Why Not?

My sweet sweet friend keely reminded me that I have not updated my blog in a while...7 weeks to be exact. Whooops. I do have a good reason, however. As mentioned in my very first post, one of my several New Years resolutions was to run a half-marathon. Hopefully in 2 weeks, I will have that one checked off my list. I'm planning on running in the OKC Memorial half-marathon on May 1st...so that's my excuse. I've been spending my evenings training for that instead of sitting at my computer.

But I'm back. With a DIY project. Remember this print?



Yes, well I decided I loved it. However, it was only a 7x5 print and I wanted something bigger. So I decided to make one myself.

You will need (you can get all these at Hobby Lobby, Home Depot or around your house):
-a canvas (I got the largest size they had - about 48x36 inches)
-2 colors of paint (I had leftover Behr from painting our kitchen chairs, so it really ties our living room and kitchen area together)
-roller brush & smaller brush
-cardstock -foil -tape
-x-acto knife

1. Use the roller brush to paint your main color on the canvas (I used a turquoise color). Don't worry about making sure the whole thing is painted well, it looks better when there's imperfections.
2. Find a type face (font) you like. You can find free fonts online - I used Bodoni. You want to make sure it's really bold and blocky, otherwise it won't transfer very well onto the canvas.
3. Type out what you want your canvas to say (I used the "why not?"), using one letter per page to make them big enough to trace. My canvas was so big that I couldn't print the letters big enough, so I just free-handed them, but it would be easier to trace.
4. Print the letters on cardstock and cut them out with an x-acto knife.
5. Here's where it gets a little tricky and messy. Take some foil and roll it up in about 6 inch pieces. Tape them down on both sides to the cut out letters so they act as little handles. You'll need multiple "handles" for each letter.
6. Position the letters on the canvas as you want them. One by one (and this will require 2 people), lift each letter, quickly paint your other color on on it using the smaller brush, then press it down where you want it on the canvas. Press down all the edges to make sure all the paint transfers to the canvas. Use the foil handles to pull the letter back up. It won't look exact, but it will look AWESOME. Promise.
7. Continue to do that with each letter until you're finished.
8. Hang your masterpiece and enjoy!