Precious Día de Los Muertos

“Tu recuerdo me hace sonreir!”

(“Your memory makes me smile!”)

It’s finally here! Back in March when I first started this great new adventure that is my Blog, I wanted this to be my 2nd post. But then, things happened and I decided to wait it out and save it for November 1st (Although, in order to keep to my regular posting schedule, it’s actually going live a couple of days early, hehe!)

SO…November 1st is Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead). It used to be one of my favorite holidays because it’s full of history, tradition, joy, and of course, yummylicious food! Yes, I did say “was” one of my favorites up until two years ago, which is when it became my favorite holiday!

::cue the “aww’s”::

You see, two years ago, on November 1st, 2018, I joined my life to my greatest companion and friend, my ally in conflict, my comrade in adventure, and my accomplice in mischief. ::awwww:: =D

The reason we chose this day is simple. Since we wanted as many loved ones as possible to attend, the only way for those who are no longer with us to be able to grace us with their presence, would be if we had our wedding on the day they are here with us—Dia de los Muertos. You see, in the Hispanic culture, it is this belief that helps keep the memory of our loved ones still alive with us.

Of course, we also decorated the venue and tables with this theme. Most of our décor came from Mexico, but some friends were actually able to find a few things here in the US.

What really “took the cake” was our cake topper. We wanted something special and unique that would really encompass our amazing day. Sure there were quite a bit of sugar skull toppers out there, but none that really stood out.

I don’t know if it was irony or luck or destiny ::spooooky::, but as it turns out, I found the perfect topper at a garage sale. However, it wasn’t during our normal Saturday garage sale run, it was actually at a sale we were having ourselves! It just so happened that my bride-to-be had this charming Precious Moments bride & groom figure that she was selling. As soon as I saw it, I just thought, “I can totally paint that!” So, after conspiring w/my soon to be sister-in-law—she was also at the garage sale—we “borrowed” it and hid it.

If you remember my Blink post, I did already have a bit of experience changing the look of figures hehe! So the first thing I did after priming it was what’s called a “wash” with black ink—watered down paint. This method allows me to really get the paint into every nook and cranny of the figure.

You see, I like starting from black because as the lighter layers of paint are added, the “unpainted” areas become the shadows. Also, some layers can be a bit thinner where “shadows” would be and so it makes that area automatically darker, giving the figure a better sense of depth.

Another great way to add depth is by painting with a dry brush. This really makes the lighter areas stand out by creating a fade effect from dark to light. This really brings colors out and adds “shape” to the figures’ “raised areas”.

The last touch right before applying a finish is adding earth and grass at the bottom. That effect is done by first gluing some ground cork grains to the base—of course I had to wait for it to dry. Once dry, you start again with a dark brown at the bottom and begin adding lighter paint. After that, just add some green fibers for the grass and voila!

When all is said and done, just add a Matte finish at the end to seal everything and done. I will say it was quite a bit of work; a lot of paint-and-wait for it to dry; and also researching to figure out what sort of patterns to add to the faces.

I will say that the hardest thing in this entire process was actually doing it without her knowing. Thankfully, she went to Mexico for a couple of weeks to get some decorations, so that gave me the time I needed to create the “cherry-on-top” for our wedding cake.

Do any of you celebrate Dia de los Muertos? If not, how do you remember and/or honor your loved ones who are now watching over us from a better place? I’d love to hear your thoughts. As always, thank you for stopping by! It really means a lot to me that you take time out of your lives to come and visit.

If you haven’t already, make sure you don’t miss any new posts by signing up below. Take care of yourselves and see you back here in two weeks! Hope you have a happy Dia de los Muertos!

"To all the loved ones who are no longer with us today, we want you to know that we will love you and forever carry you in the most precious chamber of our hearts until we too are covered by earth."

—Anonymous