Crackled and peeled paint *new photos added*

I've taken a little break from blog hopping and working on creations for my next two hops as it's been such a sunny and warm day today. For those of you that don't know me that means I was outdoors with my camera. Tailed by three kittens, which meant I couldn't leave the garden (the kitties are not allowed on the road). Which isn't as bad, not least considering we have a big garden, partially overgrown and left to its own. But sorry to disappoint you: no pics today. Apart from the last handful I took, which were not of changing leaves but of old paint.

The first photo, at the top, is of the wooden window frame around the barn window. The second one is of the metal windowsill. It's really, really close up, which is why the paint on the frame almost look like bark. Seen from a slight distance, the crackling is much more subtle. Notice how the crackling is finer the closer to the edge it gets.

The crackle on the sill is so much finer (you can see a bit of the frame in the shadow under it if you look closely). If the frame is like bark, then this is more like the lichen you can find on trees.

I want to do some pendants with crackled paint so this was unusually inspiring. I see peeling and cracked paint every day, but today it made me think more about how I want to work with the crackled paint techniques. I've got some crackle medium, the kind you paint over -- bought before I hear of this technique -- but I'm also thinking about getting Distress Crackle Paint and Lefranc & Bourgeois' transparent crackle varnish (and ageing varnish for the right patinated effect).

Also took a few shots of the barn wall with its old peeling paint, but I'm afraid they came out very blurry...

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And because they were blurred, I thought I'd take a couple of new one. Of cause, I ended up taking a few more photos than planned. So that means more old paint for you.

And then there's the old barn door:

The other window on the same side of the barn (the long side facing east):

The red is paint from the wall. Someone was a bit careless when painting it, it would seem (window frames not painted at the same time). There's also rust stains where the paint covers a nail.

I've actually got a pic of the whole window too. Not the one those last three pics are from, but the one the pics at the top is from:

It probably needs a new coat of paint, or what do you think? Luckily, it's on the back so most people don't see this side. On the other side, facing the yard, there's only wood panelling for perhaps half a meter under the roof. The rest of the wall is concrete.

But let's return to the windows one last time. What side a window is on can make a huge difference. And it's the same for other parts of the house as well: the bargeboard on the short end of our outbuilding facing west is much more worn than the one facing east as weather and wind are tougher on that side. Anyway, here's a barn window that faces north:

Not as crackled and worn, but here in the shadow it's a easier for the algae to attach itself to the walls and windows.

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As usual you can click on the photos to enlarge them.

Unless I have too much to do, I'll upload some of the foliage photos next week. For those of you not interested in close-ups of old paint (I can probably find more of those in my albums too, perhaps there might even be some old pics somewhere in this blog).