DIY Superstar

Self proclaimed "Superstar" of course.  But that's ok.

I have been on a major Pinterest kick lately and have been busy crafting away projects.  My main goal was to makeover the dull, grey walls in my office at work.  My office is in the middle part of the building and therefore does not have any windows.

Eck.

So I set out to brighten the place up and I feel like I am succeeding.  :)

Project #1: Rag Tie Wreath

Supplies Needed:
18 inch Wire wreath (size to you desire, you just may need more/less fabric)
1/2 yard of 4-5 different fabrics
Scissors or a fabric cutting board/roller cutter
Ribbon (color of your choice)

Cut the fabric 1 1/2 inch by 4-5 inches, you will have A LOT of strips.  Then simply start tying fabric in double knots.  You control the fullness of the wreath by how much you want to tie on to the wire.  To finish it off you can either hang it from a ribbon (tied in a bow at the top) or add the bow around the wreath and hang from the actual wreath.  Both option are in photos above.

This project took me a couple hours stretched over a weekend because I wanted it to be really full.

Project #2: Magnet Board

Supplies:
12in x 24in sheet of galvanized steel
1 inch metal eyelets
1/2 yard of fabric
Ribbon
Decorative Magnets 

I was amazed at how simple this project was.  I found the sheet of metal on an end-cap in the "Building" section at Home Depot.  I enlisted the help of my wonderfully handy husband to drill the holes in the steel to match the size of the eyelets I had purchased. I then cut the fabric to fit the piece of metal with approx 4 inc extra along each size.  I double folded the fabric over and hot glued it to the back.  I again had my husband help me pound the eyelets together and strung the ribbon through the eyelets.  I then created my magnets from decorative glass bards I found at Hobby Lobby.

And voila!  Super easy.  This project took me about an hour.

Project #3: Mod Podge Painting

Supplies:
16x12 in Canvas
Ceramic Paint
Mod Podge
Newspaper
Sticker Letters
Foam paint brush

This was my first time ever working with mod podge and I now love it!  First, I put a layer of mod podge on the canvas using a foam paint brush.  I then laid newspaper over the entire canvas and cut it to fit, allowing some to even wrap around the edge.  Then the entire thing is again covered with two more layers of mod podge.  Allow this to dry completely (I let it set over night and the next day while I was at work).  After coming up with a fun saying or lyric, apply the sticker letters to spell out what you want on the canvas and apply a thin layer of the colored ceramic paint.  After the paint is dry (again let it sit overnight and the next day), peel off the stickers to, showing off the newspaper print below.

I paired the painting and the magnet board, along with a black clock.

I have one wall completed in my {Work} Office Makeover.

 I love it! 

Project #4: Canvas & Mirrors

Supplies:
Canvases
Beveled Mirrors
Ceramic Paint: 3-5 varying shades of the same color (super light to really dark) & white

This project can be completely tailored to what you want.  The picture that gave me the inspiration to do this did not have mirrors and instead used a lighter shade of the color in the top left corner, 2 additional canvases of the medium tone in the top right and bottom left corner and then a really dark shade in the bottom right corner.  So.....like I said, it's customizable.  :)  And if you choose to only do canvases, then you don't need the mirrors (obviously).  :)  Sizes of the canvases/mirrors can also vary.  I found 12x12 inch mirrors and therefore also got 12x12 in canvases.  Apply two coats of the paint to the canvas.  Allow to dry.  Then arrange display on the ground on top of newspapers.  With the white ceramic pain bottle in hand, stand over arrangements and swirl on the paint.  When you are happy with the amount of swirls, allow paint to dry at least 12 hours and then hang with a 1 inch gap between canvases/mirrors.

Two walls in my office are now done.

I love the yellow!  Makes me happy.  :)

Project #5: Nursing themed "Subway" Sign

Supplies:
Photo creator computer program (I used Photoshope CS5)
Pod Podge
Sponge Brush
Canvas

I wanted the sign to match the size of some photos I had enlarged, so I used a 16x20 in canvas.  I first created the word project in photoshop, using colors in the prints and previous projects I've put up in my office to highlight some of the words.  I varied the fonts, sizes and orientations of the words.  When it was all done I had it professionally printed as a 16x20in photo image.  The process of adhering it to the canvas began with putting a layer of mod podge on the canvas and then carefully laying the picture on top.  It's important to work fast and get all of the bubbles worked out.  I used a soft kitchen towel for this and worked from the middle of the image out.  I then allowed that to dry for about an hour.  There were a couple of the sides that had the image extending beyond the canvas, but I trimmed that back using a razor blade.  I was a little nervous about the next step, applying the mod podge on top of the print.  I carefully put a thin layer over the entire picture and allowed it to completely dry.  I then painted on another thicker layer after I knew the colors were not going to smear.  

I am absolutely amazed with how awesome it looks!  It seriously looks like I paid a lot of money for it at the store.  :)  In total it cost me about $23 (not including the computer program needed to create the word image).  I will definitely use this technique again on future canvas prints.

 Wall #3 in my Office Makeover.

I think it looks amazing!  :)

I have more project in the works and will add them to this post when they are done.