Pinstriped panels for fun and profit

In my free time, and in an effort to make extra cash, I use panels as a nice experiment in color and designing for pinstriping. With the success of selling panels for charity at the various panel jams throughout the world, pinstriped panel art has become more and more popular—to the point that many of us can sell them for profit throughout the year.

I buy sheets of aluminum composite material in various colors. They come with gloss finish on one side and a matte finish on the other. I cut them in many different shapes and sizes and stack them by my work table. Whenever the inspiration hits me, I can grab whatever size and shape that I want and get started.

I started doing these just as practice and experimentation for the work that I do on vehicles. I have always used just a solid color background to focus on my design work rather than just a wild colored background. Panels allow you to take chances that you might not want to take on someone’s hot rod but might look fantastic hanging on someone’s wall. With these panels, I sometimes use quite a few colors that I wouldn’t use on someone’s vehicle. I may experiment with a filled-in shape first and then pinstriping on the top of it. Sometimes I’m just experimenting with color choices.