Shellac Burn Encaustic Paintings with India Ink and Calligraphy

Good day!  It’s been awhile since I’ve shared anything with you- sickness has been visiting my home and sapping all my energy.  But I’m so excited to share these new encaustic paintings, especially since I’m using a technique I’ve never used before, but been dying to try- Shellac Burn.

• I began with two pieces of craft plywood, both 6*6.
• I start with white encaustic medium and then began layering clear wax on top- white, clear, white, clear.
• After each layer of wax, it’s essential to fuse the piece with a heat tool.  It doesn’t take much to fuse each layer- you need to at least make sure a wet sheen begins to appear- this will let you know the heat has done it’s work.  I usually go a lot farther than that.
• After several initial layers, I added some purple india ink to the cooled surface of the wax.
• Shellac Burn!  I took everything outside to the cement slab on my back porch, sprayed the pieces with a generous amount of shellac, and lit them on fire.
• The Shellac on the surface was very sticky after the burn, and to make sure the colors of the ink wouldn’t run or stick to my brush, I dabbed the surface with a paper towel.
• Then, it was repeat mode.  I added another layer of clear wax, some more india ink in a different color, and did another shellac burn.
• One more layer of wax, one more color of ink, and one more shellac burn.
• Once I had all the colors I wanted, I added some trails of white ink, and fused them heavily into the existing layers of wax.
• After everything cooled, I used my calligraphy pen to add text in different sizes and colors.
• I’m using PH Martin’s Bombay India Inks here- there are two full sets and I have both for a big range of colors.

For my next step, I need to do some more experimenting.  I want to see if I can achieve a floating effect by adding more layers of wax between the colors.  Also, I’d like to use the fluid shellac instead of the spray, and let it dry as well before I light it on fire.  Maybe I’ll use some oil sticks or pastels instead of ink to add some color. We’ll see!!

Have any of you done this technique?  I’d love to hear your process!  And if you have any questions, just shoot me a comment.  Thanks so much!!