DIY Smear Art for Kids (and Adults!)
May 12, 2020
Art Fun with Kids!
This is a perfect project for a rainy day, OR a sunny day, so you can take the mess outside! It's a super quick project for kids (or adults!) and yields a pretty cute result, so here's how to get started. You probably have everything you need already at home.
You'll just need some acrylic paint, cardstock and a surface to paint. It can be a canvas, cardstock, paper, whatever you want. Cut some strips/squares of stiff cardstock into small pieces or use something like a cereal box. I've used old business cards, too. I like to pick out the colors I want to use before starting. See what looks good together and pick a handful. You don't have to use every color in this project--less is more.
I wanted this to be fun and youthful, so I chose a palette of bright and whimsical colors.
You'll just squirt drops of paint in different areas around the canvas, and use your cardstock to smear it around the canvas. You'll want to flip the cards over so you are using the clean side each time. Try to only smear each one in one swipe so you don't muddy the colors too much. You might need to help your little ones with this, but I found that they told be they could "do it myself." haha At this point, you just need to wait for it to dry!
Framing and Displaying
This may not look to impressive now, but once you frame it, it will look like something you bought! Figure out what size frame you're using and use the mat or display image for a template and trace an area of your art and cut it out. Place it back in the frame and you're all done! I like using a frame with a larger mat for this. You could also use a floating frame. I like to use pieces like this in gallery walls or for styling shelving. These colors are perfect for a kid's room, so that's where they landed here!
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I can't remember the first example of fluted wood furniture I saw, but it was probably either this gorgeous custom wood bathroom vanity from Chris Loves Julia , or the DIY fluted coffee table Fariha shared on Pennies for a Fortune . The custom cabinetry was done professionally using a router for each line, which isn't something I possess the skills to do. This did help inspire the colors I used in our bathroom remodel, though! I really connected to the method Fariha used to build the coffee table--wooden dowels. What a fabulous idea!
I did a little refresh in our daughter's room, and I decided we needed some large-scale art. I actually planned to order a print, but inspiration struck on a trip to HomeGoods when I saw two HUGE framed canvases on clearance for $25 and $9. I grabbed them up and headed home, with my head filled with ideas on what to do with them.
I love peel-and-stick wallpaper so much! It's an easy, DIY fix for any space that just needs a little refresh. Because it's easily removeable, I feel much more confident going ahead and choosing a pattern. I struggle to commit to traditional pasted wallpaper--I think it's because we removed so much of it when we bought our house. It is no easy task. Peel-and-stick is also very economical, so if you decide to change it up a few years down the line, it doesn't feel so bad. I've now put it in four areas of our house. Today, you'll see the kitchen and den. It's the same pattern in different colors. I love how much the simple pattern really just makes each space.
Just for fun, here's a freebie--a digital download for some fall wall art! This quote is from Anne of Green Gables. I still want to read the book, but I was a huge fan of the series Anne with an E on Netflix. Just click on the file, download it and print it at home or send it to a place like Office Depot. Happy October!
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