You Can Make Your Own Vintage Sign

I love the look of Vintage Signs, so I thought I'd create something of my own,
customized for me, at just a fraction of the cost.

All I needed was a few pieces of scrap wood, some paint and contact paper.

I wanted a sign for my art studio door of the Number 13. It's part of my company
name and I've always loved it. (no superstition for me :)

I dug through my scrap wood pile and found 4 boards (3 1/2 inches wide) and cut them to a 17 inch length. Any size wood will do - just depends on how big you want your sign to be. Pick something relatively thin so it's not too heavy - probably around 1 inch works best.

 Lined up the wood and on the back I used some smaller pieces to nail
everything together and stabilize it a bit more. 

Assembled the wood. A little glue, a few nails. 

Sanded it just a little bit because I wanted it to look very vintage. 

  A talented friend told me about printing letters/numbers on contact paper so I thought I'd give it a try. I discovered the ink from my printer didn't want to stick to the contact paper,
so I just printed the numbers out on legal size paper, taped them to the contact
paper and cut it out with scissors (worked great).

I chose flat black paint for my base coat. You could also use a stain.
Just remember the base coat will be the color you want your letters/numbers/words to be. 

Once the base coat was dry, I wanted to line up the numbers evenly so I drew a very light line with my t-square. (It was painted over with the top coat)

Peeled the contact paper off the number and lined them up on the wood. Because the wood was so rough, they wouldn't stick very securely. I just pressed them down and they stayed in place (sort of).

For my top coat, I chose ivory flat paint. I painted it very gently with the foam brush. I held down the numbers with my fingers and brushed from the inside out of the contact paper in order to get a crisper edge. Used a light coat of paint as I wanted it to look distressed.

Once it dried, I removed the contact paper, and sanded it lightly.

Didn't want to put a hole in my studio door, so I turned to my
trusty Velcro Command Strips and a level to hang them.

Love it!!!

Happy Creating!

Love, Steph

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Easy & Elegant Paper Easter Eggs

Plastic Eggs + Paper + Glue = Easy & Elegant Paper Eggs

Create a basket or bowl full of elegant paper eggs. Use them for Easter or to accent a room.

Supplies:

Plastic Eggs (Medium to Large Size)

Paper (scrapbook, Wrapping Paper, etc)

Mod Podge Glue (Lustre Finish)

Foam Brush

Start with your paper. I selected a few complementary colors/patterns. But you could also go with one pattern for all the eggs. You'll probably only need 2-3 sheets depending upon how many eggs you cover.

Cut, tear or use punches to get your paper into small pieces. 

I cut some with decorative scissors, punched some out with a mini round punch, and cut out thin strips for the rest. (The thin strips were the easiest to apply).

 I sprayed my pieces lightly with a fine mist of water before I glued them.
It helped make the paper a little more malleable. 

Dip your brush into the Mod Podge (I used the Lustre Finish so there would be a shine to the eggs) and start placing little pieces onto the egg. Overlap the pieces as you glue.

I found if I worked on one half of the egg at a time, and let it dry a bit in between, it was much easier to work with and not so sticky. I put them on wax paper while they dried.

Once they're dry, you can leave plain or decorate with stickles, buttons, ribbon, whatever you like.

Display them in a cute basket or bowl.

Hope you have a creative week!
Love, Steph

Today is the BEST Day Ever - A Life (and Art Piece) full of Joy

Last year a sweet friend of mine commissioned a piece of art for a friend who was going through some pretty horrible health issues and the future was perilous and unknown.  YET, this man, and his family, had the most wonderful attitude.

Whenever someone asked them, "how are you doing", their reply was always....

Today is the Best Day Ever.

It's easy to be happy when things are going well. Imagine having such a positive attitude, such hope, such a beautiful spirit, that you viewed each day as so special (even when things weren't going well)?

Creating this piece helped remind me of all the joy that is waiting for us, even in the midst of not-so-great circumstances. We get to choose to have that perspective of looking for the good instead of the bad. We get to choose to see the wonder each day, each person, each.....

We all know people who lift us up and are wonderful to be around. 

And we all know people who are the opposite.

What type do we want to be?

Hope today is the Best Day Ever for you!

Love, Steph