After returning home and completing Army Officer military training, I purchased new living room furniture for my home. I was so excited to introduce the new furniture to my living room, but I never found any wall art or decor that I loved for my new space. The walls remained bare… until now!
What do they say? You’ll find it when you stop looking… That is an understatement! I finally found it… I LOVED the artwork. Needless to say, the artwork I loved came at a price, but not a price that I would pay, $800.00 + for the set of three. I am a huge fan of Pottery Barn- the look, the feel and smell of their items just makes me feel comfortable and cozy. Usually their look is elegant and simple, but they can be a little on the high end. It was just then I thought… SQUIRREL! I can just make my own!
Eh hem… Let me introduce: My artwork inspired by Pottery Barn.
Items you will need:
• Paper- I used watercolor canvas paper (You can use any type of paper- size is your choice, just make sure its appropriate for the paint you choose)
• Acrylic paint- choose the colors you want for your artwork
• Paint brushes- I used a thin all purpose detail paint brush and a chisel tip paint brush ½ inch for the floral, background 2.5-inch paint brush
• Inspirational artwork
How I got started!
I started by mixing and painting all three canvas background during my first session. I wanted to ensure that the colors were mixed the same and painted in the same manner. For my background I used black, white and a little bit of a white pearl acrylic paint. I mixed it all together on a plastic dinner plate I saved in my art kit from years ago. This paper is pretty large (16inchx20inch), so I used a regular 2.5-inch brush for the background. With the paper laid out in front of you, start from the the top left corner and use a full brush stroke down, stay consistent in the brush strokes and make sure they are top to bottom until you finish the sheet of paper. After you complete all three, lay them aside to dry thoroughly.
The second paint session I decided to try to paint one of the floral patterns. I pulled up the inspirational artwork on my phone, mixed the blue colored acrylic paint and started to freehand the floral pattern. You can always try to outline it with a pencil- the acrylic paint is heavy enough to cover the pencil marks. I recommend that you do this during a time with little to no interruptions or distractions. Having two children of my own, I found that the evening or early mornings were the best.
The first piece took me about an hour to complete. I have a collage app on my phone and I did a side by side comparison to see how the two differed and if I felt any adjustments were needed. Don’t be too hard on yourself, unless you are a phenomenal artist, it will never be an exact match to your inspirational piece, not to mention- this is your masterpiece, so you don’t want it to be an exact replica.
During the third session, I made a few adjustments to the first painting. I added more length to the bottom leaves and then I started the second and third paintings. On average each one took about an hour. Once they were all completed, I put them in a secured area to dry so I could take them to be framed.
I decided to take them to Hobby Lobby to get framed. They are reasonably priced and when you have an employee put the piece together for you (frame, mat, glass, paper, hanging wire), you get the frame ½ off! (Shh… they don’t want everyone to know that secret!)
Cost comparison:
I had all of the painting items, so the only out of pocket expense was getting the paintings framed, which was about $144.00. The inspired artwork retails for over $800.00, so needless to say- if you can pull up your sleeves and get a little creative- it can really pay off! I saved over $650.00.
I cannot express how much I love these pieces in my home. When I look at them, I get that comfy-relaxing feeling and I just LOVE them! I forget that I even painted them, I just love the pattern, the colors and how they fill up my walls with LOVE.
Let me know if you try this out yourself! I would love to see your inspirational artwork pieces!
Secret Squirrel Moment 