Polka Dot Plate Art

Hi Everyone!

So who's ready for a good thrift store find turned wall art tutorial this fine Monday morning?!

The other day while reading another of my favorite blogs, Chic Little House, I was inspired by the lovely Katrina to create some art for the wall above the media center. Some of you may recall my recent furniture switcheroo which created a much better solution for our entertainment center.  The walls above, however, were bare and in desperate need of lovin'. 

On Katrina's blog she featured a pin of the week of some super cute gold polka dot coffee mugs.  I instantly fell in love with them and immediately knew that gold polka dots would be just the thing to add a bit of whimsy and sparkle to my bare wall.  I've been crushing on polka dots since I was kid but never really thought I could incorporate them into my interior decor without it looking too childish.  Gold adds a bit of glam to just about anything and coupled with my navy walls, I knew this would be my chance to sneak those dots in after all. Sidenote: Gold and brass is totally IN right now and I'm pretty happy about it.  I've loved gold accents since for like ever, so Its high tide it make a comeback.

Here's the inspiration pin along with some other polka dot pinspiration:

 

 

 

 

 

Seriously though, aren't those straws freakin adorable!  Anywhooo, I decided I'd try my take on polka dots via a Sharpie paint pen and some $.49 plates I picked up at Goodwill over the weekend.  I figured if it didn't work out, I'd only be out about $8.00 total (including the cost of the markers).

The first thing I did was gather all my materials and spread out on the floor with some newspaper.  Call me crazy, but I really prefer sprawling out on the floor to do any kind of art project.  Tables are ok, but the floor is just  so. much. better.

Now, notice I started out with two different types of Sharpies.  One is a regular Sharpie that's a gold metallic and the other is a Sharpie oil based paint pen.  My original plan was to use the regular Sharpie, then bake the plates on 350 for about 30 minutes.  That was a no go.  As I started making my dots they were looking like this

I switched up the game plan and started using the paint pen instead.  Huge difference.  The paint pen was perfect.  It is specifically made for ceramics, pottery, and other similar surfaces so I had no problems with coverage.  I would highly suggest you put down some newspaper or work on a surface you don't mind messing up because it is oil based and clean up is not easy.

Here's what the paint pen looked like in comparison

 I decided to go with a few different sizes and patterns to add a bit of interest.  By the way, I freehanded the whole project.  I really just wanted it to be fun and kinda organic.

Once I finished making the dots I used a hot glue and some extra twine I had laying around to make a loop to hang the plates on the wall.  I've also seen other people use a paper clip for this step.  Depending on how heavy your dishes are will determine what material you want to use to hang them on the wall.  You can always go out a buy some wall hanging kits for dishes if you'd like.  They are are bit too pricey for my liking.   Plus these dishes only cost me 49 cent so if one just happens to fall down it wont be the end of the world.  They've been hanging for over a week now so I'm pretty sure they aren't budging.

That's it my friends.  After that I decided on a placement and hung them on the wall.  Easy peasy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I like em....and for only $7.89! You cant beat it.  Aahh thrift stores, you gotta love em. 

 

So have you done any cool project on the cheap lately?  Until next time......

 

XoXo-Shavonda

 

I'll be linking up to the  Dog Days of Winter Linky Party