"You Are My Vision" Stenciled Canvas

My newest project was inspired by this screen printed sign I found on Pinterest.

<http://www.etsy.com/listing/116578468/you-are-my-sunshine-17-x-195?ref=shop_home_active>

As soon as I saw the text "You are my Sunshine," I knew I wanted to change it to reference my favorite song by Rend Collective Experiment, "You Are My Vision." I set out to make two of these (one for a friend and one for myself) on canvases. I knew I wanted more than one color, and a bit more of a distressed look than the original.

I wanted to replicate the fonts of my inspiration, and also use stencils to make the letters. I found the cursive font (Marcelle Script) and downloaded a free version of it online. For the other font I used one that was similar to the original and already on my computer (Century Gothic).

I printed the letters off onto sticker paper and then cut them out with an X-Acto knife (a crafter's best friend, I must say!). This was probably the most tedious and time-consuming part of the entire project (determining the size of the letters in relation to the canvas and then cutting them out).

Then came the fun part...painting! I began by painting my canvases with a variety of mismatched and dark colors.

I painted back over each of the canvases with two layers of white after doing this.

Why? you ask? Because I wanted to give the script depth and texture instead of just leaving it white.

After letting the canvases dry, I arranged the letters on the first canvas. I also purposefully let the "You" hang over the edge on each side

Next I painted a layer of pink and orange horizontally right over the stencils. After doing this, I took the whole thing outside and splattered the canvas with bright colored paint.

Finally, after allowing plenty of drying time, I very carefully peeled the letters off and transferred them directly to my next canvas. I had to be extremely careful not to tear the stencils, since I planned on using them a second time.

For the second canvas I had a little bit of trouble keeping the stickers on tight. Paint seeped in through several spots, and I had to go back and touch up some of the letters with white paint. The final result ended up being about the same, it was just a bit more work to get there!

I was extremely pleased with both of my final canvases. I gave them both a final coat of varnish (to make them shine) and was quick to hang mine!

Decoupage Cabinet

About four years ago an older member of my church passed away. Her son asked my dad (who is a pastor) to go over to her house and take home whatever he liked before they held an estate sale. We ended up with an old pump organ, a huge wooden mixing bowl and this glass-doored cabinet/bookcase thingy (I haven't quite figured out what to call it!).

 Since putting it in my room in our new house, it has been the first thing people comment on upon walking into my room.

This picture doesn't even begin to describe how beat up this old thing was. It's not really an antique, but a cheap storage piece probably from the 1950's. Complete with peeling paint and chipped wood, I instantly fell in love with its personality! And so began a plan to fix this guy up for my new bedroom...

I don't have much experience with refinishing furniture, but neither sanding nor stripping the paint seemed to work. And I had absolutely no idea how to fix the huge buckle in one of the front cabinet doors.

So I trashed all of my ideas for a nice, smooth, finished piece and convinced myself that a little roughness would give it "character." Unfortunately, I never found the time or motivation to attempt a new paint job, and it sat out in my carport and became my dad's catch-all for grilling tools. As my Christmas break was winding down, though, and with an upcoming move planned for my family in the near future, I decided something must be done about my cabinet. So I attempted one of my favorite crafting techniques, decoupaging, on my first piece of furniture...

I purchased some All Surface Enamel paint in Ash Violet (in the same color family as the color I used for my bedroom walls) from Sherwin Williams, and some black and off-white floral scrapbook paper from my beloved Hobby Lobby.

My plan was to Mod Podge ripped up pieces of scrapbook paper onto the panels of the cabinet. However, since Mod Podge is soooo expensive, and since I usually water it down to thin it anyways, I used a little trick I recently learned. Two parts Elmer's craft glue mixed with one part water. Works like a charm, and about ten times cheaper! (I did, however, end up covering the top of the decoupage with a coat of straight Mod Podge...I used a paint brush to swirl it in different directions, because I wanted a good texture on top.)

I also used corner pieces and edge pieces for the straight sides of the panels...

I made sure to have plenty of good rips in the paper to keep from looking like I was aiming for perfection! Here's the first of six panels to be completed...

I also found some awesome door pulls at (of course) Hobby Lobby, and then some cool brushed nickel retro-style drawer pulls at Lowe's.

And of course my sweet cat, Porkchop, had to get in on the action! He was loving the view from the top of the cabinet.

Something Old, Something New...

I'm a design student. I'm not always thrilled or excited to call myself one, but that's just me. In school, I'm encouraged to sketch and ideate and create and recreate until I come up with a solution. And then I'm usually told that my solution can be improved 1,000x and that even then it won't be completely perfect.

That is the life of a designer. I will survive.

So when I'm home, and when I have my so often sought after and so hard to come by "spare time," I spend it creating. Not for school or to further my skills as a designer...but just for the heck of it. Because I love it.

I've always been addicted to the craft blogs that I'm led to from Pinterest links...so I decided to create my own. The title may be corny, but it's true. I want to share my projects and experiences - big or small - with anyone who wants to see.