Canvas Photo Art

Look out world!  Kat just found some creativity!  Which maybe isn't a big surprise but lately I haven't been too excited about my sewing projects and crafts.  That all changed about 90 minutes ago when I decided to try out an idea I've had for quite some time.

Last year I spent some time in the Pacific Northwest where I took lots and lots of pictures.  It was very exciting.  When I got home I had about 500 pictures and most of them were scenery oriented.  Well, it's nice to a have a CDROM laying around with all those pictures on it but it is even nicer to get to look at them every now and then.  I was particularly interested in the pictures I took at the Rose Test Garden in Portland, OR.  I thought, 'wouldn't it be nice if I could modgepodge some pictures onto something....'  A little later I had this great thought: canvas!  So on Memorial Day I bought some canvas at Joann's of various sizes thinking I might make a collage or something for the bigger canvases.  And about a month ago I got some test pictures printed out at my trusty photo shop (Walgreen's).  Since I wasn't sure how this would go I didn't want to get too attached to anything. 

Finally, tonight I saw everything in my sewing room and decided to try it out.  In my head I was going to glue the picture to the front and try to wrap the (non-pliable) picture around the sides in gift wrap fashion.  I got out some small 2 x 2 canvas and one picture and my other supplies.

I traced a square onto the back of the picture using the canvas as a guide.  Then cut about a half inch bigger and slit the sides and folded the sides a little.  You can see how the picture is a little 3-D now.  

Then I applied some modgepodge to the front of the canvas and the back of the picture and put a book on top and let it dry for awhile (about 10 minutes).  While it was drying I googled "modgepodge pictures and canvas" and got back an amazing result that contained a great idea but it didn't have the photo wrap around the edges which was what I really, really wanted.

So I modgepodged the front but the sides were too unwieldy to do anything with.  They just would not stay even though it looks good in the picture.  And so this was my epic fail of immense proportions for the evening.   That unyielding picture paper just wouldn't stick to the canvas with the photo wrapping around the edges.  It was a beast.  Modgepodge everywhere.  I tried, I really did.

After saying, "so long," to that great idea, I followed the idea I found by googling.  Watch the magic...

I ripped that picture off the canvas (at this point thinking I should just throw it away and get out one of my other test pictures) and cut away those beastly edges and stuck it back to the canvas and threw some modgepodge over it.

At this point I was going to stop and throw in the towel, but the website I found by googling had a great idea for finishing the edges: paint!  And it just so happens that I have paint.  Not in that pink color, but I was pretty sure I could do something about it.  So I got out my pink paints and started mixing.

Here is the fabulous result.  I am not too fond of the pink paint I created but it still looks good on my wall.  What's really great is that the texture of the dried modgepodge makes the "artistic" painting look even more awesome than it is.  

When I finally figured all this out it only took about 30 minutes (including a 15 minute drying time) to make this purple one.

I think I got the color a lot better for the edges on this one.  I mixed white, purple and red.  The white-ish streaks over the top are just for interest: to catch the eye so to speak. 

Here are the finished products hanging on my bathroom wall.  One thing I really like about this project is that these are my photographs and they look pretty dang good.  Another thing I really like is that these things look pretty dang good and I barely did a thing after I figured out the best way to do it.  I love it when ideas become real, change, and then come to life.