Rerun alert! In case you missed it the first few times, here it is again, reposting to link up with The DIY Club 31 Days of Painting Contest.
Do you believe in Signs and Wonders? I do, I believe the The Graphics Fairy is a wonder! If you haven’t discovered The Graphics Fairy, then you need to go there right after you read this post.
I found this fantastic image on the Graphics Fairy under the category search area, “French”
I saved it as a jpeg file, (more on this at a later post if you have trouble saving images as a jpeg). Then I got to thinking about what to put it on. I had purchased this Coffee Table from Craig’s List for $12. Mostly because I liked the shape of the top and thought it had more potential than life as Coffee Table.
I removed all the screws from the underside and took all the pieces apart. (This was a bit more involved, will do a separate post on how to use tops of old furniture for new uses)
And not just for walking over with dusty shoes….
Measured how much I wanted cut out of the center so I could have a new piece of wood, then cut measured pieces off both ends. Yes, I LOVE my new table Saw!
I then put them back together and reinforced with extra wood on back side:
Sanded it clean until I got most of the paint off. Now I am ready for my sign. I measured how big I wanted my graphic to be, and emailed it to my local printer. They enlarged it and printed it for me FOR FREE! Yes, I have a lucky star over my head.
I placed Carbon Paper under each area where I needed to trace. Use Scotch Tape to secure the Carbon Paper and the Graphic to your piece.
Then verrrrrryyyyyy carefully, trace around all the graphics. I will admit, it took a while, but I was so determined to see this through.
After you have traced, remove carbon paper, (don’t use it again, all the ink is gone, yeah, cheapo moi tried this once)
Use Paint Pens to color in the Graphics, if you haven’t discovered these, they are AWESOME. They are like precision pin point Spray Paint in your fingers.
I buy mine at Michael’s Craft Store. However, they are easy to find at Art Supply or Craft Stores everywhere. Krylon makes really good ones too.
After I painstakingly colored in all the letters and lines, I needed some finishing touches:
I used very watered down Acrylic Paint and a small brush to “dry brush” around the Scalloped edges:
I used Liberon Black wax (very sparingly here, a little goes a long way) for making things look slightly “smoke damaged”
Put just in highlights, not all over.
Finished with Soft clear Wax. Now, let’s see how it all came together!
And here it is up close!!
Can you believe we went from this:
To This?:
Very cute. I love how your project turned out.
Very creative! I am such a fan of the “Fairy”, she rocks!
I joined brag Monday at Karen's late…so glad I did…this is amazing!! I'm your newest follower!
Oh my. I love that sign! And I love paint pens. But mostly I love your sign!
Wow! such a beautiful transformation!! you did an amazing job!
WOW!!! It is GORGEOUS!!! Hope you link to my party http://www.projectqueen.org!! I would be honored.
Wow, this is a great tutorial! I love what you did and your end product. Now I want to give it a whirl! andrea@townandprairie
Oh my gosh that is amazing!!
I totally want to try it!
Thank you for your wonderful tutorial!
love it. found you via primp. come on over and win a stencil!
http://hellolovelyinc.blogspot.com/2011/10/more-stencil-splendor-giveaway.html
michele
Love it! Thanks for the tutorial! Visiting from Primp!
Great Job!
That is pretty cool–I never would have thought to cut up a coffee table.
Love this! What a great way to reuse!
Featuring your sign tomorrow evening at http://www.projectqueen.org #3 link party highlights. Thanks so much for linking up! I love this sign!!!
Stunning! Great tutorial as well. Heather
I saw this on the Graphics Fairy and said to myself I saw this yesterday at PARIS FLEA so I had to come over and see if it's the same home and it is!!!
LOVE it!!!
Too early in the morning, I mean to type see if it's the same ONE, LOL
Love it, Love it, Love it! You did a wonderful job on this, I can't believe it was once a table! Thanks for sharing!
What a beautiful one of a kind sign! Amazing that it was once a coffe table! This post is full of so many great tips, too! Thanks so much! I'll be back to re-read, I'm sure!
Best Wishes and Blessings,
Amanda
Beyond awesome!!!!!
m ^..^
Fantastic! Never would have guessed it was a table top. I didn't realize how big it is while looking at the pic on Brag Monday. Thanks for the tutorial, not that I will ever get that ambitious, but it's nice to know how you did it.
You are way too awesome. : )
Wow! What a creative idea. That turned out so cool. Thanks for sharing at my Restyled Sundays party.
So glad I stumbled on this….I have been hoarding a table top and just waiting for inspiration to srike and you are that strike! Thanks and when I get around to actually doing it, I will link back to you 🙂
I think you did an incredible job and it turned out lovely!
What’s really cool, is that you still have the legs and pretty side pieces to use — which I’m sure you’ve done by now. Ha!
Great post. I was checking constantly this blog and
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