Fun with Breyer Painting Kits: Splatter Rubber Cement Horses!

Article and photos by Kristen Cermele 

Create a wildly "dappled" model using simple household items! For this project, I used the Fantasy Horse Paint Kit and rubber cement to create a fun splatter pattern! (If you don't have a paint or craft kit handy, any Breyer model will do! Just paint over the model's original paint with your base color as you would with the unpainted models below.)

The rubber cement is used as a masking product, which keeps the layers of paint away from each other to create a two-tone effect.

Supplies

1. Decide what color you'd like to mask.  You'll be painting the whole horse this color, but only what is blocked off by the rubber cement will end up being this color. If you would like that color to be white, you don't even have to paint the horse at this stage! You can also create any color or combination of color that you would like. You will probably want a few layers of paint to make them bright and bold. Thin layers will dry faster, and you can use a hairdryer on low to speed up the drying process if you'd like.

Base coats are painted and ready for the rubber cement. I left the foal white so its base coat will be white.

2. Wait for your paint to be dry to the touch. Then, take your rubber cement and glob it on with dots and lines. This is going to be abstract; it is not a material that can be easily manipulated. Remember that everywhere you put the cement will in the end be the color you just painted. Try masking off some legs for socks! I've just used the cap-brush that comes with the rubber cement. You can try using the blunt end of your brush or a toothpick, but it is quite thick and won't go on any easier with a paintbrush (and you may end up ruining your brush.) 

Applying the rubber cement.

3. Remember, rubber cement is always a bit tacky and sticky, even when dried. That's alright! When your rubber cement is dry, pick your top color. This will be the color that the bulk of your horse will be. The easiest and most contrasting color for this coat is black. It will go on heavier and cover the rest of the paint faster, but as you can see, you can definitely use the other paint colors, or multiple colors! You'll need a few layers to completely cover up the bottom color layers. Again, thin layers are best to build up, though this will take some patience.

4. Let completely dry, possibly over lunch or dinner. You'll be rubbing your rubber cement off, and if your paint isn't completely dry, it may rub off as well. It may be hard to see the edges of the cement, but that's okay; just firmly rub all over the model, peeling off all of your rubber cement. If all your layers are dried, you shouldn't have any issues with the rubber cement taking off any other layers of paint with it. This may take a little while, but the end result is a one of a kind, bold spatter horse!

Starting to take the rubber cement off

Finished splatter horses!