Though my daughter is nearly three and a half, I still rock her almost every night. Even when her daddy tucks her in, I usually end up getting up with her at least once during the night to rock her for a bit. I've sung "You Are My Sunshine" to her every night since she was tiny.
She knows every word now and sings along with me. I absolutely love hearing my baby sing.
When we recently removed her changing pad from the top of the dresser, I realized the wall above it needed a little something extra.
This is how the wall looked before. I kept things a bit high so little feet couldn't kick anything down.
DIY Stamped Art {How-To}
I think I mentioned last week that I've been fighting a serious lack of motivation. I've started 500+ projects and have no desire to finish a single one. Please tell me I'm not the only one. And please share any tips for climbing out of this slump.
That little backstory explains why a 2-day project stretched into about 2 weeks. Seriously, it took forever. I'd stamp a word or two, walk away, and return a day or so later to stamp another. Finally I set myself a deadline and forced myself to finish. I'm always happy once a project is done and I can step back and admire it. Am I right?
I grabbed a leftover Goodwill canvas from a previous project. It came with a great frame when I paid $10 for it, and I've already used the frame in my laundry room. When I first got the canvas, it looked like this ...
It was a lovely scene painted by someone very talented. But picnics just aren't my style {at least for wall art}, so I decided to paint over it and stamp a little love song across it.
First, I sanded down the raised paint on the canvas. It didn't take long, but I wanted it a bit smoother.
Then I wiped it clean and painted it with Annie Sloan's French Linen chalk paint, mixed with some white and off-white paint too.
I planned my wording in my Silhouette software. I love using it not only for cutting but also for design work.
Once I had a draft of my plan, I noted my font size and cut out every letter of the alphabet from Silhouette Stamping Material. If you want to learn all about Silhouette stamping, they have a great video on it!
You could definitely do this project without the Silhouette stamping material. Michael's sells great stamps, and I nearly bought some for this project. Honestly, regular stamps would have been easier, but I wanted a custom size and couldn't find any that matched exactly.
Once all my letters were cut, I arranged one word at a time, dabbed on acrylic craft paint with my fingers, and stamped out each word.
I used painter's tape to mark off each line, then arranged letters, applied paint, stamped, rearranged letters, reapplied paint, stamped again, and repeated. You get the idea. Lots of repetition.
I used 2" x 3/4" pieces of wood from the hardware store for the frame. I was too lazy {again} to haul out my miter saw, so I used my miter box and hacksaw instead. A regular saw would have been easier, but again... I think you can sense a pattern here. Too lazy.
I simply painted the frame pieces in Annie Sloan French Linen chalk paint and attached them with my nail gun.
I haven't waxed it yet, but I plan to add a coat of clear wax soon to protect it. You know, once I'm feeling less ... let's say it together ... unmotivated. I threw in a curveball just to see if you were still paying attention.
I love DIY wall art with a story behind it, and this one, with my song for my girl, is extra special.
Do you have a favorite piece of wall art that holds special meaning?
