Oversized Photo Art...Decoupaged

Sometimes, I like to pretend I am a Photographer who takes amazingly beautiful pictures of my children...the rest of the time I like to b...

Sometimes, I like to pretend I am a Photographer who takes amazingly beautiful pictures of my children...the rest of the time I like to be mom and take endless amount of pictures of my children. Between the two roles, I sometimes whip out decent photos that I am proud to say..."I did that."


Yeah...I did that ^^and it was a lot of hard work to get that shot! Literally, I had to keep her from smiling. It was insane. 

I really wanted to add some sort of pattern or graphic to the vanity area in my girl's room and all I could think about were black and white photography. They are timeless and in their room it would make a statement especially if I got the backdrop just right. 

SIDENOTE: I tried to get a photo(s) of both my daughters, but my other daughter had the wiggles and the case of the bouncy's that day...well, everyday for the matter. It is okay because I have other blown up shots of her that I can put elsewhere. 


It is crazy to think that I purchased the canvas used on this project a whole year ago...yes, I had plans then. I also planned on posting this as a post as a tutorial...but I happened to work on this project in the late evening, so pictures were no bueno. 


As much as I would love an oversized professional print...it is simply not in my budget. So I did what I normally do when I want an oversized black and white print...I went to my local FedEX Kinkos. The price for the print was $10 and some change. I am pretty sure other office stores can offer the same product but the price may be cheaper or a little more. I would call around and ask what they charge for a print X size printed on the engineer machine

To keep cost low on this project, I had no other choice but to try decoupaging...again. Let's just say, it is not my thang. You cannot really tell but this project was an air bubble disaster. Oh my...yes it was! Guess how I fixed that problem?...I popped those suckers once the photo was almost dry then I slapped some (not a lot) modge podge over it and tried to flatten it out. I guess that is the secret to decoupaging, because I literally have no air bubbles...AMAZING!...I wish I knew this sooner, it would have saved me the trouble on past projects. 


I did not want the photo to distract from all the other pieces in the room so I took a more subtle approach to choosing a paint for the rim of the canvas. In my stash of mistints, I found a mauve-purplish color and painted the rim of the canvas and a border of about 1 1/2". After the paint dried, the decoupaging began. 


Although this piece turned out amazing...I am still feel a bit hesitant to try my hand at decoupaging,. Do you have any decoupage secrets that you can share? 

You Might Also Like

24 comments

  1. I've seen people who make decoupaging look so easy, but I'm over here like, "Well, THAT was a disaster." Where did you get the photo printed that large? Someplace online or a store? I have a couple of canvases I've been meaning to do SOMETHING with, and since I actually am a photographer, I really should get on that.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh yeah...I meant to mention where I purchased my print. I purchased it from FedEX Kinkos...I had them print it off on the engineer (black and white machine) machine. It literally cost me $10 and some change (that was with tax). I bet you can make a huge statement with your photographs and it could be really eye catching...You should definitely blog about your decoupage experience, if you choose to do that...I would love to hear about it.

      Delete
  2. Despite the troubles, it looks great! :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. I love the picture! Where did you get it printed? I love the canvas look!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks...So sorry I forgot to mention that...I sent the photo via email to FedEx Kinkos and had them print it to their Engineer machine (black and white machine) at the size of 36x48...It cost me $10 and some change for the whole print.

      Delete
  4. I love the canvas! And wow, breathtaking photo!

    ReplyDelete
  5. I love this! We need something big over our bed!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Do it, Do it, Do it! Large prints look great over beds!

      Delete
  6. I love this idea - makes such an impact!!

    ReplyDelete
  7. What a fun idea! The photo of your daughter is (of course) gorgeous. I'm also really digging that deer statue. So cool!

    ReplyDelete
  8. I've wanted to one of these for so long. Great tip on popping the bubbles, they always cramp my style!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks! I think you should do it...just start small.

      Delete
  9. It looks amazing! I am so nervous to try my hand at this! It looks so easy but I love how honest you were with the bubbles your ran into! Maybe I will try it on a much smaller scale first!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks! While I was doing this project I was thinking.."what am I doing"...I thought I was going to screw it up...I don't know if you can tell, but I am not very patient when it comes to project, but I am happy with the results. Thanks for commenting.

      Delete
  10. Great photo! And I relate with the air bubble problem. I haven't decoupaged anything in a very long time--so no tips from me, sorry! Yours were helpful, though :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks! If I learned anything from this project, popping the bubbles = magic

      Delete
  11. Thank you for sharing this as I've been wanting to do this for a looooong time! The picture turned our great!!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks! I think you should try it...let me know how it turns out when you are finished.

      Delete