To UTEE or not to UTEE...

I told you last week that I had ordered some of the new Vintaj Patina metal paints from Bello Modo.  Well, they arrived and I finally had a bit of free time to try them out.  I am impressed. I really like the color choices and the blendable aspect of the paint. The only downside is that they dry a little too fast.  I am not as quick with the brush as I used to be.  In the past, I probably could have done both blanks at the same time. Now just one at a time.
   I had gone on line and watched a couple of the YouTube videos showcasing this product.  On one of them, the demonstrator finished her pieces of using a melting pot and UTEE.  I have had a melting pot for years and never used it! (I KNEW I would have a used for it some day... ).  So after little digging around in the cupboard, I brought it out into the light of day.
   I am not sure I like using UTEE for this application.  My first blanks were a disaster.  I put on too much and the UTEE flowed over the edges of the blanks and got on the back and made a big mess.  I am not even going to show that - too ashamed.

  I got the hang of it better on the second set.  I did have a bit of a problem with the pre-made holes. The UTEE kept filling them.  Had to rim and remelt 3 or 4 times before the holes would stay open. This is the same folder design I used for the Twig earrings last week.

This set went a bit better.  I found there is a slight slant to the melting pot even after I propped it up on the lid .  I found this could be advantageous with controlling the flow of the melting UTEE around the hole.

 

Then I wondered how UTEE would work with alcohol inks.  It is interesting.  I *think* the inks are still dispersing under the UTEE. Take a look at the picture above.  See the tendrils of blue ink that are laying across the raised part of the embossed swirls near the sides of the discs?  I could swear they were not there when I finished them, but were there when I took the picture the next day.  And I just looked at them again - the tendrils are more pronounced and in more places.  I think this is because I failed to seal the ink before applying the UTEE.  I also noticed that UTEE scratches VERY easily. That is OK for me, as I can just pop them back in the pot and remelt to smooth the scratches out, but I could never sell them.
  I have ordered some Glaze especially made for this product so will wait till it gets here before trying more experiments with the Patina's.