DIY BIG Picture

So, it’s been a while since I’ve done a Do It Yourself project and this one I LOVE! I had been searching a while back for cute, inexpensive ways to decorate the kids’ rooms, I found this “Big Picture” idea on pinterest, it looked easy {and cheap} enough so I gave it a whirl!

I downloaded a few pics onto a jump drive, took it to Office Max and asked for a “Engineer’s Print” of my picture in black and white. There are multiple sizes to chose from so Bret and I decided to go with the 24 by 36 inch print which cost a whoppin’ $2.79! The little printer guy behind the counter looked at us like we were a little nuts and warned us that our picture wouldn’t come out clear and crisp. I assured him it was fine and gave him the green light to print…worst case scenario, the picture looked bad and I was out my $2.79. The picture was printed on the huge piece of paper and in my opinion, looked great…at least for what I was using it for.

Our next stop was Home Depot. We grabbed some spray adhesive for about $15 (we could have done Walmart or found a smaller can of spray for cheaper, I'm sure) and a 4 foot by 8 foot polystyrene foam sheet which cost just under $10.

Once home, we unrolled our paper picture, laid it flat on the foam board and cut around it with an exacto knife. Our next step was to spray the board with our adhesive spray and CAREFULLY place the picture onto the board – I recommend not trying this alone, Bret and I held each corner and placed it down together. I then took a little black craft paint (acrylic) and painted around the edges to cover the pink foam. I waited for it to dry and Wa-la!

I am very happy with the results, especially for my first time making them! For less than $5 each (that foam board and especially the glue will last a while and I’ll get multiple uses out of them) I now have fun, BIG, canvas-looking pictures on the kids’ playroom wall. If they fall a) they won’t break or shatter b) they’re super light so if they do fall of the wall, no little people are gonna get hurt and c) if they do get damaged in any way they’re super easy and CHEAP to replace!

Brody, Baxlyn, Kylee & Korbin noticed the new décor the morning after we hung them and  loved seeing their big pics on the wall!

I’ve got some BIG ideas on more projects to do using this same concept and will share them as soon as I have the time to give them a try. The prints can be ordered in color as well but are a bit more pricey. I think the size we got would have been a little over $10 verses the $2.79 – still not bad but I’ll perfect the art before splurging ;)

Stay tuned!