A New Way to Rescue Failed Paintings

Like most artists, I have a stack of paintings that didn't quite work the way I wanted. I can't bring myself to throw them out but I certainly don't want to display them. 

I've been able to rescue some of those old paintings using a fairly new product, Daniel Smith Watercolor Ground, available from Daniel Smith Art Supplies. I use the ground to cover unwanted areas and to create texture. When it dries (which takes several days), I can then go back and paint, draw and/or collage over those areas. 

Here's an example. I really liked the bright trees in this painting, but the background was a very uniform, and boring, dark brown, so the overall effect was disappointing. I covered the unwanted areas with the watercolor ground, using a 2 inch coarse brush. I worked around the trees but wasn't overly fussy about it. 

When the watercolor ground dried, I decided to collage the bottom left area with some Japanese paper in a floral design that complemented the tree colors. Then I created a blue sky area and a soft purple foreground in watercolor, and finished with branches done in watercolor pencil. 

I was pleased with the result, and feel that the watercolor ground gives the painting, which I named "Dream Scene", a foggy, dreamy quality. 

I'd love to hear about other artists' experiences with reworking their "failures".