17th century theme. 

In the 16th and 17th century real tortoise shell was sometimes used in picture frames or mirror frames. although more often it was used in expensive high end collectors cabinets or smaller boxes. It was expensive and only used when one really wanted to go all out. The shell was cut and sanded to thin strips that are translucent. This way the choice of background colour is really important. It determines the look of the end result. 

Fot the spots I used black paint. I diluted the black paint with water and tapped the brush with my other hand to create a spatter design. It took me some wiping and starting over to get the size of the paint splatters right. And, to make sure they are spread randomly around the frame without drowing out the red.  

When the black splatters had dried I gave it three thin coats of red. It was a mixture of mars red and alizarine crimson diluted with water. These thin coats of paint obscured the black spots slightly but they still shine through. This creates an effect of some pots hidden beneath the surface like real tortoise shell does too. But not all should be hidden!

Thus I repeated the step of black splattering. When that had dried I painted the sides on the inside and the outside of the frame black to frame in the faux tortoise shell. This combination is often found on the original frames of the period. Lastly I stuck in a painting of a triton abducting a nymph. 

Am I happy with the result?   Yes & no! 

I think it needs more layers for a better effect. perhaps 4 thin red layers instead of three, and not two but three sets of black spatters and red layers to create more depth. That being said however, I am very happy with this first try. If I find more of this type of frames I will experiment some more. 

Hugs,

Huibrecht