Our Canvas Family Rules!

 Figure out how big of a canvas you want. That's going to determine how many family rules your family needs to come up with. The first canvas I bought wasn't big enough.  I ended up buying a 24"x30" wrapped canvas.

 We gathered around the dining room table and decided on obvious and some funny rules that everyone could agree on. As the kids get older I can get smaller canvases and do some "add-ons".

I picked up some double sided specialty scrapbook paper I liked. The double sided paper is thicker and makes it easier to modge podge without having to deal with a bunch of wrinkles once the paper gets wet from gluing. Picking the different patterns out was the hardest. I ended up going with dots. Small, medium and large dots with a full page of a star pattern with the huge E.

I cut the scrapbooking paper into 2"x12" strips. Then I used my cricut to cut out the letters using the Don Juan cartridge and made them 1 1/2". You can use pretty much anything to glue the letters to the paper. I used a xyron machine, but really anything will work....even the modge podge you'll be using later. ( you could use stickers, stencils, etc for the letters as well)

 

After I got all the letters glued onto the paper I played around for what seemed like forever and finally figured out what ordered I wanted the rules to go. 

 I glued down the largest piece first which is the 12x12 paper with the large E. Then one by one I put modge podge on the back of each of the rules a foam brush.

After all the rules were glued on I did 4 layers of  matte modge podge over the front of the canvas. I did 2 layers and waited a couple of hours before finishing with the final 2 layers. I covered every nook and cranny. The paper bubbled up a little here and there, but in the end it just gives it more character. I took a black ink pad and inked all around the edges of the canvas so it wouldn't be stark white. I then let it dry completely overnight and hung it up in the kitchen.

Just remember that is no right or wrong way to make this project. You can add anything to it and make it completely yours. Most importantly have fun!

Here is our finished project!

I  love it!

Supplies Needed:

• Wrapped Stretched Canvas
• Letters (cricut, stencils, stickets, handwritten, painted, endless possibilities)
• Adhesive for letters
• 12x12 double sided scrapbook paper
• Matte Modge Podge
• Foam brush
• Paper Trimmer
• Black Ink Pad

If you have any questions just let me know.

4-H Project Melted Crayon Wall Art

Nothing like waiting until the last minute and Jadyn needing some ideas to do a visual arts project for the 4-H fair. I hit up Pinterest and found the following idea.

 1. Remove the paper from each of the crayons you plan to use. Jadyn picked purple, pink, light green and blue for her colors. You can pick as many or as few as you'd like. There is no right or wrong number.

 2. Grate each crayon. (Jadyn and I talked about it and decided that when we do this again we'll try a pencil sharpener instead of a grater) Some bigger chunks of crayon are ok.

 3. Figure out what design you'd like to do. (We did this before anything else) Jadyn decided to go with diagonal lines. Next time we're thinking about trying a sun.

 4. Once you have the crayon shavings arranged the way you want cover the entire canvas with wax paper  **wax side down.** 

 

 5.  Use a low temp on your iron and press the canvas. Start by gently pressing the iron up and down instead of back and forth. The wax will melt VERY quickly. Once you do the entire canvas it will look all melted. Wait a couple of minutes and then gently peel the wax paper off your art.

 

 6. You're project is complete.....well maybe.

 7. We picked up a solid 5/8" satin ribbon and a polka dot 3/8" grosgrain ribbon and white thumbtacks to pretty up the border. Jadyn overlapped the ribbon and we used the polka dots as the guide to determine where the thumbstacks should go to secure the ribbon. Just pick any color ribbons and thumbtacks that match your project.

 8. Finish the ends of the ribbon off by folding over the end section of the ribbon and placing it over the starting end. Use a thumbtack to secure it into place.

 

 Here is what the finished edges will look like (On our way to drop off the project at the fair)

 

 Do you see the Blue Ribbon??????? 

Now we need to come up with new ideas for next year!

Supplies Needed:

• Stretched Wrapped Canvas
• Crayons
• Cheese Grater or Pencil Sharpener
• Wax Paper
• Iron
• Optional: Ribbon & Thumbtacks 

If you have any questions just let me know.