Saturday, May 22, 2010

Frankie Say RELAX Tutorial

For Mother's Day this year (which we celebrated last weekend as it was the first time we could all gather together) I decided I wanted to make gifts instead of buying them.  I saved money, but most importantly I poured love into all my creations for my amazing Momma!  Everything was a hit, and I couldn't be happier with how it all came together!

My parents have a little house on the lake where they go to "get away", but sometimes my mom has a hard time allowing herself the rest she deserves.  So I thought that I'd make her something to help remember to RELAX!

I started with a wooden sign I got from Goodwill for $3 and some letters from Hobby Lobby, I believe they were under $1 apiece.  I primed them:
And then spray painted them black.  (With enamel paint by accident.  Fortunately the paint adhered to my latex primer.  Whoopsie!)

I then cut some pretty green scrapbook paper to cover the board.  I contemplated some black scrapbook paper for the letters, but the paper looked gray and "off" against the black letters.  It was too busy.
 

So I just left the letters black. 
 

 RELAX!

My scrapbook paper wasn't long enough to run the length of the board...

So I trimmed it so that the seam would be hidden behind the "L"

Pulled out the trusty Mod Podge...

And glued the paper down, pushing out bubbles with a stiff piece of cardboard.

Then I sanded the edges of the all letters...
Okay, that's bugging me.

That's better!

I glued the sanded letters to the board with E600.
Meanwhile, the puppies took the message to heart:

Hmmm... it's a little boring...

It needs some distressing, I think!

I mixed black acrylic paint with a little water and tested it on a scrap piece of paper.

I "washed" the green background with the diluted paint, and then dry-brushed undiluted black paint around the letters.

I wiped away excess paint with a paper towel.
dab dab dab

Much better!  I prefer the antiqued look versus the stark black on green.

About this time I discovered that I had glued the letters upside down.  The hangers on the back were the wrong way!  Um, OOPS.

At least it looks cute...

And everyone got a kick out of the upside-downess.  In fact, my mom decided to hang it that way!  She said that way she can read it when she's on the floor from too much Patron relaxing.

She didn't have a chance to hang it up, but when she does I will take a pic to share with you!

I hope you enjoyed my RELAX tutorial!  Remember to check the back before you glue your letters down... or don't and have a giggle when you look at your sign when you're drunk while you RELAX!

I am linking to a ton of great parties, so many that I simply cannot list them all here!  Pretty pretty please visit my list of Craft and Tutorial parties HERE to see all the parties I linked to!  A wealth of insipration awaits you!

20 comments:

Alita said...

Very crafty and cute! What a great idea. Thanks for sharing.

chris said...

I love the colors you chose. Nice job.

Leslie said...

I like!
I recently made something like that.. but wanted to funk it up a bit.

KimMalk said...

It turned out cute - I'm sure you'll like it hung the right way.

Dawn said...

It looks great! I love the effect of the diluted black paint!

Loose Sparrow Arts N Crafts said...

I thought I was the only one who created only to discover I had done it upside down! My husband has becoem an expert at removing the hanger and re-placing it! I also load and carry my chinese left-overs the same way. There have been a lot of spills throughout my life because of this flaw. You are too funny, but I love your sign, especially with the distressing.

Ali @ Honey and Maple Syrup said...

It looks cute and I really like the diluted black paint!

The Autocrat: Haley said...

Fabulous idea!! I am totally going to have to add this to my project list!! Thanks for the inspiration!

Michell @ Girl In Air said...

I'm a new follower:) I love this..can't wait to try it...I have lots of buttons on my side bar where I link up my craft tutorials everyday:) Check it out
http://girlinair.blogspot.com/

Beverly {Flamingo Toes} said...

Super cute! I love the distressing you did on the paper. Really finished it off. :)

mle said...

Cute! Cute!

Unknown said...

LOL! I love the fact that the letters are upside down.

Tonia said...

Very cute! I love giving homemade gifts :)

Sew Can Do said...

Nice job making the paper work (it's a nice print!). Thanks for linking to Craftastic Monday:)

Cassie said...

Fab idea!!
I agree...the distressing really made it pop!!!
=)

Kaysi @ Keeping it Simple said...

I love that black and green!! Great job!

Diane Schmidt said...

Cute, I should make one of these to remind me to relax :)

Bonnie @ House of Grace said...

Great sign, I think everyone needs a little reminder to relax! I can't wait to see it up! Thanks for linking up!
Bonnie

Handbags*and*Pigtails said...

Ok I think we were separated at birth:) My parents also have a cottage on a lake and my mom is exactly the same way you describe yours. Im seriously thinking of making her one of these. Great project!
Sarah
HandbagsNPigtails.blogspot.com

Joy@Thrifty Parsonage Living said...

Very cute what a great idea!

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