Refinishing the Pendant
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Refinishing the Evenstar Halloween Pendant

 == by N'stasha

Rubie's makes a base metal Halloween version of "Arwen's Even Star Necklace" (item #6007) that is retailing for $8 at various costume suppliers, including:

The detail on these is surprisingly good -- the chain is even a twisted rope style -- but they have a matte finish frosted paint on them that makes them look a bit more like Sculpey than real metal and is lighter-colored than the accompanying chain.  N'stasha scratched the edge of one by accident... and found a lovely silvertone metal underneath! She decided to remove all the frosted paint, and now the $8 version looks nearly as good as the $75 one.

The image on the left in each photo is the original frosted piece.  The right is the refinished piece.  (Note, these thumbnails open to large files.)

How to do it:

The frosted paint seems immune to acetone nail polish remover.  So, you'll need to scrape it off with an X-acto knife.  It takes a few minutes, but it's worth it. You can use a pretty dull blade, too.

Hold the longest part of the blade against the evenstar at about a 90 degree angle, then quickly and lightly scrap back and forth with no downward pressure.  This will take off the paint without scratching the metal underneath in any visible way.  Be careful not to scrape into the acrylic gems, though.  You can then use the sharp tip of the blade to get the paint out of the finer crevaces.  You don't have to get this perfect, though, since leaving some frosted paint in the depressions will add an interesting contrast texture. 

SAFETY WARNING: X-acto blades should only be used by an adult, and very carefully.  If you own thick canvas or old leather gloves, you may want to wear one on the hand holding the necklace to prevent slicing your fingers with a slip of the blade.

Alternatives to scraping <here>.

Check the "Before & After"  photos for a comparison to decide whether you should scrape the paint off yours.   The photos don't really do the technique justice, though.  The scraped Evenstar looks 10 times closer to the pic of the $75 Noble Collection version in the coupon book that came with the DVD -- nice enough to wear to fancy occasions.

If the X-acto knife scares you, or you have unsteady hands, you can give the $8 Even Star a coat of acrylic spray gloss.  It looks better than the matte paint untouched, but not as good as scraping the frosted paint off.  N'stasha suggests removing the gems before spraying, though, since it may dull the gems.  Re-glue gems with Super Glue.

SAFETY WARNING: Use Acrylic Sprays and Super Glue in a well-ventilated area -- outside if possible, and make sure any asthmatics nearby are wearing painter's masks.

You'll need to add a faceted crystal bead strung on wire above the main pendant if you want an exact replica of the necklace in the movie.  For  truly great photo of it, see the Noble Collection ad in the coupon booklet that comes with the "Fellowship of the Ring" DVD.


Alternatives to scraping the paint off

For anyone who still needs to remove the paint from a costume version Evenstar, I have an alternative to scraping. It is called Charlie's Soap, and it is great for a variety of purposes. They also have a laundry powder that is good for delicate fabrics. This soapeven takes out blood stains!
 

Anyway, about the Evenstar, I used the liquid soap, dipped a q-tip in it, and just rubbed a bit until the paint came off. Very easy, quick, and safe to do. You just have to make sure you rinse well afterwards; the soap can take the glue off as well if left on, and may cause the rhinestones to fall out. Even if that happened, though, you could just glue them back in.

If anyone is interested in the soap, for Evenstar, washing clothes, or anything else that needs cleaning, you can find it at www.charliesoap.com .

== Ara
 


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This page was last updated 04/22/08