Showing posts with label DIY Wall Art. Show all posts
Showing posts with label DIY Wall Art. Show all posts

Tuesday, January 17, 2023

Home Decor: Family Chinese Zodiac Wall Art

 


Lunar New Year, most popularly known as "Chinese New Year" (but celebrated in other Asian countries) is this coming Sunday. This year is the Year of the Rabbit which is my Chinese Zodiac sign and also happens to also be a milestone year for me. For as long as I can remember, I've always loved rabbits. Even before I knew I was one! In thinking about doing a project I decided to do one that incorporated my sign, as well as my husband's and son. Since this is the first project I'm sharing in the New Year, it makes sense that it's a New Year project, right? 

Supplies:
  • Wood Art Boards (I used 11x14 and 8x10)
  • Acrylic Paint
  • Chinese Zodiac Images (Designbundles)
  • Vinyl (Cricut Glossy Black)
  • Cutting Machine (I used my Cricut Explore Air 2)
  • Gold Leaf Adhesive and Gold Leaf (I used Mona Lisa)


You can find wood art boards in the fine arts sections of craft stores and at art supply stores. I have a few leftover from when I found them on clearance in the arts and crafts section at Target. I wanted a clean graphic look so while red is customary, I chose to match my neutral home decor and painted the boards white and used black vinyl with gold leaf accents. 


A couple of coats of paint (Apple Barrel, White) and you're all good. Allow to dry thoroughly or else your vinyl won't stick properly and the transfer tape will pull up the paint. 


Confession time! I initially planned to put all three Zodiac signs on one board and thought I'd given myself enough space between when I sized the images. I didn't. So after cutting and weeding and not wanting to do that over, I just painted the smaller board and put mine and my husband's on one, and our son on it's own. The two of us made him so this worked in my brain! 


This was a great project that let me test some new skills I learned in a workshop by Abbi Kirsten which was how to use a PNG file to create an SVG file in Inkscape! I bought the graphics from designbundles.net.  


Since gold is another color you see in Chinese art, I decided to add some splashes of gold leaf. I love the Mona Lisa products (Michaels) which are easy to use. I just did some freehand brushstrokes where I wanted to gold leafing, let dry per the instructions on the bottle (actually a little less since the air is so dry where I am) and then applied the leafing using a strong bristled stencil brush. 




Wishing everyone health, peace, and prosperity in the Year of the Rabbit / 2023!

Sharing At: 








Wednesday, August 3, 2022

Home Decor: Shades of Blue DIY Wall Art

 


See? Not everything I'm working on lately is black! With a lot of wall space to cover and not trying to break the bank buying art for it, I continue on my DIY Wall Art journey. Our master bathroom has blue cabinets which are a nice contrast to the gray tile on the floor and in the shower. I decided to do a new painting to tie the two together. 

Supplies: 
  • 36x48 Canvas (Michaels)
  • Acrylic paints in shades of White, Silver, Blue
  • Paint Scraper and Brushes 


My "easel" is a folding card table that works perfectly for these larger canvases. There was no master plan here. I started by painting a section of white, then blending in two different shades of silver. FOr the "water" effect, I did dots of blues and white and then dragged through the paint with a paint scraper. 


For the center of the painting I did a deep blue that coordinated with the color of our cabinets, then did the reverse order of the silvers to white using a wide paintbrush. 


Coincidentally, I'd done a couple of blue-themed paintings before we bought this house that fit perfectly into this room. 


The toilet is situated in its own area so this is in that "room". I'd also previously done this Acrylic Paint Pour canvas which also works in this room! 


I must have been psychic because both of the pieces I did before we even found this house remind me of the fluidity of water so they're perfect for this bathroom. 


No Galleries will be calling to offer me a show, but I'm happy with my DIY Artwork and my biggest fan, Mr. Chocolate, is too! 







Monday, July 25, 2022

Home Decor: DIY Black White and Silver Wall Art

 


I've been having more fun with DIY Wall Art and exploring modern looks. The first piece I showed was for our second bathroom and this one is as well. The bathroom is a "Jack and Jill" with two entrances, but it's also split into two sides. The first side that I showed here has the vanity, sink, and cabinets. The other side has the toilet, shower, tub with black and white subway tiles which is what influenced this piece. 

Supplies: 
  • Wood Art Board 11x14
  • Acrylic Paints
  • Paint Scraper and Brushes

I bought a bunch of these wood art boards at Target when they were on clearance so I had them in my stash. You can get similar at Blick Art and I've also seen them at Michaels and JoAnn.  To start, I covered the board with a couple of coats of white paint (Apple Barrel Snow White).


For this, I didn't want any of the wood bleeding through so I made sure to get a good opaque coverage. After that, I placed black paint (Craftsmart) dotted in a grid pattern, then used a paint scraper to rough out a rectangle. 


It doesn't matter if the grid is straight because you can even it out with the paint scraper and brush and it doesn't have to be perfect. Once dry, repeat the same process for however many other sections you want to do. 


To finish, I once again used a black paint pen to outline and draw some squiggles. There's no right or wrong. Just what you like. 


I think it picks up the tiles perfectly and also works with the shower curtain we put up! 





The black and white ties together with the black and white from the other piece on the other side of the bathroom. 



Sharing At: 








Saturday, July 16, 2022

Home Decor: DIY Modern Wall Art

 


This week's party continues here. Today I wanted to share an easy DIY Modern Wall Art piece. This was done for our second bathroom. Mr. Chocolate is more a fan of copper than I am despite the fact that we live in The Copper State and I wanted to honor that. This was a different style for me but I had a LOT of fun doing it and it was super easy. 

Supplies: 
  • 16x20 Black Canvas
  • White, Grey, Copper Acrylic Paints
  • Paint Scraper Tool
  • Brushes
  • Paint Pen


I stock up on canvases when Michaels has them on sale so I picked up this 5 pack some time ago. The only think I bought for this project was the Folk Art Metallic Copper Paint (Walmart $1.97)

Since the canvas was black which went with my color scheme, I didn't do a base coat. 


After checking out a few videos, I just went for it! To start, I made a grid of dots with the white paint, then used the paint scraper to rough out a rectangle. 


Since this was an abstract / modern look, I didn't go for perfection. I let the paint dry so it wouldn't bleed then did the same process with the grey paint. 


As with most things I make, I just started playing around with the space. Once the grey was dry, I added the copper using the paint scraper. Then I switched to brushes to add some lines and fill in some spots. I also dry brushed white over some of the grey parts as shown.


Finally, I got out a black paint pen and drew some freehand lines. When I showed it to Mr. Chocolate, HE LOVED IT! 



See? We don't even have a hand towel in this bathroom yet but I had this idea in my head and...priorities! 





I think it works well with this print we've had forever!


Sharing At: 





Wednesday, January 12, 2022

Home Decor: Easy Wall Sign

 


Finally found a few minutes to make something, my first real project of 2022. I saw a sign with this sentiment in an office and knew immediately I needed to make something with the sentiment. It doesn't always feel like this is true, but if not "everything" I think almost everything is "figureoutable". 


Supplies: 

  • Wood Art Board
  • Acrylic Paint
  • Vinyl, Transfer Paper
  • Digital Cutting Machine



I bought a bunch of these art boards sometime last year when they were on clearance at Target. Art Stores and Craft Stores sell similar. This is a simple project that requires only a little paint and some vinyl. I used Oracal silver, Black CraftSmart acrylic paint, and Cricut Transfer Tape. 


The first thing I did was paint my board, sides and front. 



I only did one coat because I didn't mind if some of the natural wood bled through but you can do more than one if you want. Just remember to let your paint dry thoroughly between coats. As I was waiting for my paint to dry, I created the sentiment in Cricut Design Space, then cut and weeded the vinyl. 


I used a Design Space font called "Annie Leu" and sized to fit my board. 




Weed the vinyl and then cut a piece of transfer tape to match the size.




When I first started working with vinyl ( and I am still FAR from a pro at it ) I was afraid to play with placement fearing it was going to stick and when I placed it it had to be perfect the first time. If your surface is truly dry ( eg paint ) you can lightly lay it on top and still be able to re-position it. I got it to where I was satisfied and then used my scraper tool to apply the needed pressure for the vinyl to stick. 



And done! On dark surfaces, I wipe with a dry cloth when done just to remove any smudges from applying the transfer tape. The wall I have it on doesn't allow for room to take a head on pic but I'm very happy with it! 




Easy Peasy! 


Sharing At: