Photos to Wood

My father moved to the United States from Italy in 1974. Last year was his 40th anniversary so I wanted to make him something special. Pictured bottom left is my fathers original green card photo taken when he was just 9 years old. (A cutie patootie I know)! Using some easily obtained supplies, a few simple steps, and a whole lot of patience; I was able to transform this sentimental photograph into a work of art. 

Materials: matte brush on modge podge, gloss gel, paint brush, wood, towel, laser print     pictures, sponge  

STEP ONE: PRINT. 
Open your photos on the computer and edit them so they are the MIRROR IMAGE of themselves. This is critical, if you don't reverse the image before you apply it to the wood, it will come off the paper backwards. Just as importantly, make sure the size of your image is appropriate for the wood you picked out (I obviously had to enlarge mine a little).

STEP 2: COAT. 
Coat your photo graph using the gloss gel with a paint brush, when you've covered the image, lay it down flat on the wood and smooth out for air bubbles.

STEP 3: SOAK AND SIT. 
Cover your wood and paper with a damp towel, and let cure for 24 hours. 

STEP 4: PEEL. 
This is where the patience come into play. Using your thumbs, damp towel or sponge, GENTLY peel and rub away at the paper to reveal your image underneath, DO NOT try and rush this process, or you could risk damaging your photo and have to start over.

STEP 5: SEEL. 
Once you successfully remove all the excess paper from your image, seel your project with 1-2 layers of brush on matte mod podge.



My favorite thing about projects like these is that they look way more challenging then they are and are super impressive to show off! Your friends and family will think you're a crafting genius, these also make GREAT gifts!

Pictured here are (Right to Left) a photo of the house my father was born and raised in, his green card photo I showed you earlier, a photo of him, his brother and sister (my aunt and uncle), as well as the date he moved here. 

Happy Crafting!

-V

FRATERNITY COOLER

Some fun background info on me for you; I'm from New York, but I currently go to school in Virginia, and I have a frat-tastic boyfriend. Put a southern(ish) school together with a fraternity and the creation of a cooler in imminent. So here's mine, with a step by step of how I did it. 

Materials: All are pictured here, but its a longgggg list:

• Cooler: http://www.walmart.com/ip/23735484?reviews_limit=9&
• Spackle  w/ sand paper - can be found at home depot/ ACE
• Acrylic paint 
• paint brushes
• painters tape
• tracing paper
• pencils
• letter opener (or any sharp edge)
• paint pens
• Krylon white paint / primer
• Mod Podge spray on matte
• Triple Thick brush on gloss

Step One: Fill 
Fill in any big crevices or ridges (i.e. the big igloo circle) with spackle. This one from Home Depot goes on pink and turns white when it's dry. Pretty nifty. Let dry and sand until smooth.   



















Step 2: Prime
Prime the entire surface area of the cooler. Having a bright color cooler helps during this because you can actually see when it is covered in white. 








Step 3: Draw
While the primer is drying, you have plenty of time to draw your designs on the tracing paper. Doing your designs on tracing paper first allows you to make s many mistakes as you want, and lets you take more complex images from the web and put them on the cooler. Make sure you cut the paper so that the design will fit onto the cooler. 







Step 4: Etch and Paint
Once your primer is dry, and you've laid the background color of paint, it's time to transfer your designs onto the cooler. Take the design and lay it down in the center of the cooler face and use painters tape to lock it in place. Then take your sharp edge (letter opener), and slowly, using just enough force, trace your design. Remove the painters tape and tracing paper and your image should lightly appear etched onto your base coat of paint. Paint your design, and repeat on remaining sides. 

(look close, you can see the etched design!)

IMPORTANT! 

 When painting, don't forget about the corners! Theyre more important than you think, and are a great opportunity to add more things your guy loves! I used bowties; i've seen people use beer bottles and i'm sure there are more than plenty ideas out there. 

For an extra special touch:

I found this bottle opener on Amazon  for around $7, and I used a drill and screws in my dads basement (i'm sure if you knock on a few doors on Greek Row someone will have what you're looking for). Easy to do, and you're guy will think you're a boss for it.

(http://www.amazon.com/Mounted-Classic-Starr-Bottle-Opener/dp/B000JNU7N8/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1435194044&sr=8-8&keywords=bottle+opener )

                       

                                             FINALLY AND MOST IMPORTANT
Step 5: Seal
You've worked so hard on this cooler, it'd be so heart breaking for you're guy to try and use it and all your art work chips off. That's why I say sealing is the most important step in cooler making. 
** It is CRUCIAL that you use Mod Podge BEFORE Triple Thick. If you try Triple Thick first, your paint will run, no matter how long it's been dry.** 
Once all your paint is dry for at least 24 hours, put 2 layers of mod podge spray on each side (and corner). Once all sides are dry, take a clean (brand new if you can) brush and apply Triple Thick to all sides. If you're not in a time crunch I recommend doing only 1 side every 8 hours or so; this way you can apply to a flat surface each time (Triple Thick is just that, thick. It drips down and goops at the bottom). If you absolutely have to apply Triple Thick to an vertical surface, use a hair dryer to help speed up the process. Apply at least 2 layers to each side. 

Presto! You're done!

I gave this cooler to my boyfriend as a present for his 21st birthday and he loved it! I hope this guide was helpful to you! Good luck on your cooler! And remember:

frat hard,

frat often.

...or dont, you're call.

Happy Crafting!

-V

Fraternity Flag

I am a lucky lady with wonderful, handsome, and let's not forget, frat-tastic boyfriend. Just another excuse to get crafting! He's a member of a Music Fraternity called Phi Mu Alpha, and told me about how much he wanted a flag but couldnt find one. Well, his birthday is coming up and I couldn't find one either, so I rolled up my sleeves and got to work:

 Materials (all are pictured): Glue Gun, Two colors of fabric material, glue gun, stick on alphabet in colors of your choosing for text, border (pictured in gold), fraternity crest(not pictured)

Step 1: Take your primary color (black) and cut it to the dimensions you want. Take your secondary color (red) and cut them the same. Fold your secondary color in half, hamburger style, and cut it into a triangle. When you unfold it, it should be two triangles connected at the tip. Lay your secondary color on top of the primary color and hot glue them together beginning at the corners and working your way inward. 

Step 2: Lay out ALL the text, crest, date, phrase, etc of your choosing BEFORE hot glueing  them onto the flag. Keep the crest/symbol in the center. Apply the border starting at the corners and your done!

Happy Crafting!

-V

Fun with Wine Bottles: Cherry Blossom Edition

I grew up in New York, but I go to school in Washington D.C.. There's a lot happening in both cities, DC specifically hosts the annual cherry blossom festival every year. My mom and I went for the first time last year and she loved it and that inspired this project. 

Materials: Wine bottle, acrylic paint, sealer

Step 1: Soak wine bottle with the cap off in warm water for about 2 minutes, take out of water and (using scissors, a knife, letter opener, etc) scrap off any labels and goo. 

Step 2: Get to paintin! Let whatever inspires do the work for you! Just like the cherry blossoms, seal and you're done!

Happy Crafting!

-V

Pets and Mason Jars!

A fun, creative way to incorporate your furry friends into your crafting!

WARNING: probably should not be attempted with miss-behaved pets..

Materials: Mason Jars, Acrylic Paint, Sealer, Pets

Step 1: Pick at least two colors for your project, one for the base coat and one for the print/text. Paint the jar all the way around with at least 2 layers of base coat and let dry completely

Step 2: poor your secondary color into a paper dish (on top of a towel for security). Take your pet and (GENTLY) dab their paw into the paint and then onto the jar. Careful of any access drips coming off their paws. Then clean off your furry friend, givem a kiss and a treat and let em go. Let paw print dry, cause you probably wont get away with doing it twice.

Step 3: Add what ever text/design you want. On the left is a jar I made for my sisters dog Riley with his name, birthday and decorative paw prints around the jar. The jar on the left is for my cat Kally with her print, birthday and her name on the other side. Seal and you're done!

Happy Crafting!

-V

Fun with Wine Bottles: Sunflower Edition!

AFTER

Before

Two of my favorite things coming together: Painting and Wine

Materials: Empty Wine Bottle, Acrylic Paint, Fake Oversized Sunflowers (or any flower of your choosing), sealer (gloss or matte)

Step 1: Soak wine bottle with the cap off in warm water for about 2 minutes, take out of water and (using scissors, a knife, letter opener, etc) scrap off any labels and goo. 

Step 2: Take your flowers and remove any leaves or branches, leave only the flower heads. Make sure your flowers fit in the wine bottle before proceeding. 

Step 3: Time to paint! With the flowers out, start with the center of the flower first. To give the bottle a cool abstract feel, I off set the center of the flower to the right as pictured above. Then, I took various shades of yellow and gold and brushed them all the way around the bottle. I let the golds and yellows fade toward the top to let the green of the bottle bleed into the green of the flowers.

Step 4: I recommend sealing, for this project, I used mod pog, but any sealant will do. 

Step 5: Throw your flowers back in and youre good to go!

Happy Crafting! :)

-V

Mickey Mouse 1st Birthday

A fun way to incorporate your little ones love of the mouse into a gift that can be kept for years and years! Made this for my cousin Joseph's first birthday and he LOVED it ! 

Step one: Find an image of Mickey Mouse holding up one finger and mock it onto a canvas (primed first)

Step two: Look up "Disney Alphabet" on google and copy down the letters "Happy Birthday   (insert your youngins name here) HELPFUL SITE: dafont.com 

Step Three: get paintin! Simple 2Oz Craft Smart paints will do

Would recommend changing the background to pink for a girl. 

Happy Crafting! :)

-V