Painted Wood Projects in the Pennsylvania Folk Art Style

Some of the most exuberant, charming, and colorful designs found anywhere come from the rich tradition of the Amish, Mennonites, and other German-speaking groups who settled in Pennsylvania over the last 300 years. Enjoy applying their unique designs of hearts, tulips, hex signs, birds, stars, and animals to a variety of authentic "Pennsylvania Dutch" projects. Paint a door with the popular hearts and tulips motif. Paint a mysterious hex sign on a barn (or anyplace else where you want to keep away evil spirits). Decorate a dower chest with a Patriotic Eagle, or a dresser with Mantango Valley birds.There are designs a plenty to paint on tinware, hand mirrors, boxes, shelves, chairs, and more. Pattern grids make it easy to transfer the motifs to a chosen project in any size wanted, while eye-catching watercolor illustrations detail every step of the painting process, and full-color photos showcase each completed project. Besides gaining a new appreciation of this rich source of artistic symbols and historical patterns, you can explore unusual ways to achieve traditional decorative effects, including milk paint color wash, antiquing, graining, vinegar painting, candle-marbling, sponging, and tortoise-shelling.