EAT Kitchen Letters Tutorial

As promised, here is the tutorial for my EAT kitchen letters!  This is a pretty detailed tutorial; probably too detailed (don't be offended when I instruct how to trace and cut out letters, for instance), but I figured I'd cover as much as possible.  :)

Supplies

Paper mache letters (E, A, and T) - you could use wood as well

scrapbooking paper

spray adhesive or mod podge

acrylic paint in a coordinating color

straight-edge (ruler or similar)

exacto knife

Start with your letters. 

 

Use your acrylic paint to cover the sides of the letters.  Also, paint a small edge onto the front of the letters.  This will be helpful when you're ready to put the scrapbook paper on. 
 

 

When you've painted all the letters, place your first letters on the back (or front, you won't see the marks when you're done) and use a pencil to trace around the letter.

It should look like this when you're finished tracing.

This next part is the most important for having clean lines on your letters when you're done.  Use a straight-edge (ruler or box edge) to cut slightly inside your traced line with an exacto knife.  Cut a little bit smaller than your traced shape so that a bit of the paint on the edge can be seen on the front.

Like so:

Now grab your spray adhesive or modge podge and glue the scrapbook paper to the front of all three letters.

 

There are several ways you could hang these up.  You could glue a string or sawtooth hanger on the back.  You could try some of those command strips.  I wanted quick, easy, and totally flush with the wall, so this is what I did.

First, measure down 1" (or 1/2", the important thing is for it to be a measured, specific distance) from the top of each lette:

Then use a ruler to measure the center.

And mark your location.  The point where the two lines meet is where you're going to make a small hole.

I decided to use a wood screw.  I hammer it in enough to break through the layer, then I pull it in and out and move it in a circle a little to make the hole a little bigger.  (Note: This only works because these are hollow paper mache letters.  If your letters are solid, you'll need to use another method for hanging.)

 

Repeat with all three letters,

and now they are ready to go up!

If you make some of these, I'd love to see how you made them your own!

I'm a Believer

I've been needing tie-backs for the curtains (see the curtains?) in our master bedroom for, oh, about three years. (Coincidentally, that's about when I moved in.)


I saw some that had a leaf motif that I liked, but the color just wouldn't work with the palate I wanted in the room. Then the tiebacks I've been eying for three years went on sale, and I had to jump at the chance. I got two sets (I have three windows on that wall, one large and two smaller ones on either side. I figured 4 tie-backs should cover it).


And enter oil rubbed bronze spray paint. People have been raving about this on blogland forEVer, but I could never find any, and I didn't have a specific project in mind for it, so I kept putting it off. Now I had a project, and I couldn't wait to see what all the fuss was about.

I took out all the parts, laid them on newspaper and got to work.


I sprayed from every angle (as in, from each side if there was an imaginary square around it) and from the top. Let it dry, then one more coat. Once it was dry (and I gave it plenty of time) I flipped all the pieces over and repeated.

Ta da! The lighting doesn't do much for this pic, but trust me when I tell you they are perfect. A nice rich shade of brown with wonderful metallic accents as the light hits it.


I think they will go perfectly with the floral print on my valance boxes and bedspread.


Now I just need to hang them up!

Blast From The Past

I painted this chair one semester when I was staying at my parent's and not taking classes. I couldn't find a job for just 3 or 4 months, and I REALLY needed a project. It was inspired by Mary Englebright and Alice in Wonderland. :) I painted the desk a year later in the summer of 2004. They were well-loved for the 2 1/2 years I was in school at Auburn, and when I moved to Huntsville and had to choose between storing them or giving them away, I decided to give them to some great girls I know. They're still well-loved, so I think I made the right choice. :) I come across fun painted furniture all the time in my blog-walking, and I realized that I didn't even have pictures of some of my first projects. I'm trying to track them down, and I'll share one every now and then as I get them. I hope everyone else's week is going faster than mine. :)

I Heart Paper-Piecing

As I mentioned in this post, I've had some ideas brewing lately for some space-saving seasonal decor. This long weekend I was finally able to make some progress on one of them. It's not entirely done (I have plans involving spray paint, jute, and a wooden sign), but this is the quilting part of the Christmas wall-hanging I made the other night. Sorry the picture is not amazing - I'm learning. :)

I followed this paper-piecing tutorial to make the three tree-blocks. I modified the dimensions slightly, and you can download a pdf of that file here.

The paper-piecing was MUCH easier and a LOT more fun than I had anticipated. I added 1 1/2" strips of the same background fabric between the squares and around the edges. The quilting (which doesn't show up very well) was just a zigzag stitch around the triangles of the trees and then straight stitches in the spaces between and around the blocks.

To make the binding, I followed this tutorial to make binding from a fat quarter. It made more than I needed, but since I modified the dimensions (2" rather than the 1 3/4" she suggests), I have some scraps to add to my stash for the scrappy string quilt I hope to one day make.

My vision for this space-saving seasonal decor involves other mini-quilts such as this that I can switch out from month-to-month. So stay tuned for the final product and my other projects as I get going!