I don’t have any daughters. {We have 2 boys.} But I have 3 nieces. {No nephews.} So, I take advantage of any opportunity to make something sweet and girlie for them…for example, Christmas. My oldest niece, Lillian, is 7. She’s a hippie chick and loves anything with flowers or peace signs on it. I decided to make canvas artwork for her room with a peace sign on it. Here’s how I did it…
I started out with a blank 12″x12″ canvas and scrap fabric.
I drew a peace sign free-hand on some newspaper, cut it out, and laid it on my canvas to check the size.
Then I traced my peace sign pattern onto the wrong side of scrap fabric, making sure to line up the pattern of the fabric the way I wanted it.
I cut out the fabric peace sign and laid it onto the canvas…
…and decided the white canvas was too stark. So, I found a light gray-green {Benjamin Moore’s Harbor Town} paint sample in the basement and used it to paint the canvas.
I Mod Podged everything several times over, waiting 10-15 minutes between each coat.
And here’s the final product…
I hope Lillian will think it’s groovy. For my other 2 nieces who are sisters, I decided to make them canvas monograms. {Can you tell I found a 3-pack of 12″x12″ canvases marked down?} They just recently started sharing a room together to leave a third bedroom free as a playroom. I thought personalized monograms would work well in either their shared bedroom or playroom. Plus, in my experience at least, kids like to see the first letter of their name in familiar rooms. This is what I came up with…
I painted a striped pattern onto the canvas with the same light gray-green paint I used on Lillian’s canvas. I bought a wooden “A” for Audrey and a “C” for Caitlyn from JoAnn’s for $2 each on sale and painted them Valspar {Lowe’s} Magic Spell – the same color as my powder room. Audrey likes animals, so I Mod Podged a bird made from fabric scraps onto her canvas. {I made sure to Mod Podge the entire canvas – not just the fabric bird – so the entire canvas would have the same sheen.} I made the little bird appliqué the same way as Lillian’s peace sign by using a pattern drawn on and cut from newspaper. My trusty hot glue gun adhered the “A” to the canvas.
Caitlyn is an eater. I joke that she is an emotional eater…she’s happy when she eats. I Mod Podged a fabric apple onto her canvas.
I tried to keep them fairly neutral so they could work in either their bedroom or playroom. As you can see, some paint seeped under the taped stripes but, once again, I like a little imperfection. It’s your first clue that it was, in fact, hand crafted by me. I hope Audrey and Caitlyn like their monograms!
For me, receiving from someone who spends more time than money on a gift definitely makes me feel extra special. And while I can’t give all handmade presents {well, I guess I could but I’d need to start today for Christmas 2011!}, I try to sprinkle some in here and there. {Check out the Valentine’s Day gift I made for Handy Hubby last year.} What about you? Making any gifts this year? What’s your favorite handmade present you’ve been gifted?
images: all by Dana Miller for House*Tweaking
budget decor, DIY, kid-friendly