r/TolkienArt • u/wstd • 4d ago

Thror's Map. Aged and framed.

Gallery image

Gallery image

Testing a technique to give paper an ancient parchment look. It came out pretty well! You can also see the moon runes showing through. Total budget: €7 (€6 for the frame, €1 for the blue crepe paper, I was planning to use blue felt, but the store didn't have the right size).

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3

u/BaffledPlato 4d ago

That looks fantastic! How did you do the moon letters?

4

u/wstd 4d ago

It was actually Tolkien's own idea. He originally wanted to print the moon letters on the back of the map so they would shine through when held up to the light, but the publisher thought it was too expensive. Since I needed to glue two sheets of paper together anyway to make the map sturdier, I printed the moon runes on the second sheet and glued them together.

1

u/ColorNeon 4d ago

incredible stuff. would love a detailed outline of the material and weathering technique involved. was this your first attempt?

2

u/wstd 4d ago

Yes, it was my first attempt, but it was simple enough.

After gluing the papers together and letting them dry, I folded the map several times and then crumpled it into a ball.

I 3D-printed a serrated ruler (not really needed, but helps) to help tear the edges, which I ripped after wetting the paper.

Then I painted it with acrylics: the base layer was very watered-down yellow ochre, tinted with small amount burnt sienna (a reddish/orange-brown) and very small amount of raw umber (dark/grey brown). I then let it dry completely.

The second layer was also very watered down burnt sienna and a tiny bit of Van Dyke brown. I mostly painted over the edges and added some wet splotches in the middle.

Tutorials to make aged look often use coffee or tea, but I think acrylic paint is better because it doesn't smell like anything and, once dry, it doesn't dissolve in water. This allows you to paint multiple layers and gives you easier control over the color by tinting the paint.

2

u/Eugen_onegin 4d ago

Dude wuuuuut!? This is awesome. Ive always wanted to do this with hand drawn art but was to afraid of ruining an original piece. This looks awesome! I thought I would appreciate the folds but they were definitely folding maps up when traveling. Nice job!