Upload a photo, play around with the effects you want, and they’ll send you a kit with a 12″ x 16″ canvas, the paints you need, brushes and a large image of the finished project for reference. The cost is $40.00.  Campers rejoice!

Their gallery shows lots of paintings of people and a few animal (no wolves). I’d suggest some landscapes – but not autumn with a brook running through the trees. Flowers would be cool. I think they’d look better than people. Check out their site and let me know what you think.

The only dark side of Paintapic is that, after you upload your photo, you have to pay before you get to play with the design. I couldn’t find any information about a refund if you don’t like the results. At any rate, this looks like a lot of fun. All aspiring artists will love this. Hmmm… I think I’m loving this idea.

Stencils are a terrific way to decorate a wall without having to buy and hang wallpaper. Personally, I hate hanging wallpaper. I love stenciling. It’s really easy, as long as you’re careful with things like straight lines. All you do is stick the stencil to the wall and paint, or dab, or spray. It all depends on what medium you’re using.

Here is a gallery of ideas and some resources at the end. Enjoy!

The best place in the world to buy stencils is The Stencil Library. Most of these photos are from their blog (a great how-to resource). They have everything from this Rococo design to car tires and barbed wire.

The floral motif is a stencil. Here you can see it with just black and with the flowers in color – all stencilled. Which is your favorite?

I love this one. Use images from a book, enlarge them, and place them inside the stenciled swag. Instant gentrification! Your friends will buy you much better Christmas gifts when they see this in your hallway.

This is really pretty, too. Instead of inserting portraits into the “holes” they’ve used a flower stencil. Love it!

Looking for something Colonial? Some trees and a peacock made a nice frame for a fireplace. It softens the look and creates a beautiful focal point.

Yowza! You can stencil over wallpaper, too. Give it new life with some eye-popping motifs like these hearts. They’re made with the heart stencil and a lace stencil on top. This would look great in a teen room.

You can use your stencils over and over again. Make matching fabric and “wallpaper”. Do up the furniture while you’re at it.

Oh, I forgot. You can stencil the floor, too. You can stencil anything. Better stay away from the cat.

Stencils can also make a nice replacement for artwork. A few flowers and birds in a corner are so lovely. That’s all you need.

Finally, you don’t have to go all out. A few light birds in flight on a white ground makes a beautiful design statement.

RESOURCES

The Stencil Library – Best place ever. You can buy a CD of their designs.

Stencil 1 – Another creative choice.

Stencil Planet – I’ve never used their stencils. They have some nice damasks. Just wish they had larger gallery photos

Designer Stencils – Good for standards

Wall To Wall Stencils – Specializes in creating custom phrases, etc…

A bark basket is filled with pine greens, twigs from a craft store, pine cones and berries. Buy large pine cones and use florist wire to wrap floral sticks to them. Place into oasis to create this beautiful centerpiece for a table or your coffee table.

This is a photo of my sister-in-law’s dining room. She lives in Verbier, Switzerland. You can’t see it, but a beautiful waterfall tumbles behind the window. Here, she’s get a beautiful basket, wrapped with leaves and tied with twine. The basket it filled with hydrangeas. Simple and lovely. If you can’t find hydrangeas, use another full flower.

I made this simple centerpiece using a wood, leaf-shaped basket from Scout, a home store in Royal Oak ($54.00). I used pine cuttings from the yard and layered large pine cones on top. Another cutting from a tree, tied with a satin ribbon, finishes the look.

This is another simple idea you can do yourself. Square, decorative boxes are lined with votives filled with water and a litte oasis. Pine cuttings and wild flowers are placed to create small, simple centerpieces. Make several and line them along the table, alternating votives candles.

I like this more abstract idea. You can use just about any sort of vase you have and fill them will a variety of roses and other flowers to create a colorful setting that matches your dishes. You can spray paint leaves to create even more bling factor.

This lovely idea using paperwhites is from My Sweet Savannah. Check out her blog for even more ideas.

You could easily create a version of this using LACK shelves from IKEA. These versatile shelves come in 12″, 43″, 48″ and 75″ lengths. If you don’t like the color, simply paint them in one you love. Notice the piece of decorative paper in the shelves shown here. That’s a nice touch, don’t you think?

To make these shelves you’ll need a metal L-square and a level to make sure your angles are at 90 degrees. Work your design out on paper before you start.

Want some other ideas for things to do with LACK? Check out this post from Apartment Therapy. And this one from Ikea Hacker.

Do you have a DIY shelving project you’d like to show off? Send me a photo!

We’re well into summer, but it’s never too late to bring the feel of summer into your home. Paint is one way to accomplish a new look. But you have to live with that all year round. A better way to makeover a room instantly, and one that can change with the seasons, is to throw a slipcover over the sofa and/or arm chairs. Even the dining room will brighten up with a set of relaxed slipcovers.

In a few months, when winter rears its ugly head and you’re longing for something more cozy, simply remove the slipcovers and you’ve got yet another instant room makeover. Plus, the original upholstery will seem new again after living in seclusion for several months. Here are some slipcover ideas and resources to guide you.

1. Custom Slipcovers

Here’s one of my own projects. The fabric on this wing chair (from Cowtan & Tout) was beautiful and in great shape. But the room was undergoing a total makeover, which meant a new color palette. A slipcover was a great solution. We have our new look without having to sacrifice the original fabric.

A custom slipcover was the way to go here. We wanted to choose just the right fabric and the unusual shape of the chair eliminated any ready-mades. Also, we could style the slipcover any way we liked. Here are some tips to custom slipcovers.

• Find a workroom by searching on Angie’s List or your local fabric shop. Ask to see their portfolio before you hire them.
• Create a work order for the seamstress or workroom. This lists all the details of the work to be done, such as the style you want. Include a photo, if you can find one, and any details such as welting, etc…
• Labor for a slipcover, like the one shown above, will cost about $300 and use about 9 – 10¬† yards of fabric.
• Save on fabric by selecting a solid. You won’t have to match repeats. I found this white twill at JoAnn Fabrics and took advantage of their frequent 40% off sales to get a great price – about $11.00 per yard. That’s better than any designer discount.
• You can dress up a solid fabric by adding a toss pillow.

2. Semi-Custom Slipcovers

If you love IKEA furniture, but want a new look, Bemz is the way to go. Based in Stockholm, this creative company offers a wide variety of excellent fabrics, including Marimekko. The slipcover, above, sells for $279, including shipping.

3. Readymade Slipcovers

There are a few companies that sell ready-made slipcovers. Of them. Surefit has the best selection. The wing chair (above) is the best of what I saw. It sells for only $49.99. Definitely a look for less.

Dining chairs ($14.99) from Surefit seem like a good option. I like the bow. Make sure you measure your chair before purchasing. Surefit has a guide as well.

Another resource is Pottery Barn. These slipcovers ($24.99 – $39.99) seem more skimpy than Surefit’s – the tie in the back especially so.

Of course, you don’t have to remove the slipcover. You might find that you want to enjoy summer all year long.

Have you bought slipcovers? As always, I’m looking for before-and-after photos of your projects. Do you have a resource to add? Do you have a slipcover tip? Share it with us here.

I am a closet crafter, but don’t know a lot about the subject. If you’re into crafting, I suggest a visit to Poppytalk.

At any rate, do you know of a similar US site? Is this too Martha Stewart for you?

I like to paint, needlepoint, embroider and sew – though it’s hard to find time for it. What do you like to do?

Making your own Batiks

Here are my most simple steps for hand painted batik using wax.

1. Choose the most suitable fabric for dyeing. I always use a colorful, high weighted silk and cotton for better penetration of the wax. It can be a bit pricey but the results are brilliant.

2. We need to prepare the fabric for drawing. Pre-wash and ironed it. Then, stretch it onto a frame. You can use a cookie sheet and paper clips or anything else – so long as the fabric is stretched.

3. Draw your design on the fabric using a pencil. Then, use a ‘chanting tool’, filled with hot wax to trace over your drawing. Remember, you are applying wax to cover the area that you want to remain the original color.

4. Chanting’ takes some skill for the beginner. Always keep the wax hot. The ideal mixture for beginners is 30% beeswax to 70% paraffin. The wax line should be as thin as possible for the best result.

5. Next is the dyeing process. First, leave the traced wax to cool completely. Ordinary cold-water dyes are the best for beginners. Start with the lightest color, then darker tones. You may also use fiber reactive dye colors in the process.

6. Removing the wax can be tricky. Patience is the key. Remove it with a mixture of cold water and liquid soap, or use Synthrapol. Take care not to harm the cloth.

7. Wash the finished fabric with cold water and allow it to dry in the air. You now have your batik creation ready to suit your purpose!

Resources

Thanks, ZyHan! There are a number of shops that sell Batik waxes and the drawing pen.

1. Dick Blick

2. Dharma Trading Company

3. Maiwa Supply

Are you ready to give this a try? I’ve made a scarf and can report that it’s not hard to do. It’s fun to do with a group of friends and would make a great project for a party.