Wednesday, January 6, 2010

Contact Paper Art

Hello guys!!  I made a fun piece of art I wanted to share today.  It's simple, sooo cheap, and fun to do.




Here is how I made it...

You will need a 16x16 MDF board from Home Depot.  Lowe's only sells this in the huge 4x8 sheets so I went to Home Depot and bought the 2x4 piece and used my saw to cut it in half.  If you don't have a saw, just ask one of the nice men at Home Depot to cut it for you:)  An $8 2x4 piece of MDF will make 3 16"x16" pieces... so cheap!


Now you will need some Contact Paper.  I bought my huge roll at Target.  You need the peel and stick kind.




Now, I used my Cricut personal cutter to make my letters.  This really is such a great and fun investment for all you gals! (Valentine's Day is just around the corner ;)




I used Storybook font for this project.  Just cut a piece of the Contact Paper and place it on your cutting mat.




Type in your letters and relax while it does all the work for you... My kind of tool:)  This is my first word I cut.




After I cut all my letters I wiped the MDF down with a damp paper towel to get rid of most of the dust.  I then peeled my letters from their backing and attached them to the board.  I measured off center and then used the piece of Contact Paper I had cut from to help me line my letters up correctly.  When I was finished it looked like this.




Now I gave the whole thing a coat of my favorite blue paint.  You want to use latex or acrylic, not spray paint for this part because the spray paint will run under the paper.  Here is mine drying.




Now the fun part.  I just used a pair of tweezers to pull up each letter after the paint dried.







Now I was left with my board and the unfinished letters that looked like this.







Then, I distressed the edges and corners with my sander and added a bit of dark wood stain just to the edges and corners to darken them up a bit.




And finally... Ralph Lauren Smoke Glaze over the entire piece.  Just paint it on and wipe it off.







I decided it would look super cute on a great plate holder I found at Hobby Lobby for like $5.  It would also be great hanging from the wall or just propped up against something.  What do you think?
















Tomorrow is the BIG Day!! We are so excited to see what you guys... I mean girls bring to the party:)  We will put the post up at 9:00pm central time.  Remember... we want to see anything you have created, crafted, or thrown together without the help of your hubby.  You must link back to the party with our button.  You can get it on our side bar.  Thanks so much!!!

We will be linking up here...




~Whitney





post signature

54 comments:

Becky@Beyond The Picket Fence said...

Very cute--check out what I did with cricut numbers and spray paint. I am finding more and more home decor uses for my cricut.

Lindsay said...

On one of the steps before you painted, it looked like there were decals between each word. Did you decide against them because I don't see them on the finished product.

Over all great idea and very cute! :)

firewife said...

Whats mdf board? That is way cute.

gail@My Repurposed Life said...

way cool! I really like it. I don't have a cricut! :( It sure would be nice.
gail

Brittany@Superwoman said...

how did I live before the Cricut?? It's my favorite tool!
I'm sooooo jealous that you have the Storybook cartridge. I want one so badly!

Brittany@Superwoman said...

how did I live before the Cricut?? It's my favorite tool!
I'm sooooo jealous that you have the Storybook cartridge. I want one so badly!

Powers Fam said...

I just put a brand new roll of contact paper in my free cycle pile! Now I need to go dig it out. Never thought about using it with my Cricut which I did get as a V-Day gift a few years back. Thanks for the tips and ideas!

Marty@A Stroll Thru Life said...

It looks just fabulous. I love it. It especially looks wonderful on the plate stand. Great job. Hugs, Marty

Wendy said...

Whitney...that is so great! I love how it looks! I must put a cricut on my wish list! Do you have any tips when buying or is it one standard model?
Thanks for sharing :)
Wendy

Rachel@oneprettything.com said...

Ooh what a great idea! Contact Paper is the best! Thanks so much for sharing, I'll be linking.

Treasia Stepp said...

It is really cute and looks so easy to make. I noticed on one of the pictures that there was some type of scroll design between the words. Did you forget to pull them up?

duchess said...

Cute project.

miss Yelpington said...

so simple thanks, i want a cricut so badly now.:) xxx

Jaclyn said...

Ooooo...I love it! (and not just because it's my blog's name! haha!)
I wish I had a cricut. It's on my birthday wish list.

kelliegene said...

Love this! I have a Silhouette cutter and have never tried contact paper on it but will certainly give it a try now. Neat idea!

Jeanette said...

cute cute cute! I love visiting your blog and seeing what creation is in store for me next. Thank you.

Mandi @ Sweetly Home said...

High five girls! Love it! I have a Cricut Expression and have used it and contact paper for a few projects around my house. I'm really loving the cute factor of this. Definatly want to give it a try!

sweetjeanette said...

oh I love that!!!! I've toyed with the idea of owning a Cricut... now I guess I'd better research some more!

sweetjeanette.blogspot.com

Steph @ somewhatsimple said...

Love this! How fun!

Amy @ Design-Aholic said...

Ok, another one added to my list. Can I be your sister?! :)

Penny of This-N-That said...

Love your project. I have used this when etching on glass because it is less expensive.

Infarrantly Creative said...

You are making me want a Cricut that is for sure. Very cute project...the possibilities really are endless.

avisiontoremember said...

Wow! Such a great idea...a new twist on something that is getting kinda old=Something New and fun again!

steffany said...

I was just wondering the other day what I could do with contact paper, I have a Silhouette not a Cricut; but I use it all the time for vinyl, I was hoping to find a new way to use it. Thanks for sharing.

Tara@JustDevineStyle said...

This is super cute. What a great idea to use the contact paper. LOVE IT! Gonna have to try it.

Unknown said...

Hi Whitney. This is something I would have never thought of. I'm really wanting a cricut. When oh when will I ever win one. (It's my only hope) LOL.

Hugs...Tracy :)

Shana said...

Wow! Great idea!

Heather at Dusty Bay said...

That's so cute, Whitney. Lucky you though having a circuit machine!

Michelle said...

Another great project...looks awesome! Thanks for sharing!

sahmqueen said...

Oh, I want a cricut so badly. Love the project. I love your blog, and visit all the time. I have just started blogging again with a creative edge this time. Hope to see you sometime. My sister over at ABODE turned me onto to you gals. Like you guys, we love to craft with each other and share thrifty deals. FUN FUN!!

jackie said...

looks great! Now if I just owned a circuit

Kati @ Housewife_Swagger said...

that turned out great! the spacing between the letters and words are PERFECT!! Thank you for sharing!

Reese said...

This looks awesome :) Now I'm going to go tell my hubby I want a Cricut.

Taija said...

So clever! Adorable too!

Barbara Jean said...

This is terrific!!

Were you able to save the letters to use on something else??

I just ordered a cricut expressions!
Cannot wait till it gets here.

blessings and thanks for all your great posts.

barbara jean

Liz said...

I set out to get some redecorating tips and I have discovered just such a wealth of info and GREAT ideas here online! (Kind of how I feel about book blogs, too, as reading is and will always be my first love.) I'm having such fun. Between this and magazines and my new favorite decorating book, "At Home with Laurie Ann," by Laurie Ann McMillin Ray I'm in seventh heaven. She has all kinds of practical advice, and shows you how a few small changes can transform your space from mediocre to wow. Boy, take her advice, and look at some of the things like here, and I'm just itching to get going. I can do this without spending a fortune.

H-Mama said...

super cute idea! i heart my cricket. ;)

Redneck Junkers said...

We luv it! Thanks for sharing the "How2"
the Redneck Junkers

kuestermom said...

i love the sign! but i have a totally non-related question. what is the name of the granite you have? we are looking for granite and love the color. thanks!

Kelee said...

Nice project!

Love the words and inspired idea!


love, kelee

Stella said...

What a great idea. Can see so many ways to use this for gifts and holidays. Thanks for sharing.

Paula Grace Designs said...

Wow, that is a really cool project! Very personalizable too. Love it. Thanks!

Vivian said...

That is so me. Thanks for sharing. I don't know anything about the Cricut but I guess I need to research it.

Michelle said...

Ooooooooh the possibilities! I can have some fun with this. Thanks for the inspiration!

Catherine said...

That turned out so cute!!! I'm so jealous you have a cricut.

Nellie's Cozy Place said...

Really loved your plaque, it came out very well, and looks great on that easel on your fireplace. I just bought an easel similiar to it today, and love it. Am trying out different things on it!
that is so nice you have a cricut,
they looks pretty neat but I have never actually seen how they are used. What a great idea you have
there........ the possiblilities are endless. Good Job!!
Blessings, Nellie

Angie Holden said...

Pretty and cheap -- my two fave words! Thanks for sharing!

Kim @ Starshine Chic said...

I love it!!! I may have to give this a try. My sis is letting me borrow her Cricut & I just picked up some clear contact paper at the thrift store for a buck. What do I have to lose?

bonnieboatwright@gmail.com said...

Really cool, thanks for linking up!

Delightful Dwelling said...

How cute. I have the Storybook cartridge too, it's one of my favorites.

Unknown said...

I love this. I think I can use this technique to personalize baby artwork - do ya think?
I can use the Cricut to do letters, place them on canvas, then paint the art over it. Just like you did, only with baby stuff.
Can you tell I'm thinking 'out loud' here? Thanks for the tips!

Pamie G. said...

Incredible!! My son gave me the Cricut for Christmas and I now know what My first project will be! Do you mind my posting your instructions on my blog?

Aimee Cotton Bogush said...

Ooooo, niiiiiice! Like it!

Roeshel said...

So cute! Just one more reason I want a cricut! I've used the same technique (on a smaller scale) just using stickers but I'd go crazy with a cricut! Thanks for sharing your project in the DIY Show & Tell! I love seeing your creative ideas (as you know!).

Roeshel

 
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