The first etching went very well, but I was not happy with the overall look. I thought it looked unfinished. My lady agreed with me. Actually she may have been the one to point it out, but I don't remember. I decided to add a ring around the edge to give it a little more styling. The next etch I was VERY happy with. And then...we (my lady and I) talked about coloring it and what that would look like. So I did more research into the coloring of Byzantine artwork and that's when I found out...the "cross" in the halo is only used for Christ in Byzantine artwork. My work was highly inaccurate. I was actually NOT disheartened because I had been theorizing I could re-etch something by covering it in wax and repeating the process. This was my chance! So I made a new batch of resist wax WITH rosin this time and began my work.
It was here that I found just how much rosin helped the process. As you can see in the picture, I successfully removed the cross from the halo, albeit not completely, but my theory was proven true. It can be done. I also think I used a little too much rosin as I think there was a little bleed in the etching. Otherwise I am unsure what the color change in pars was. Happy with what I had learned, I actually decided to make a new medallion for a more uniform and clean etch overall. In the end, I repeated the entire process again, using the vinyl as the resist once again. I cleaned the medallion with isopropyl alcohol. and did not touch it again with my bare hands. I made a new batch of my wax mixture and used it seal the edges to prevent the back and sides from being etched. I submerged the piece for a total of 50 minutes, removing it to clean off the residue every 10 minutes. After the etch was complete, I cleaned it with water and isopropyl alcohol and put it aside. I then did some research into what paint are best with aluminum. After a time I decided I would use simple acrylic paints and then seal the medallion with multiple coats of spray sealer. This would help the paint last (hopefully) and prevent it from coming off in the future, protecting it from rubbing and weather. As a final note, something I learned as well. When using a Cricut vinyl, it is very difficult to get really detailed work. I could not get the feathers to really look like feathers. I experience the same with the wax. I think I see why artists in period used hashing to do a lot of their detail work. Yep, I have a lot more to learn here and I am looking forward to it.
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