Restore art deco on outside wall
by
Bp
+6
I would appreciate some help on restoring this piece of outside wall deco. It has quite a bit of rust and the middle gecko (orange) is fading. Any ideas how to remove the rust and restore it to its original sheen, as well as the gecko? It was a beautiful piece when we bought it. Although we don't get much rain here in AZ, what we do get has obviously caused the rust. Thank you for any help.
http://homeguides.sfgate.com/remove-rust-metal-wall-art-81313.html
I would start by making a paste with baking soda and water ,dab on to the rust, allow to sit then rub off.Use a exterior paint for metal, and once dry seal with a clear non yellowing exterior marine varnish
It looks so cool all rusted and distressed. I absolutely love the way it looks now. It is as if it is a southwestern take on the huge distressed and galvanized metal trend! You could put some water and fade proof clear epoxy on it to keep it from rusting further.
If you decide against it you could use some WD-40.
Can the geckos be removed and put back on? It would be easiest to sand it down and spray paint it. Otherwise you would have to try and brush paint on carefully to go around the geckos. They sell metallic spray paint and metallic paint you can brush on as well.
Easier if you can remove it off the wall. Sand as much of the rust as you can. Use Rustoleum 2x spray paint on the flat background. Tape off the gecko's. Then paint the gecko's with acrylic craft paint. Seal with at least three coats of a marine grade polyurethane. It is waterproof but also will slow down fading.
Sand where you can, then use Rustoleum spray for the whole piece, front and back and the geckos, too. White, black, or your favorite color. When a coat or two have dried, invest in some Unicorn SPiT paint bottles (maybe three). Use a small brush and paint each gecko a different color of US. Let that dry. Then just splotch on the other two colors on each gecko randomly. Not quite finished! When the last coat on the geckos (and even the background) is dry, spray the whole piece in two coats of outdoor polyurethane. This is where the magic comes in! As the poly dries, the colors on the geckos will seem irridescent and even 3D! Your talisman will be old, yet totally modern. ☺️
I'd just paint the gecko orange again and leave the rust. It looks great distressed that way. To keep it from rusting more, put a coat of polyurethane or varnish for outside over the whole thing. it should help keep the geckos from fading also.
I agree that it would be much more delightful if it were restored. I don't think having 'distressed junk yard geckos' on your wall is attractive. I would paint the background a metallic gold colour, with the geckos in bright contrasting colors.