Day 2 painting Willie

Finally getting this posted late New Years Eve - So HAPPY NEW YEAR to everyone. This is going to be a picture heavy post. All about Willie. Tomorrow I'll write about what else was going on the last couple of days. Think ouchie and weather.
Friday morning bright and early 7:30 Gilberto the artist was here. All of his equipment in his back pack. Here he is working on the flames [I wanted flames - I have always wanted flames on a car] He has made some templets that he uses. 

 Mostly he does all his work freehand. Bill has always wanted a big American flag on something. 

Some of Gilberto's templets. He is very well know in Mexico for his distinctive style with the flames. We've seen a lot of his work on other vehicles, and know immediately it is his. 

 The day was very overcast and quite humid. But the paint he uses dries quickly. 

 Bill wanted the flag and an eagle, I wanted flames ...

 Changing paints on his air brush. In case I didn't mention it he is doing it in the campground. No fancy paint booth. 

 Cleaning out his air brush with a needle. 

 Bill wanted the flag to look ghostly in the background so here Gilberto is covering the entire flag with a very fine mist of white paint. 

Working on incorporating the skulls into the flames. I like the skulls. The not so quiet and shy part of my personality. Bill explains them as "It shows the Jeep goes so fast the flames are coming from the engines and the skulls are eating the flames." And no we haven't been drinking! 

 He is now designing the eagle. He has laid a big piece of sticky paper on the hood and is drawing the bird freehand.  

 He has a picture of it on his tablet. 

 The drawing is finished. Then he cut certain parts of it out Like using a stencil. 

 Here he has cut out the head and claws. Giving them their first coat of paint.  You can see some of the detail of the wings. 

 Now he has cut out the body and wings.

 The base coat of the bird. 

Working on the details of the wings.  

 Working on the claws.

 Notice the detail of the claws and the head. 

Painting is done.  Now it was time to take the jeep to an indoor shop for the clear coats to be put on it. So in we jumped and went downtown to the shop. It was about 4:30 when he finished the mural. 

Getting ready for the clear coats - 3 of them. We left and walked a little further towards town and had super in a Salads and Soup restaurant. 

On the way back to the shop I tripped again. I swear just clumsy no booze involved. We brought Willie home and Bill pulled him up on the patio to be under the awning to keep the dew off for the night. I took this picture in the morning. 

 No sooner had he backed it off the patio and out into the parking area IT STARTED TO RAIN - WHAT THE HECK!

 So here he is in all his glory. No message in the mural except maybe we are a little weird.  The strips on either side tie it into the graphics on the car. I never noticed them until I saw this picture!

It continued to rain off and on all day - at least he was done painting and the clear coat was dry. And so we begin a New Year. 

Painting the Jeep - Oh my!

Friday morning, next to the last day this year. Seems like I’ve just learned to write 2016! Very overcast and wet this morning. Almost like rain without the drops.
This post will mostly be about Willie, the jeep, not us. 

On Wednesday Bill developed a craving for pizza, so we gathered up our unsuspecting tourists and went to the Centro Historico to La Mona a pizza joint. 

We have eaten there many times. I think I’ve posted pictures of their wood oven that is in the parking lot where we park evenings to go to the plaza. Always been good. Lorie and Mike ordered, I ordered lasagna and Bill ordered a calzone – what happened to the pizza he’d been talking about all day? Their pizza came, my lasagna came…no sign of the calzone. Finally Bill caught the waiter and asked. They brought it right out to him. EXCEPT the outer crust was burned and the inside was not cooked!!! And by then a table of gringos had been seated. They sounded like they’d had a few too many. Soon it was all “I love you brother” and “And I love you to bro.” at the top of their voices. It went downhill from there. The waiter turned the music up loud enough to drown out their conversation. Good Grief! Bill paid the check, they deducted his uneaten meal, and he went outside. We met him in the plaza after we’d finished

Before we went home he ordered a pizza to go from the Italian restaurant in the plaza. 

Ate it all when we got home.

Thursday we spent at home. The artist has come to paint Willie. It will be a couple of day project. Willie being checked out by Gilberto the artist. The bra is off.

Taping what won’t get painted.

Gilbert’s tools. He brought everything in his back pack.

Except he is using our compressor.
Quick sketching the design. Willie’s hood is in the shade next to our patio.

The beginning of the flames. All freehand.

Working on the other side.

Sanded down with beginning of flames and outline of bird.

And how about that. Something is lurking under the flames.

Checking out the design again on his tablet.

Cleaning his air brush. The vaguest beginning of the flag.

Starting to work on the stripes for the flag.

Tedious work. He is so exacting and careful.

Making the pattern for the stars.

Painting the stars.

Almost done with the stars.

Putting some shading in on the flag.

Starting the stripes.

He is gaining an audience as he works. Amazing to watch.

Peeling the tape off. Very carefully.

Starting to look like a real flag with the folds in it.

Adding a 3-dimensional look to it. It is just fascinating to watch him work. He is so quick.

Another look at the flag and flames. He came at 11:00 and left at 5:30

Bill covering the car for the night. Day 1 is over. 

Gilberto arrived here this morning at 7:30 says he wants to finish it today so he can have fun over the weekend. More pictures tomorrow.