How to paint peppermint.

Did you guess the mystery photo was unfinished peppermint candies and sticks? I love painting peppermints, they are easy to paint and always look so colorful. I added a video clip at the end to help with the shading and high lighting. When I taught, I found this was the hardest part for a student but once they watched me do the shading and high lighting they were able to pick it up pretty quickly and move on. If you are not sure how to shade or high light I hope it will help you. If you appreciate this "how to" please leave a comment and let me know. Let's get started...

I cut my peppermint candies from a 1¼ inch dowel. I use a table saw to cut them. Most of you may not have a table saw but don’t worry I have a solution for that. You can purchase 1 inch flat head plugs at Lowes for these candies. Here we go…

Supplies:
1 inch flat head plugs from Lowes.
¼ dowel rod cut at 3 inch lengths
Small eye screws (you can find those at Lowes too)
Homespun fabric ripped into small strips (coffee stained for that prim look)

Americana Paints: Buttermilk, Country Red, Warm White, Black Plum, Burnt Umber





Base your peppermints (both the candy and the stick) with Buttermilk. Once it is dried, lightly sketch in your lines for the red paint. I like to draw a line vertically and horizontally through the center. The red part of the peppermint candies are a little curved like a fan shape and are divided into to four parts of the circle. Once you have your lines in, use the Country Red to paint in those four sections. You will need at least two coats for a good coverage. With a liner brush (#01) add the small thin line that goes between the peppermint sections. It should be looking like a peppermint candy.



With Black Plum, shade the bottom part of the red sections. Use a float shade so it is light and not heavy. Once that is dried, shade the edge of the peppermint with Burnt Umber. This is also a float shade. Let that dry. Now you are going to put the shine on the candy piece. Use the Warm White for this. Float the Warm White around the candy, toward the edge of the candy, don’t get to close to the edge though. You want it above the shaded area. Now dot the center with Black Plum.


For the peppermint stick. Once it is base coated, use the liner brush with some Country Red and with a light hand (so the line is not to thick) spiral the paint down the dowel from the top to the bottom. You will probably have to load your brush two or three times. Once that is dried, water down some Burnt Umber, I add this wash around the top and bottom and kind of hit and miss it on the rest of the stick. Float a high light of Warm White down two sides of the stick for that peppermint shine.

Add the eye screw to the top of the stick and to the candy, add the homespun tie and you are done.





I made this video to demonstrate how to shade and high light the peppermint. Don't let my sweet southern accent surprise you. I grew up a Southern Girl, traveled the world with my Air Force husband (and he's still my sweetheart)and then settled down in beautiful Virginia...still a Southern Girl. I hope this short clip is a help to you.