Category Archives: easy craft projects

Do you have a favorite mantra or quote that you live by?  Want to hang your words of wisdom on display for all to see?  Well, with this easy Decoupaged Quote Sign, you can make a piece of canvas art that says anything you’d like…and you don’t have to worry about painting on letters…which is a nightmare, I know.

I love making these wordy canvases and I’ve used a variety of papers to create the designs.  While I love the idea of using wrapping paper for this, be careful…wrapping paper is VERY thin and it’s crazy hard to get out all the air bubbles from wrapping paper without ripping it.  I suggest using a thicker craft paper, like scrapbooking paper or even card stock, to get a nice flat surface for this project.  Granted, you can still use wrapping paper (I have a couple times!), but just be extra careful when lying down your paper to make sure your project is bubble free.  For this project, I actually used three layers of tissue paper.

Alright, let’s get started!

Materials:

• 16 in. x 20 in. Canvas
• Mod Podge
• Foam Brush
• Patterned Paper (the thicker the better…thinner paper might result in more bubbles and wrinkles)
• Large Alphabet Stickers
• Stencil Foam Brush
• Paint (in whatever color you’d like)
• Tweezers

Instructions:

1. Using your dry foam brush or a dry painting brush, lightly brush the canvas to rid it of any dust or dirt, as you don’t want any of that poking through the paper once it’s glued down.
2. Before starting, I suggest cutting your paper to fit your canvas. You can cut it afterwards, using an EXACTO knife to go around the edges, but I just find it easier to cut it first and glue the edges down as I go.  I leave at least a good 1 in. to 1½ overhang of paper so I can wrap the paper around the sides and behind the canvas.
3. Once your paper is cut, use the foam brush to add a light coat of Mod Podge to your canvas. Place the paper on the canvas.  Once it’s aligned, turn the canvas over and press on the back of it to help the canvas really adhere to the paper.  Let this glue dry slightly, about 5 minutes.  Continue adding paper if you’re layering like I am here.
4. Using the foam brush, glue down the edges of the canvas to the back of the canvas.
   
5. Finally, add a top coat of Mod Podge on your canvas, making sure your brush strokes all go the same way and no extra glue pockets are exposed.
   
6. Once your canvas is COMPLETELY dry, you can add your stickers! Since there’s a nice coating of Mod Podge on your paper, the stickers won’t adhere strongly to the surface, so don’t worry about not being able to remove them.  Just place your stickers however you want them on your canvas.
   
7. For the paint, I suggest using a scrap piece of your paper to make sure the paint actually looks good with the pattern. Some paints will let the pattern bleed through, while others look a lot different on paper than they do in the bottle…so just check before you commit!
8. Once you’re ready to paint, place a small amount of paint on a palette or piece of aluminum foil and, using a flat stencil foam brush, start adding paint to your canvas. This is EXTREMELY important when it comes to painting like this…you want to move the brush up and down, NOT side to side.  Lightly dab around the letters and use as little paint as you can…no need to load up the brush—a little will go a long way here.  Just continue dabbing on paint until your canvas is covered.  Then let it dry.
   
   
9. Once the paint has dried, you can start removing the letters. I use a tweezers to help me with this.
   
10. And there ya go! To seal in the paint, I usually add one more coat of Mod Podge, just to be safe.

And there you have it…your own lovely and festive canvas!

Celebrate creativity every Wednesday with a “Creativi-bee” post, where I share easy craft tutorials, project ideas, and craft collections.