Page:Cyclopedia of Painting-Armstrong, George D (1908).djvu/322

314 that no break shall occur and that the lines at which their work join shall not be visible in the slightest degree.

Brushes called stipplers are much used; these are broad and flat, and in form resemble a hairbrush. In practice the stipplers are gently dabbed against the wet paint, producing a level grain over the whole surface, something like the tooth on the drawing paper called not hotpressed. These brushes may be obtained of various shapes, the handles of some being continuous with the back, whilst in others it is fixed above, like that of a black-lead brush. The adoption of either form is, of course, a matter of taste.

In flatting a door, the panels must be finished first, great care being taken to carry the paint clean into the edges and corners. The stiles or framing should then be done. It is convenient to paint the muntins, or munnions, first; these are the upright pieces in the middle of the door. Next to these come the upper, middle and lower rails, the horizontals which cross the door, and lastly the upright stiles, or external vertical portions of the frame of the door. The brush marks, should any appear at the parts where the work is necessarily in cross directions, will correspond with the joints which would in reality exist at these parts.

Painting Plaster. The first coat is composed of white lead mixed with linseed oil and a small quantity of litharge, the paint being rather thinner than would be used for general purposes, in order that it may soak well into the absorbent surface of the plaster. The next coat should also be thin so that the plaster may be thoroughly saturated. This will be only partially absorbed, and it will be necessary to make the third coat much thicker, mixing with it turpentine, and some of the coloring matter approaching the future tint of the room. The fourth coat should be thicker still and should be mixed with equal parts of oil and turpentine, together with the dry ingredient, sugar of lead, instead of litharge. The color should be much darker than that which is to constitute the finishing coat. All