DIY Painted Stick Collage

DIY Stick Collage 

What you will need:

a pile of sticks

paint brushes

paint

heavy duty glue

First we started the process of collecting the sticks. Until I was able to lay them in the back of the John Deer out to my liking. I get an idea in my head and it's own. There's always that tweaking you have to do to shape things up to your liking. 

This project was totally inspire by the stick pictured above. My youngest daughter came inside with it one day. Finally, I instructed her to take it back out side. A day later why out by the pool I see the stick again. She took it out side alright. It was tossed right on top of the cypress ground cover around the pool. In that moment it hit me that stick could be used to make something. I continue the thought process. 

We were currently on a mission to make a wall collage in general in my youngest daughters bedroom. Thoughts of adding a stick collage to the wall collage just seemed right. As the stick collage was coming to life, I walked in her room one day jotting down all the colors I saw in her room. She shouted down the hall way, "I don't want" such and such color in the stick collage. I continued writing. 

I gathered my paints!

I painted each stick individually in a color scheme to my liking for her room. If you notice in the bucket above with the paint colors picked out, I didn't use all the colors. Once I started I just wasn't feeling all the colors, as well, trying to respected her wishes too. 

Because I had a few days in between painting and before glueing I placed the sticks down in the vase of my grandmothers. The colors sure gave a pop to the table. I considered painting more just for the table. But can assure you that hasn't happened yet!

Once painted, I tooled around with the idea of what color stick goes where. What pattern seemed natural? On below you will see I tooled around with what shape. 

The picture above is one of my favorite! It totally captures everything from a different angle. 

I played around with the sticks laying them out different ways before glueing them together. This gives you the idea that this project can really go any way. Pick the colors you like, paint the sticks and lay them out to your liking before gluing. Fun! Easy! Your own project! #savethecash #makeityourown 

This Stick Collage makes for a great piece of artwork on any wall alone or together with something else. Something you will learn from me, is I love to create on a budget! Having a family, raising two girls, you learn to capture what's already freely around you and make use of it! Think of it like this on this project, we brought the outside in. 

Can you pick which colors from the paint basket picture I didn't use?

What I recently made

September is a busy birthday month for my family and friends.

My mother n laws is just a few days ahead of mine, which were both last week. 

The kids tell me so often how much she loves frogs. 

So I got to creating! 

Meet, Give a Ribbit!

When I was in junior high, high school and college, I collected frogs myself. I'd even spend hours on my front porch taking as many pictures possible aiming for just the perfect one. This was back in the film days. So needless to say I ended up with a lot of unwanted pictures. Which then makes me think back to when people first were going digital. I was photographing weddings at the time enjoying my film camera. For a solid year, I fought myself in the mind set on there's no reason to go digital I am fine. Although, there's a few things I miss about the film world digital out weighs it by a long, long shot! 

 

My love of frogs gave me the inspiration to create this guy. Isn't this little guy the cutest little thing you've every seen. My oldest daughter tried to take it from me when I finished creating him. Starting out with a 10x10 gallery wrap, which is my most favorite size to work on and gallery wrap is my most favorite type of canvas to create on, I pasted scrape pages as the background. Once dry, I smeared a few hints of light green paint on the edges. Bubble wrap was used to make a touch of white spots. This was carried on over to the edges of the canvas where I worked some dark brown in as well. I always tried to create a paint pattern on the edges of the canvas that will coordinate with the background. As I type this, I realize the side of the canvas was not captured, maybe next time!

On to creating the frog himself, I pulled some pillow stuff I hand on hand out. Several years ago, I made window seat cushions and have a few bags of stuffing left over. It's one of many things I've kept in my supple closet making for lots of great creations. Forming what looked like a frog to me after glancing over a clipart of a frog, I glued the painted green stuffing to the canvas. Making his eyes, mouth, dots, front feet, back legs and stomach piece everything came together so nicely. I was truly happy with his out come. 

Hope he brings a JOYFUL ribbit to his new home!

Do you collect frogs?

Do you miss film photography?

Fred's Day

Spend the day with Fred!

When I was younger say around sixth grade I had a turtle who looked just like Fred. We found him on our front porch one day. Mom let me bring him inside. Where he lived in a white bowl on a bookshelf in my room. I put rocks found from our street along with water in the bowl. He was such a fun guy to have around. By say the time I was in 9th or 10th grade he went to be with Jesus. Sad! But it happened…

Often I prayed I'd find another one like him. 

Many, many, many years later I did. Well, let me say this, my youngest daughter found him. It was towards the later part of spring, school was about to be out. She was playing down by the pool probably chasing our dog. I heard the back door burst open. "Mom"! When I went to see what was up she was holding a bright green turtle who looked just like mine from childhood. My eyes sparkled. "Oh, babe!" He was precious. 

(this was the very moment she showed me at our back door)

After sharing my story of my childhood turtle my daughter decided to honor him naming her turtle Fred also. My childhood turtles name was Fred. Can you believe that! Moments of memories formed right before my eyes. 

Fred lived in a small bowl on our back porch for a few days. My soul was not as brave as my mothers. I wasn't about to let that turtle in my house.

On to realizing we should get a bigger bowl for Fred.

Leave it to my daughter to encourage me to stop at Petsmart one day. She picked out a 9 gallon glass aquarium for him. It was perfect.

See how much he has grown and changed in color. He was so bright when we found him now his color has darkened. His spots on his under side have smeared somewhat. He's truly one of a kind.

Below are additional pictures from the day Fred was found.

Look how bright green he was!

Above is the picture I posted to Instagram that day.

Below are additional things that happened on that day.

(down by the lake)

(keeping the sun off her back as she reads)

(our afternoon bike ride)

(things I was on a mission for, notice the date, the day Fred was found)

If you haven't already, you might like to read Meet the Turtles from last Thursday. Check back next Thursday to see which turtle I am spending the day with. 

P.S. Fred is celebrating my birthday with me today!

Do you have a turtle?
What's his name?
Or have you had one before?

Wednesday Words

DIY Denim Wreath

What you will need:

scissors 

a pair of jeans

a wire wreath frame

I purchased an 18 inch Ashland wire wreath frame from Michaels. Hobby Lobby carries this type of wreaths also and I am sure other craft store do also. The jeans I used where an old pair of the hubby's I'd been saving for just the perfect project. Cutting one of the legs off the pair jeans, I started this project. First trimming the end hem off the leg opening, I then started cutting strips of a half inch to an inch off (see picture below). You can really go with any size to your liking. Maybe play around cutting a few different sizes in width but I wouldn't cut to many samples because you might run out before your project is complete. Unless you have a ton of additional denim jeans laying around then go for it. 

Once I cut several of the strips I then cut along the side hem. Cutting enough strips then in half to tie 9 spaced out around the wreath. I choose to do this for stability as well as not wanting to have all my denim pieces tied on as the same length. (see picture below) 

So the pieces of denim space out in the picture above are the only ones I cut in half. Once I spaced them out, I then begin tying the rest in whole strips like the middle picture above this context. Whole meaning I only cut the side hem of the strip. Which ended up making for longer daingley looking pieces of denim all the way around. The look for me was perfect. This project can easily be inspired to tweak to your liking.  

Quick review:

get a wire wreath

get a pair of jeans

cut leg off of jeans

cut several strips of denim

tie denim strips all the way around wire wreath