A Decorative work in progress

[hearpe]

So why be normal?- the Mikel Celtic was rather plain in light ash wood, so I decided to get creative and decorate- not quite all there yet- a work in progress. The Folk Art Shimmering paint is pretty nice for the project.

[hearpe]

[hearpe]

[hearpe]

No part of sound box will be painted outside of the frame/bracing-
well maybe a small thin Celtic stencil of some sort- not much of a freehand artist.

I could swear my bass strings got louder after painting the pillar…..
maybe- there’s metal in this paint and I think it may be stronger now.

The aquamarine blue turns out to be the same color as our 1960 Dodge Dart Seneca was- the only new car my family ever bought when I was a kid.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d1/1960-Dodge-Dart-Pionier.jpg

[Alyson Webber]

How fun! I like the gold “A” levers!

Just think on how nice some harp lights would look in addition!

Maybe the harp sounds louder because it is more festive looking. They say we first taste with our eyes, why not first hear with our eyes?

[hearpe]

I’ve got shimmering silver for the other levers- I may paint the A’s back the same. The copper on the center soundboard rail also seems to strengthen that, and I also put some white latex as best as I could on the string rail inside- the soundboard doesn’t bulge quite as much now, and I found the sound more lively then too-

From experiences with other instruments- that’s how my thinking has evolved here- strength on the bracing, but lightweight on the actual sound chambers- although I’ve ground internal guitar bracing down and gotten better volume and resonance. I’ve slightly sanded the inside of the round back- it was left a little rough, and I’ve found that rough surfaces in sound chambers really kill the sound. The soundboard of course needs a certain strength to resist the string tension so I leave that alone beyond a smoothing.

I really think the pillar perhaps transfers vibrations better now- while of course painted soundboxes usually diminish that.

Anyway, I always enjoy detailed painting, if it’s non-toxic especially.

Harp lights may be too technology for my ecological concerns- but I do have some multi colored rhinestones on order that may look nice somehow.
The little red ruby stone in the center of the Celtic circle doesn’t show well in the photo, but in certain situations really lights up.

[hearpe]

One more image I didn’t realize I’d missed.

[goatberryfarm2010]

Your harp dec is striking & truly lovely. I’m not that brave!

[naisha]

Omg I love it!! It looks so gorgeous! And I think marking the A levers is a good idea, useful and colorful. I really like that blue tone, I use that tone for my nails from time to time, hehe!

[goatberryfarm2010]

Ditto on the A levers.
I have Camac levers, all silver, & I want something to highlight the A’s.
Does anyone know where I could buy those colored bits that completely cover the bulb of the lever?

[Biagio]

Hi Jennifer,

If you can find yellow heat shrink tape that would work. A hair dryer is sufficient to shrink it; just mask the neck with a hot pad. Alternatively buy the liquid rubber that electricians use to coat tool handles.

Biagio

[goatberryfarm2010]

Thank you, Biagio! I’ll look online.
There’s no way I want to fight traffic & crowds.

[Paul and Brenda]

Hobby shops, stores or online, carry different colors and sizes of heatshrink.

[Charles]

I love all those colors!
I’ve always had trouble picking one color which resulted in me repainting my childhood bedroom several times. How arw you enjoying the actual harp and was it difficult to order and have it delivered?
Charles

[Christian Finnigan]

Wow! it is pretty awesome. I love it.

[Author]

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