No, I haven't taken up blacksmithing - I don't think I have the forearms for it! This is how I patina the altered mint tins I make. I discovered this method when I was using the recycled ones. I was looking for a way to take off the factory paint and found that burning them left behind an interesting patina. I ran out of those tins and found some brand new, unpainted, ones on eBay. I have been fiddling around with those to see if I could get a similar look when they didn't start out with paint.
A tiny fire in my woodstove didn't work very well since there was no paint to burn. Today was DRY for a change so I made a more substantial fire in the backyard firepit and Wa-La! Not quite the same as the painted ones but very satisfactory. I think I might have melted my hairspray a little bit.
