Several of my regular readers have been to at least one of my homes during my lifetime and will recognize these 2 paintings that my grandfather’s friend Jack Haines did (both copies, not original artwork):

After moving a few times and general brittling, the paintings have been chipping in several places, so my mom asked me to restore them. (“Touch up” might be more accurate than “restore,” but “painting restoration” sounds more impressive that “painting touch-ups.”) You can click on any of the images to get a closer (bigger) view.

Barn Trouble Spots: 1. Cracks by wheel; 2. Foot

After:

Less than Shipshape: 1. Sky (top left corner); 2. Hole; 3. Sky (above mast)

Shipshape:

The barn was easy to match colors. I used perhaps 2 or 3 earth tones plus black. I tried to paint very gently since some of the chips flaked off even more while I worked on them.

The ship was definitely trickier, especially the sky. At first glance, most people would say it’s grey-blue, but close up, the variations in color become more apparent. There are blues, greys, greens, and yellows, all in different proportions. There are also several values (lights & darks) within the sky, so a light grey-green in one place might blend well into one spot in the painting, but elsewhere it might be too dark or not blue enough. Eventually I mixed some good matches, and the painting looks pretty good!