In the beginning of the winter, a client approached me about painting a small trailer that would be parked near a skating rink in Portland and serve warm cups of coffee and hot cocoa to thirsty and cold skaters. He needed one side of the trailer to read clearly and from a distance the word "COFFEE" and on the other side, (the front) he wanted two logos and space for a menu board. I immediately accepted the job and the challenges that came with it. The first challenge was what to use for the project, paint or vinyl? I quickly eliminated vinyl as an option due to the price and focused on painting the letters and logos. And the second challenge was the weather. At the time of the assignment the winter was just starting, cold, but not unbearable. I needed to start and complete this project as fast as possible to keep myself from freezing. (just days after I finished the temp dropped below 0 and stayed there for weeks). For this, I needed to find a paint that would adhere and stay on a metal trailer and withstand the elements. With the help of my pals at Artists and Craftsman I settled on a small can of One Shot sign paint, an oil based enamel that can stand the elements and is opaque enough to only need one coat (although, I put on two for good measure). With the help of a fellow artist, I was able to complete the job, although not as quickly as I had hoped, the total hands on work time took 10-15 hours, depending on how you count the time involved. The biggest reward has been seeing the COFFEE trailer twice daily during my commute to and from work. It's parked at Thompson Point in Portland and seeing it as I'm doing 60 on 295 makes me feel like I painted a billboard. Pretty epic. Roe assembling the template for the 36" high letters that make up the word COFFEE. After transferring our template to the trailer, Roe and I start painting. Once complete, I start on the logo placement and template for the front of the trailer. My apartment is really too small for all these projects that take place in it. Here I've assembled the template for the front of the trailer. All positioned and ready for transfer, As I start painting the temperature starts to drop, so I work faster. After two coats of One Shot enamel I was finished. The trailer now sits in a row of food trucks at the Thompson Point Skating Rink. Coffee... another reason to go ice skating!
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AuthorNew Jersey girl loving Maine. Currently residing in Portland and raising an energetic and creative little boy. Artist and teacher by day. Unlimited creativity. Always in search of the next great project. Reflective, innovative and constantly evolving. Archives
May 2020
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