MRX Designs: Gritty Reboot

A few weeks ago, I posted pics of a prop tome that I had whipped up for the Rogue Cthulhu Prize table. It was not picked as a prize, so I decided to throw it up on ebay and make some cash out of it. I have sold many of these types of re-covered encyclopedia props in the past. They usually go for around $25-$30. After two weeks of posting on ebay, the "9th Gate red edition" did not sell, so I decided to pull it and do some more work on it. Maybe improve its overall appeal.

Here are the results. The book is essentially the same with the exception of the painted on "dirt and grime of a hundred years". A little dry brushing with flat black acrylic paint around the edges of the bosses and centerpiece, and in strategic places along the edges of the cover was used to simulate the wear patterns from handling and the dirt and grime that accumulates in the recesses and corners that makes an object look ancient.

This is only the second time I have used this painting technique. The first was on the Black Duke movie props that I have mentioned several times, and which I will be posting about very soon (I have like 160 pics to sort through and edit). It was this technique that really brought those props to life and made them among my finest work. I know I said it was the Shadowmanor items, but it was really the Black Duke items (which I was working on at the same time) that really made me think I could do this for a living. I'm very proud of them. I think the antiquing technique also made a world of difference on this book as well. All of my previous encyclopedia re-covers looked like evil tomes, but they looked like new evil tomes. None of them looked like they were ancient. This technique makes them look like ancient artifacts, and way ups the cool factor as far as I'm concerned. I think I'll be doing this to most of my encyclopedia re-covers from now on.