Okay, guys..I did it! Um...we did it! That would be...my hubby and I did it.

I kept my word. {Phew!}

It's Friday and the framed art is done! I'ts really pretty simple but there were a lot of
"firsts" for me on this project:

- First time using gel medium. {what's that?}

- First time doing compound cuts and measuring. {wow, can't wait to do more}
- First time getting through a project from start to finish in 24 hours.
 {Okay, so maybe that's not a first but it sure has been a long time since it happened!}

On to the tutorial for this project...

Here's the finished framed canvas. I will be adding it to a gallery wall as soon as I figure out what else I want on that wall. For now, I think it looks pretty good here on the mantel...especially since it was SO empty!

 

The inspiration for this project came from my favorite magazine that I have mentioned a bazillion times here...Life:Beautiful. If you don't know about it, check it out and subscribe. You will NOT be disappointed. And I digress...

What you will need:
Materials
A reversed template of any sort. You can download the one I used here.
Printer Paper
Gel Medium
White 8.5 x 11 copier paper
Preframed Canvas
Decoupage Medium
Four 1/2in x 3in x 3ft boards or trim to fit the borders of your canvas
Wood filler (optional)
Spray paint in the color of your choice (optional)

Tools
Spray bottle with water
Foam brush
Printmaking rubber roller (optional)
Fine-grit sandpaper
Measuring tape
Pencil
Protractor
Handsaw or Miter Saw
Hammer
Nails/Brads

Okay, stay with me. I know that list seems quite long but it's really not a lot of stuff and there are a ton of optional items. Trust me, if I can do this...anyone can!

First, apply your gel medium to the middle of the canvas where you will lay your image.

 

 

 

Then, take the sponge brush and spread the gel medium evenly across the canvas making sure there are no large clumps or bumpy areas and adhere your reverse print to the canvas.

 

You will want to take your fingers and apply pressure around the paper to ensure you get all the wrinkles out as you see above.

 

If you have a rubber roller, use that to achieve a smooth surface or if you don't have one you can just do what I did and use a silicone spatula. Works like magic!

 

 

After you're comfortable with the consistency of the medium and the paper, you get to take a break. Now you can go sip on some yummy tea or coffee, wrestle with your toddlers, take some kids to soccer practice and then come back to the project.

 

You will need to let the gel medium dry for 2-3 hours. {cue Jeopardy theme music}

 

Once the medium is completely dry, you will want to take your handy dandy spray bottle and lightly spray the paper all over.

 

The untouched portion on the pic {left} below is what the paper will look like after you spray it with water.

 

Gently begin to peel the paper. You can also take your hands and rub or use the sandpaper at this time as well to get all of the paper off.

 

Don't worry about removing the words by applying too much pressure or rubbing too hard. It won't happen. At least, it didn't for me.

 

 

 



This is what it will look like mid-process. Messy.

 

You can, at this point, allow the canvas to dry and sand lightly once more to get rid of all the access paper or you can leave it as is once it dries and move on to the framing and sealing of the piece. Either way, not a huge deal. Totally up to you!

 

I chose to move on just because I am not the most patient person!

 

We just happened to have some weather aged trim in our garage so I used this to trim the canvas. If you don't have any of that just hanging around, you can purchase this type of trim from Home Depot or Lowe's and it's normally priced by the foot so know your total dimensions before going in to purchase.

 

If you'd like to achieve a weathered look you can use the vinegar and steel wood method and then apply Rustoleum's Driftwood  or Sunbleached Stain for the perfect weathered look!

 

Sidenote: I think it would be fun to finish off the rim in gold, silver, black, gold leaf...possibilities are really endless! And I used scripture on this one because we just need more of it around our place but you could use just about any quote or image you want.

 

Sooooo, moving right along...

 

I am the worst at pics for tutorials and admittedly a bit rusty so no pics of the way we made the cuts.

 

{Insert hubby help here}

 

Essentially, we measured the corners of the frame and cut 45 degree angles from the corner of each trim piece.

 

 

Does that make sense? Perfect!

 

After the trim pieces were cut to size we hammered brads {painted to complement washed wood color}, into each side of the frame to secure to the canvas.

 

Optionally, you could build the frame with wood glue and nails, let it dry and then fit the canvas into the frame. I felt as though this way made for a little more stability and would less likely come apart. Again, personal preference...

 

 

 

And here is the finished product again...

 

 

I just love the way it turned out, don't you?

Maybe this will give me just the kick I need to decorate the mantel before Christmas!

 

And I have a feeling we will be making many more of these!

 

If you make any version of this, I would love for you to share! Or, if you have any questions feel free to ask. I am sure that I left out some info!

 

 

  

Happy Amazing Friday!

Linking up with:
DIYShowoff
The Inspiration Gallery
 Feathered Nest Friday
 Sunday Showcase
Chic on a Shoestring
 WOW Us Wednesdays
Time Washed
DIY by Design
 

Do you have a gallery wall in your house? I used to have a large gallery wall in our living room, but after living with it for awhile, I decided it wasn't for me and took every last frame down. So. many. nail. holes.

I survived. And I'm much happier with how we're using that wall now.

More recently, I tried again with this mini gallery wall in our guest room. I've been living with it for awhile and  it's staying.

I prefer the mismatched frames (the frames in the living room were all white). I tried to keep the art guest-friendly (i.e. no wedding photos), but since you can see this wall from the hallway, I wanted to include photos and art that would make me smile when I walk by.

The top two frames are filled with photos from Adam's trip to Syria and Jordan several years ago. The bear print is by local artist Anna Stowe (you can find more great pieces in her Etsy shop) and the print next to it is from loadedhipspress. I painted the frame's mat to better match the artwork (I just mixed some red and brown craft paint together until I was happy with the colour) and I love how it turned out. Note to self: paint photo mats more often. Below the bear print is an old family photo and the print next to it is from Value Village (weird, I know, but I liked it). The small gold frame is filled with a photo from our trip to Arizona. The painting is by Adam's brother and below it are two silver dollars I got from my grandfather's collection when he passed away.

So what do you think? Are you pro- or anti-gallery wall?

Guess what arrived over the holidays?

If you guessed the totally awesome lino block print I won in Designwali's giveaway, you're a really good guesser (I, on the other hand, get really excited by questions that start with "Guess what...?" only to remember as my mind instantly goes blank that I'm terrible guesser).

Anyway, back to the print. It arrived with a sweet little note from Toronto printmaker Ele of Minouette and went straight into a frame and up on the gallery wall in my living room.

Obviously my photography skills don't do it justice, but I assure you it's lovely and adds an interesting pop of colour to my gallery wall. Be sure to check out Ele's Etsy shop to see all her great pieces and a huge THANK YOU to both Ele and Designwali for this awesome Christmas gift!

Decorating is an ever-evolving process. A few weeks ago, the gallery wall in our living room looked like this:

We planned to slowly keep adding frames over time, but I had officially checked it off the 'to do' list. Except, something wasn't quite right about it: the dark frames, next to the dark bookcase, weighed the room down and didn't fit with the light and airy feel we were going for. So I took all the frames down, spraypainted them white, and put them back up again.

(I also moved a few pictures around, so now we need a new piece of art to fill that big empty frame).

I'm much happier with the new look - the white frames make the art stand out and a few dark frames keep the wall from being too light and bright.

I also moved that large print on our mantle to the opposite wall. Another small change, but I feel like I've found the right 'home' for it. And since my hanging mirrors didn't work out, I still have to figure out what to put on the mantle...

Remember that gallery wall I so painstakingly planned? Well here's what it looks like now:

(That big hole in the upper right-hand corner is for the new print I ordered from The Working Proof, and I have a couple of small frames set aside - you can see them on top of the soon-to-be-painted stereo cabinet - for family photos. I also created some large gaps between frames to hang small, interesting objects in the future - though I have no idea what these small, interesting objects will be).

I decided I wasn't loving the arrangement, so I took down a few frames, added a few others, cut some new mats and moved some of the pictures around to better balance the colours in the art. Which means 1) I still haven't started painting the kitchen like I planned to, and 2) there are a lot of extra nail holes hiding behind those frames. The good news is that I'm much happier with the wall now - nail holes and all.

I love gallery walls and I've wanted to try one for awhile - something dramatic like one of these. The layout of our open concept living room/dining room gives the illusion of a big, empty wall behind the couch (we've actually got a large vintage stereo cabinet hidden back there) and it seemed like the perfect location for a gallery wall.

So, I gathered up some of our favourite pictures, paintings and prints to make paper templates, which I then arranged on the wall using painter's tape. After lots of arranging and rearranging, here's what I ended up with (you can just see the top of our stereo cabinet in this picture - it got a little beaten up during the move, so one of my future projects will be painting it):

Following John and Sherry's advice from their hallway photo project, I measured the distance from each frame's edge to its hanging device (wire, hook, etc.) and marked an 'x' on the corresponding paper template. I hammered a nail into each 'x', tore down the paper template, and hung my frames.

It's an ongoing project, which means I'll be adding frames as I go (and probably switching out some of the pictures up there now). I'd definitely like to see some more family photos up there, and I'd like to add a few silver frames to mix things up. I'm also planning to replace the off-white and grey mats with white ones (luckily there are only a few that need to be replaced).

If you're thinking about building your own gallery wall, The Working Proof is an awesome place to purchase affordable art. As an added bonus, 15% of the sale of each print is donated to a charity chosen by the artist. How cool is that?!

And, until the end of the month, 100% of the sale of the gorgeous print below will be donated to Medecins Sans Frontieres to support their relief efforts in Japan. I just ordered mine and I can't wait to see it on my gallery wall!

Birds in the Bush, by Susan Schwake