Wall to Wall: DIY Silhouette Art and More Stuff to Put on Your Walls!!!

I really don't have a good introduction for this post (hehehe).

I was browsing through my old photos, and I stumbled upon a few photos from my previous DIY projects.  I'm sure I wanted to post them on the blog and make a quick tutorial as well.  But ever since I started with my freelance writing gig, I've had less (read: NO) time to write about my DIY adventures.

So I quickly decided to post it NOW before I change my mind, and end up writing about it months later. I should really have a writing schedule.

I've come to realize that I dislike the sight of empty walls.  Seeing one would be like a massive itch I'd want to scratch.  And sometimes if the urge is too strong, it could also be a culprit for a few sleepless nights.

A few months back, I came across this blog and fell in love with the simplicity of silhouette art. It's technically your face, but it's all black. Hahaha. I guess I just like how black looks like on white space.

Tada! It's us!

You can choose to have a regular sized photo of the silhouette, and put it in a frame.  As for me, I really wanted to have something large I can put on my work area.  

Canon Philippines has a CSR initiative called Print for Smiles which caters to enthusiasts who want to have their photos printed on a bigger medium. So if you're planning to have something huge printed (max of 42in), Print for Smiles is definitely an option.  Oh, did I mention all proceeds will be given to fund free surgeries for children with cleft lip and palate? Awesome right?

Click here for more information about Canon Print for Smiles.

Ours was printed on canvas.  While the best option is of course to treat them like real paintings and attach them to a wooden frame, I really didn't want to spend that much to have it framed.  So I went ahead and used styrofoam instead! I just want to say that styro is definitely NOT THE BEST option, but it is the cheapest alternative (unless you have old foam boards/ cork boards lying around).

With heavy duty double sided tape, stick the print to the styro.  Make sure to put tape on all sides.

This is how it looks like all wrapped up from the back...

...and front

 

To stick the styro to the wall, I placed a strip of the thicker kind of double sided tape (I really don't know what it's called :p) on first, and then place another layer of the regular double sided tape on top.  This works well since the styro is lightweight.  For those who don't like attaching hooks on their walls, this is a good option.

Here's the other finished product.  :)

 

 

In essence, wrapping canvas prints on styrofoam can be applied to different materials as well.  We have a magnet board in our bedroom where we post random stuff- faith goals, bills and reminders.  We bought it as is, but I think it would be a great DIY project for other moms out there!

With a nice printed fabric, a metal board, a gun tacker/rugby, and magnets, I'm sure you can re-create this and use it for whatever purpose at home.  Just last month, I purchased 4 yards of canvas fabric (similar to the one seen on our magnetic board) from Divisoria and it only cost me P180! I used them for curtains in my son's room, but you can definitely use them to cover your magnet board (or corkboard!)

Share your thoughts in the comments section below!  I'd love to hear from you!


Till the next DIY adventure!

Bedroom talk

When we transferred to our current home last March, one of my goals was to really decorate the other room for our then unborn Alonzo.  I had a really bad case of what people on the internet call "nesting"  which is, as the term suggests, a behavior particular to mother birds who busy themselves preparing the nest for the cute little baby birds.  I just wanted Alonzo to have a nice playroom even though he wouldn't have any idea about it.  Basically, it was for me really.  :)

The baby room before my hormones suggested I needed to fix it up

I had tons of ideas really.  I grew a love and hate relationship with Pinterest back then because almost everything in there were just so pretty that I wanted to just put it all in the room.  So, I decided to go easy and make something to stick/hang on the walls first.  I was almost 8 months preggers then and I felt so heavy, so I thought the wall decor would be manageable.

Phase 1

 I made the wall decals in Photoshop (thank God I paid attention in college) and had in printed on sticker.  Then I reused old frames I had and also bought a few cheap ones. I really didn't have photos to put since Alonzo was still inside my tummy then.  I was wary to put our photos IN HIS ROOM too. I mean, who likes their parents' photos- being sweet and all- inside their room?  So I went ahead and downloaded free photos from the internet.  I also used his ultrasound photos and paintings given to us by friends. I will write about the wall decors in a separate entry. :)

When I gave birth, the room overhaul was put to a pause.  I let it be for a few months, but I had a plan to continue with the improvements when Alonzo was bigger.

Alonzo was about 5 months when I decided I needed to continue the work so he can play in it (and also so Jerome and I can have a little bit of time together without Alonzo inside the room).  The first thing I did was to paint the room. I badly wanted to paint the whole room, but that would be too tiring. Plus, I had already put on the wall decals.  It would take me more time and effort to paint around it or remove them.  So, I just decided to paint a part of the room. I then gave his cabinet a new look by also painting it.  I went for more gender neutral colors like gray, yellow and white.  I really want to have a big family, 4 kids to be exact (that used to be 6, but I had a C-Section so that dream had to leave. :p). The future babies will have to share this room with Kuya Alonzo. :)

Now sharing some photos of the baby's room. It's not anything grand, but I love this room so much because it made me realize that I can do pretty things out of love.  :) <3 Awww, shucks.:p

Tada!!

A very very bad photo of the cabinet before the new paint

The newly painted cabinet. I will share in a separate entry how I painted the chevron patterns. :)

This chair was owned by Jerome's grandparents.  We had the cushions reupholstered. :)