Crafting!!

Well people, enough is enough. Being unhappy is no bueno. I much prefer being happy and having fun. So I discovered pinterest. But before I got hooked on that, I had to make do by subscribing to crafty blogs. There are SO MANY crafty people on the internet! I found this blog and started searching through their projects. I found this paint chip wall art project (don't worry it's way cuter than it sounds) and I thought I was going to die. That is crafty I can do!! No power tools, just some glue and paint and pretty colors! That is my kind of wall art. I am so into DIY right now, partly because I have no money (okay, I'm cheap) and also because I have a little bit of time to do projects and I need stuff to help me relax. So yesterday while out shopping for tables and chairs for my reading nook which has yet to be established, we decided to get some paint chips and plywood and make these cute wall hangings. My friend had to go get ready for a Halloween party, and I went to see the new Johnny English movie (hilarious btw) and so the project got pushed to today. I started it in my church clothes with a t-shirt over the top, but because of the 91 degree weather and being afraid of getting stain and modpodge all over my clothes, I changed into working clothing and that was way better. So, here goes my project. I don't own a fancy camera and I did the project outside, so the lighting might be strange in some of the photos. I tried to take more than one if I thought it was weird. Supplies: 1 piece of plywood (or 2 or 3 or 4 depending on how many of these you want to make...think cheap and cheerful Christmas presents!!), any size you want, mine's about 2 feet by 1 foot ish. (I did not measure--I told you this is my kind of crafty) 30 to 50 paint chips--the free kind from Lowe's or Home Depot. Get the ones that are a solid color, not the multiple color ones unless you like that kind of thing. Spray adhesive Wood stain Mod Podge or other decoupaging stuff. 2 paintbrushes plastic cup paper towels good ventilation--I worked outside and had great ventilation and plenty of heat. Step One: Cut off the words from the paint chips (duh). It would be ugly if you left them on. Step 2: Lay out the paint chips until you get them exactly where you want them.

Step 3: Number your paint chips on the back so you put them on in order.

Step 4 I decided to stain the wood first because I have a dark wood theme going on in my room right now and I wanted a frame around my paint chips (read: I couldn't find a way to NOT need a frame around my paint chips without having to cut them into weird shapes or without having to cut the plywood and I wanted to make my project TODAY!) Here is a picture of me staining the wood. I only did one coat and it was plenty dark for me.

Step 5: Use the spray adhesive to attach the paint chips to the board. My trick (and it says the same thing on the back of the can) is to spray BOTH the board and the chips for a better stick. Let them stay for a couple of minutes then you're ready for step 6. Step 6: Mod Podge the whole thing. Be careful! I didn't do such a great job of Mod Podging but this was my first time and so it just looks a little rough is all. If you've never worked with mod podge before, don't worry--it dries clear. Unless you used the same brush as you did for the stain, in which case it dries a little brown, which is what it's supposed to look like anyway, so I essentially just combined two steps into one. Shhh...

Step 7: Mod Podge again. Make sure the first coat is dry before you paint on the second coat. I wanted mine to be textured like the one on the other person's blog, so I was a little skewompus with my brushing. I think it looks cool. Step 8: This is the step I skipped. Unless you think I should do this step, I probably won't. You should though! brush stain over the top of the whole thing. Let dry for maybe 5 minutes or so, if you can wait that long, then wipe off with a paper towel or rag until you have just the desired amount of aging on your project. Let dry completely. Step 9: You're probably sick of the glue smell.but you need one more coat of Mod Podge, or if you are really fancy, you could use a polyurethane sealant or something else that would make it super shiny. I'm still thinking about doing that... Step 10: Admire your DIY craftiness and your cool $5 wall art!! AWESOME. Here's mine:

If you would like one of these as your Christmas present from me, just let me know what size and colors. Seriously...this was fun to make! Although you might not want to wait all the way until Christmas for one of these and you might just have to go make one for yourself! Happy Crafting!!