Tuesday, March 01, 2011

Beach Cottage Birthday Present


I set out at the beginning of this year to make birthday presents for family and friends instead of buy them. I wanted to save money, true, but more importantly I wanted to give gifts that were unique and personal and that reflected the heart of the recipient. Well, so far, so good! My latest birthday present project was this beach-inspired wall art for my sweet sister-in-law. She loves all things beachy and reflects that in her decorating, so it wasn't too difficult to come up with a theme...

I started with a piece of beadboard and a garage sale frame for the base of the art. My Dad cut the beadboard to fit the frame, fastened it into the frame, then I painted the whole thing Heirloom White.

Next, I painted an 8" x 10" canvas board with a sand dollar/beach motif using acrylic craft paints...(I REALLY enjoyed doing this kind of painting again...it's been a while since I've painted anything non-digital...it felt good!)

...then I printed Psalm 139: 17-18 onto white cardstock, cut it into strips, artificially aged it with antique glaze, and used Mod Podge to attach it to the painting once it was dry...

I have a stash of various knobs and found three matching ones to use as hangers on the beadboard. They were stark white, so I used the same antique glaze on them as I used on the Scripture and then they matched just fine. I attached them using E-6000 glue. Then I topped off the frame with seashells from a family trip to the beach, also attached with E-6000 glue. Finally I glued the canvas board onto the beadboard to complete the framed wall hanging...

Once the framed part was complete, I took a 4" x 6" canvas board that I had, and painted a coordinating background on it. After that I simply painted "beach cottage" on the board, and glued on another shell at the top. To finalize it, I drilled two holes in the top of the small canvas and strung coordinating glass beads on a length of wire to make a hanger. I curled the ends of the wire to secure it. This made a nifty little sign to hang on one of the knobs...

I really liked how the whole piece turned out and my sister-in-law was thrilled with it...yay! Mission Accomplished! This project definitely got me thinking of similar things to make. After this one was completed I created another similar project for my bff's birthday, but with a different design and colors. I'll share photos of that wall art soon...

Thanks for letting me share a little taste of the beach with you! I hope you'll be blessed by the message of the Scripture passage I used for the art. God has definitely got YOU on His mind today and always...you can count on that!

"How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand."
Psalm 139:17-18

Have a glorious week friends!!

_______________________________

I'm linking up to the Thank Goodness it's Friday party at Craft Junkie Too!

and

Go check out all the great creative ideas!


6 comments:

  1. Love it girl!! Very cute! I know what you mean when you haven't painted in awhile and then you get the paints out... feels good! :)

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  2. Becky, what a clever and thoughtful gift! You chose just the right verse to go with the beach scene. I'm sure your SIL was very touched.

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  3. I always find that handmade gifts are the most treasured and appreciated. Most of us have enough store bought stuff and if we really want something we buy it, but we often don't have time to make the special handmade things. The time and talent that goes into a handmade gift makes it so special! This is a wonderful idea Becky!

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  4. Hi Becky,
    Oh this gift you made for your sister in law is so awesome. You are so talented and something created from your hands, would be a treasure for anyone. I love making my gifts too. I think they mean so much more to the recipient. The time and energy to make something special just for them.

    Thank you for sharing your process in this project. And, thank you for stopping by and your kind words about my finished kitchen. I am so glad to be done and on to painting bunnies!!
    It is always so special to see you my friend. One day I will get down to your area and would so love to meet you in person.
    Have a blessed weekend and love to you always.
    Celestina Marie

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  5. HI Becky -- WOW! This project is GORGEOUS! I just love the colors and it gets me so ready for summer. Thanks so much for sharing it with us on the T.G.I.F. Linky Party (and thanks for the link to it too) -- you rock my friend.
    Tracy

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  6. What a beautiful present you created! She will absolutely love it! I know what you mean about the fun of actually getting the traditional paints out. It's just sometimes so refreshing!

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