Hello All
I refinished a cast iron sculpture that has been outdoor and rusting. It is over 100 years old. The finish that it had was a primer and paint with a faux finish to make it look like aged copper (verde patina look). This finish was done about 15 years ago and was getting pretty rusty. I was hire to redo it. The client wanted to get back to being able to see the metal and not the layered paint that was covering it. I sand blasted it and used non-acidic pewter-colour patina with subtle dark and light highlights, then clear coated it (all products were from sculpt nouveau).

I've been wanting to find a good technique for getting specific colors into my steel items and still have the underlying steel surface show through a bit. I had an interesting experience with using ink and then coating that with Rustoleum Clear Enamel. It looked great initially but then the ink seemed to fade over time. I've thought about using some oil based paints mixed into varnish. I've had good experience with soaking steel items in vinegar for a day, then wire brushing with a knotted wire brush in an angle grinder. This gives a bright shiny surface to start with.

Newbie here,
I want to age and or add a patina to some food grade tin containers I have. Thanks for any help.