Hand-painted Folk Ornament

I was shopping at Michael's when I spied these wood ornaments on super sale last week and I couldn't resist.  I love the shape of them and had the idea to paint them with red and white folk patterns and then stain the wood a bit darker to make them look old. 

Overall this was more difficult than I anticipated.  It might be that my paint was ten years old and stiff...or maybe I needed thinner brushes. I spent about two hours on the one in the background and accidentally ruined it.  I got a little carried away trying to fill in blank space and finally ended up having to paint the whole top red.  In the end I still like it so all was not lost.  I can't exactly put it into words but there is something so basic about putting paint on wood in a folk pattern that brings me so much joy. 

"Delight in the little things." - Rudyard Kipling