Custom Artwork, Project Total: $11.00

Hello Friends,

First I want to say Thank You, Thank You, Thank You to everyone who has subscribed and/or visited my page in the last couple days. I never dreamed that I would get this much exposure on DAY 2!

A special Thank you to Craptastic for featuring me today. It was such an honor and made my day extra special!  See her button on my sidebar and pay her a visit.

Now onto the project of the day...

This artwork was kind of a "see what happens as I go along" type project. I didn't know what I was going to end up with until the end, which is exciting in itself!  Sometimes it doesn't work out and you have to start over, but I am really pleased with how this one turned out.

I started with two large frames purchased from goodwill for $5 a piece, and a book from the dollar store that cost, you guessed it, $1.  Thus my total of $11. (I already had the red paint on hand from another project).

I used the backing of the frames as my base and loosely glued the pages randomly to cover the background.  A glue stick should work just fine.  You don't want the pages to wrinkle or get too wet. Some pages are torn and some are left whole. You just have to wing it and trust your eye.


Next, the pages needed to be aged a bit to match the rustic framing.  I watered down about a dime size worth of brown craft paint and brushed it on sparingly in random places.  I also dry brushed some areas for added texture.  Again, you have to just trust your eye and play with it.

Next is the red paint! You could use any color really, I just love how the red contrasts with the old world rustic barn look.  It adds a contemporary twist that makes it just my style :)   My placement was abstract and random because again I was going for a modern twist. I had a semi-gloss red on hand from another project, Glidden Red Delicious to be exact.  So I just used that because it was free... and I like free!  In retrospect, and if I were to do this again, I may have chosen a matte paint with a primer underneath to get a more even toned color. Vinyl letters would also look nice and sharp.

My lettering was freehand, done in pencil first then painted over.  I love how the final result is not perfect but perfect to me.  It has a handmade/organic feel while at the same time being a big modern statement piece in the home.  I think we will keep this for a while.  It's located in our entryway hall so that everyone that walks in the door is greeted with our family motto.


Lots of love,
Mary