Monday, May 24, 2010

Another one for Randi's room






So I kinda have a bird theme going on in Randi's room. I came up with this project as a result of "things" I had. Here's how to do it.


You need:

-Canvas

-Fabric

-Mod Podge

-Brush

-Contact paper or vinyl

-exacto knife

-craft paint



I had these 6x6 canvas's as well as some bright colored fat quarters I bought at walmart. Just slather on the mod podge on all surfaces and place the fabric so that any patterns are straight. Then put a whole bunch more mod podge on top of the fabric. I put quite a bit on especially on the folded areas. To finish I just fold the edges like you would a present and then set my frame on a plastic cup to dry.



Like I said before we were going for a bird theme. One of THE biggest reasons I love the internet so much is my google search bar. I use it for everything. Just type in what you're looking for, add silhouette on the end of it and search in images. I used several key words like bird, swallow, birdcage, nest and came up with a lot of great options.


Next just print your image. tape your image on the top side of your contact or vinyl paper and cut out image with exacto knife. This is probably the most tedious part. Just remember that you'll be using the out line image and not the actual cutout. Unless you want a reverse applique look. Also keep in mind that any pieces inside the silhouette that need to be kept. For example, on mine I have a tiny space between the feet and branch I had to remember.


Now peel the paper off the sticky part and place on top of your dried canvas. Again, remember the small pieces inside the silhouette. Press firmly to insure that no paint seeps under the edges. I think that if I were to do this again I'd try vinyl instead of contact paper. It's a bit stickier. If you do use contact paper though, go along the all the edges with your fingers and press firmly. My others didn't seep under the edge as much as this one did because I made sure to press the edges down well.



This is the easy part. Just paint. I put a couple layers on so that no fabric would show through.



When your paint has dried you can take the contact paper off, touch up the edges and enjoy your work!


Thursday, May 20, 2010

Can you believe it?!

I'm finally posting something! I have done quite a few craft projects, considering how busy I've been. I've just been too busy to post them. So I'll just jump in with the most recent accomplishment. Last year I moved my eldest daughter into her own room. It's a pretty small room and started out quite drab. I wanted to really make her room special for her since she has to share soooo much with her younger sisters.

I found this desk among the many treasures my mother in law has and asked if I could have it. It was painted a dark tan color and as I started sanding found 5 other colors it had been painted in the past. Beautiful colors that I wanted to come through and be shown in the finished product.



I decided to do an eye poping red and the hardware was so cute with the antiqued edges I decided to keep them.


My husband had the great idea to have her name on the top somewhere so before we painted I searched for the perfect font online and used vinyl to do a reverse stencil.


I absolutely love how it turned out. How about you?