Paint a Design - Transfer to Fabric

Now that Thanksgiving is over (for us in Canada), my attention is now focused on Christmas.  I'm not much of a "Halloween" person, so decorations around my house do not exist.  I'm planning ahead for how I am going to decorate my home for Christmas this year.  So, from this point on, you will probably be bombarded with some of my Christmas ideas and projects!

So, yesterday I decided to sit down an paint something...and this is what I painted. 

Some berry branches in neutral colors with a pop of color in the berries and ribbon.  While painting this design, my thoughts were to come up with something that I could use to decorate napkins, a table runner, placemats, pillows (maybe) and the list goes on.  My idea...come up with a design to paint,  scan it to my computer, resize the image to my project needs and print the image directly to fabric or transfer paper...whatever!  I think the possibilities are endless.  But, before I carried away, I thought I'd give it a try FIRST...

The top is the original painting, the left is printed directly onto muslin and the right is printed directly onto canvas.

I scanned my painting onto my computer and then printed the image directly onto canvas.  You will notice the black marks on the fabric...I just finished changing the printer ink and my printer always leaves a mess after the first printing, but you can get the idea of how it looks on heavier fabric.

I then printed the image onto muslin. 

I love the look of both! 

I couldn't just leave the idea hanging, so I thought I would design a canvas basket and add my printed muslin to the front and this is what I came up with...

I'm not sure how I will use this basket...possibly throw in some branches, greenery and berries and simply use it as decoration.  We'll see.

So, now that I know the results, I am going to come up with my theme and get to work on my table accessories.  Who knows, I may use this design!

Thank you for stopping by for a visit.  If you are interested in sewing the basket, let me know, and I will put together my instructions for you.  Have a great day!

Lesa

Chalkboard Desk Blotter

Here's a project I'd like to share with you....

It's a chalkboard desk blotter.

If you'd like to see how I made it, please read on...

First decide how big you want your blotter.  I made mine 18" x 24".  So, I cut two pieces of matboard to that size.  Then, using spray adhesive I secured the boards together - having two gives the blotter some strength.

Cut a piece of canvas 20" x 26"...this will allow approximately 1" on each side to wrap around the back of the board.  Next, cut a piece of Heat n Bond the same size as the canvas and adhere to the back of the canvas following the manufacturer's instructions. 

Once cool, remove the paper backing.

Center the board on the back of the canvas and using your iron, secure the canvas to the board. 

Fold the edges to the back of the board and secure with your iron.

I made my own cording to wrap around the edge of the board, however, you can buy it from your local fabric store.  I secured the cording to the edge using hot glue.

Now, cut a piece of scrap paper or brown craft paper to the size of your blotter and design your chalkboard space...you can get creative here. 

Once you are happy with the design, cut it out, place it on your board and trace it with a pencil.  Mask off the areas you don't want to paint.

Next, I primed my chalkboard area.  Once dry, I sanded the primed area lightly with 220 grit sandpaper and then applied a second coat of primer. 

Then, apply two coats of DecoArt's Chalkboard paint.

I added the word "Notes" to the top of my blotter using DecoArt's Blue Mist paint.

Cut two pieces of elastic long enough to wrap around the blotter.  Cover with fabric and then sew the ends together.  Slide onto the blotter, one on each side.  These can be used to hold photos, business cards, notes, etc.

That's it! 

Hope you have a great day and thank you for stopping by!
Lesa

While the Husband's Away...

Every September my husband leaves on his annual hunting trip back to the Yukon for two weeks and every time he leaves I have a list of projects to complete before he gets home.  This year is no exception...so I decided it was time to tackle the bathroom.  It certainly wasn't a major "gut" of the room, but I updated the light fixture, painted, added some moulding, etc.  Just things I could do to give it a "fresher" new look.  Before I go any further, I just want you to know that I am aware that the shower curtain, towels and bathmat DO NOT MATCH the room...I just haven't had time to go out and look for new stuff, but I will get to it!  So, here it is...

It started out looking like this...

I absolutely hated the Hollywood lights!  Over at Pretty Handy Girl, she gave a tutorial on how to change out such a light fixture, so I gave it a go.  It was very easy to do, however, the electrical box was not centered over the mirror...it was to the left which ticked me off!! 

Not much I could do about that as I am not an electrician nor was I calling one to do it!  So, I made due with what I had and the new light fixture I bought actually fit perfectly.  Again, its not centered over the mirror, but I'll live with it. (Oh...just when I started to take pictures the middle bulb burned out...nothing will every be perfect around here!)

I painted the walls a light blue color called "Live" from Home Hardware. (I love their paint!)  It's a very soft color and very calming.  I added beadboard wallpaper...yip, wallpaper!  It was cheap and doesn't look too bad!  I used MDF (1/2") to add trim to the beadboard, top and bottom.  I painted it with a white called "Puff Ball".  I also painted the existing door trim and door with the same color.  As well, I painted the vanity. 

Speaking of the vanity...if you look at the before picture closely, you will see that the countertop extended over the back of the toilet. 

Now, without trying to bore you, but I must explain, you will see that the "extension" has a big hole cut out of it.  When we replaced the toilet, the new one was too tall for the space...low flow toilet with the flush buttons on top of the tank.  The toilet fit, but you couldn't get your hand in to flush it, so out of frustration, my husband got out the jigsaw and cut an opening big enough to expose the buttons!  The whole thing didn't seem to bother him...as he said, problem solved!  Okay, I removed that section of the countertop because it bothered me!

I made a frame for the mirror using 1x4 pine and painted it a dark brown.  I also used the same brown to trim the vanity doors and to paint the towel ladder I built...again, from 1x4 pine and dowel. 

The hand towel rack is actually a wrought iron flower pot holder.  It was an off-white, but I spray painted it with Rustoleum's oil rubbed bronze.

I added height to the doorway by using 1/2" MDF cut to the width of the doorway by 4" high.  I trimmed it with crown moulding then painted the entire thing the same color as the door and trim. 

My so-called artwork is a bunch of scrap 1x4's glued together, randomly painted with the same colors used in the bathroom and funky candle lanterns attached to it. 



Not much else to tell you...that's about it! 

Thank you for stopping by...I hope you enjoyed your visit.  Have a great weekend!

Lesa

Daisy's Crate Bed

This is Daisy...

And, she likes to sleep here...

So, I decided to build her a bed out of the scrap 1x4's I had left over from furniture projects.  I wanted the bed to look like an old, weathered crate so I didn't put alot of effort into constructing it...i.e. square corners, etc.  Once I got it together, I added the small castor wheels to the bottom.  I then applied my vinegar and steel wool mixture to weather the wood. 

I liked it, however, it was to "red" in color for what I wanted, so I gave it a light sanding and applied dark walnut danish oil to the surface by rubbing it in with a soft cloth.  That helped take the red out of the wood, but it still needed more.  So, I started dry brushing green paint and then white paint on the surface.  When I was happy with the color I applied another coat of danish oil to age the paint color.  Finally, I applied Daisy's name to the front using the freezer paper transfer method. 

As well, added the "No.1" to each side of the crate, again using the freezer paper transfer method. 

 I made a cushion and cover (that is removable and can be thrown into the wash) out of an old feather pillow which fit into the crate perfectly.  Daisy now has her own bed, but it looks as though she is hoping to head back to the couch!

Thank you for stopping by...
Lesa