Light Refreshments Served

Something that will POP?

Something cool, but inexpensive?

Here’s my quick guide to making your own:
1. Use an unusual surface.  You don’t always have to purchase a new canvas.  Think heavy cardboard in a big frame, the back of a painting or picture you don’t like, or something from the thrift store, or thin particle board from a hardware store cut to order.
My sister in-law, Courtney, inherited a painting in the new home she bought, which she didn’t particularly like, so we flipped it over and painted it green.

2.  Paint the backdrop one solid color.  Go with a bright color.  It doesn’t need to match your room, it just needs to complement the colors.  Choose a color you love–one you are drawn to for whatever reason.

Colors I like this season are bright teal, hot pink, tangerine (yes, it’s different than orange–a little more pretentious and intense than orange), and creamy yellow.

3.  Cut out simple, flat shapes out of funky wallpaper.  For this particular mural, I cut out strips that looked like tree branches.  You can find fun wallpaper everywhere now:  online, at paper supply stores, or stationery stores.  Keep the shapes really simple.  Position the shapes on the right side of your surface.  Don’t center it.  Have some branches disappear off the side.

Instead of branches, you could cut out large ovals representing clumps of leaves with straight strips of wallpaper representing a few branches.

4.  Cut out accent pictures.
Courtney had an old, cool book of birds we used.  You could use colored photocopies of birds, or any other picture.  How about squirrels?  Squirrels are often over-looked.  It looks great if the pictures look flat, versus 3D. I also cut out some of the flowers in the wallpaper, and leaves in gold stationery paper and positioned them outside the branches.  I always work in odd numbers (branches, birds); I think it looks better.  It makes the voices in my head happy.  I also chose to have the birds touch the branches, but not the flowers or leaves.  I think it makes it look sharp and clean and less busy.
 
5.  Mod Podge or glue them on your painted surface.
This was the first time I’d ever used Mod Podge.  It’s messy, but I liked using it better than glue because I got it all over, and it dried clear.  But it’s addictive.  Now I’m imagining all the things I could Mod Podge around my house.