Make Your Own Masterpiece

Blank walls got you down? For less than $25, you can release your inner Warhol by making your own masterpiece with the hidden treasures of your junk drawer. Look for interesting objects and exciting colors to create a dynamic layout. Give your art some heart with meaningful ephemera, like a postcard from your hometown, a black and white photo of your dog, or a favorite fortune-cookie fortune. Use this item to be your focal point, then keep on adding stuff until you like what you see. Ooh la la!

You Will Need:

4 artist stretcher bars, 20 inches long each

Unbleached canvas (natural color), 15" x 15"

Black craft felt, 24 inches by 24 inches

Brass eyelet/grommet kit with setting tool (quarter-inch size)

Found objects to photocopy

Tools:

Staple gun

Scissors

Hammer

Ruler

T-square

As seen in

Decorating Spaces magazine

CRAFT HOW-TOS

DECORATING IDEAS

©The O’Neil Sisters 2008

Directions:

Step 1: Arrange your selected objects on the bed of a color photocopier. Try several compositions, making several copies, until you like what you see. Have your photocopy transferred onto natural canvas at Kinko's.

Step 2: Grommet the photocopied canvas onto the 24-inch by 24-inch black felt square.

Step 3: Make a frame out of the stretcher bars using the T-square to make sure it is square. Stretch your art onto the stretcher frame (see article “How To Stretch A Canvas”).

Tips:

A Lesson From The Louvre: To give your art that museum quality, create a small label stating the title, artist, and date (add “on loan from the Googleheim Estate” and you can charge admission!).

SOHO Know-How: Turn your living room into a Manhattan gallery by placing your work of art on an easel. No nails necessary!

Midas Touch: Gild the lily by finishing off your masterpiece with a baroque gold frame. Priceless!

Artistic License

Missing your muse? For this project, anything goes as long as it’s flat and fits on a copier. So get out your junk drawer and start making copies!

Items For Inspiration:

cigar bands

coins

feathers

keys

lace

leaves

love notes