decor

Make Your Own Constellation Art

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Hello World,

It’s no secret I love anything outer space related and stargazing. Before I discovered my passion for design, I actually wanted to be an astronomer or a physicist. I even was almost going to be a galaxy for Halloween this last year.  To bring a little of the night sky into my home, I DIY-ed some simple wall decor featuring one of my favorite constellations- Ursa Major.

Check out the tutorial to make your own:

constellationart

1. Gather your supplies: a small canvas, black and blue acrylic paints, Mod Podge, glitter, a Sharpie, studs, and a brush.

2. Paint your canvas. I painted black paint on the top half, and blue on the bottom half, and then blended them together to create a gradient night sky.

3. Allow paint to dry, and then apply a layer of Mod Podge.

4. Sprinkle glitter onto the wet Mod Podge and allow it to dry. Once dry, add a second layer of Mod Podge to seal the glitter.

5. Once all your Mod Podge is dried, draw out your favorite constellation with the Sharpie.

6. Dip the back of each stud in some Mod Podge, and place it on the canvas at each star location. Allow to dry and enjoy!

If I can get my hands on more small canvases, I think I’ll make a series of these and hang them up in a row. What is your favorite constellation?

Happy Crafting!

Hand Painted Sunflower Stool

Hello World,

I went thrifting recently and found this solid wood stool for only $4! If you are sensing a pattern here, I like to buy thrift shop items and give them makeovers. The stool I bought had dents and wear on it. Instead of just sanding it and staining the wood, I decided to give it a cheery update.

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I started by sanding the stool by hand to remove the shine and painted the entire stool with white primer. Next, I applied two coats of periwinkle interior latex paint. At this point I thought the stool looked too perfect, so I took a fine grit sand paper and started sanding the edges of the stool. Some parts I sanded more than others, so the white or original wood would peek through.

I next used acrylic paint and painted my sunflower. I did a base of white first, as yellow paint always seems to be slightly transparent. I used black for the center, and used a fan brush to texturize dark grey paint over it.

After painting my sunflower, I sanded it (going with the grain of the wood) as well to give it some wear. I then sealed it with some clear spray paint.

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My mom loves sunflowers, so *spoiler MOM* I might give it to her. If I find another stool at that low of a price, I might make another with a daisy painted on it. Do you like to makeover thrift store items as well?

Happy Crafting!

DIY Oversized Dreamcatcher

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Hello World,

I usually don’t post about my personal life on here, but today’s tutorial is different. It holds a deeper meaning to me. My grandma (I called her Granny) passed away almost two years ago, and my family was given some of her things. Granny was very bright, loved to read, collected quirky cat figurines, and had doilies all around her home. I have had one of her doilies, and finally found a symbolic way to use it.

Granny liked to focus on the positive, and didn’t let negativity get to her. I find this attitude towards life similar to a dreamcatcher. In some Native American cultures, dreamcatchers are believed to filter out bad dreams, letting only the good dreams through. So I used one of her doilies to make an oversized dreamcatcher, as a happy reminder of her, and to remind me focus on the positive, no matter what life throws at me.

Check out the tutorial below:

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1. Gather your supplies: a small hula-hoop (mine was from the dollar store), a doily, twine, scissors, various lace trimmings (I found mine at thrift shops), beads, buttons, and fabric glue (not pictured).

2. Pop in your favorite movie, and start wrapping your twine around your hula hoop. Continue until you have completely covered it.

3. Take note of how many points your doily has. Mine had 12.

4. Start by tying a tail end of twine to your hoop. 1/12 along the way of my hoop, I pulled tightly, and looped my twine around my hoop. I repeated this until I had a 12 sided polygon inside my hoop.

5. I continued around a second time, this time looping my twine through the center point of each previously-created polygon side. My doily was large, so I didn’t continue working around the twine spiral. If yours is smaller, continue working your way around. Tie a knot when you reach your stopping point.

6. To attach my doily, instead of working it into the twine spiral, I just looped twine through one of the corners, and tied it to the hoop. I hid my tail ends my wrapping them around the hoop a bit.

7. Attach your various lace trims to your hoop. Either knot them onto it, or fold them over and glue in place.

8. Add any other trimmings to your dreamcatcher. I tied on pearl strands, twine braids, and other beaded strands.

9. To hang it, I looped a piece of trim around the top of my hoop and glued the tail ends together to create a loop. I also added a vintage brooch to the doily of my dreamcatcher.

I haven’t added feathers to mine just yet, as I haven’t stumbled across the perfect feathers yet.

Happy crafting! Be happy!