DIY Custom Artwork

Sometimes the best artwork for your home can be created at home! There's just something so beautiful about the abstract artwork created by children, so why not showcase it?

Our home has a very neutral colour palette; natural woods, "greiges", black, soft whites & greys, and a ton of plants — so when choosing paint colours for this project, we opted for neutral tones.

We painted on Kraft wrapping paper for added warm texture & used thrifted picture frames for framing.

When I brought out the paints, Little Man said he was feeling inspired by our houseplants. Since they’re so spread out, we walked around & made a few quick sketches of the ones he loves most. He then painted his interpretation of these.

Little Miss was inspired by the snow in our yard! She loves how it “sparkles”. We added some gold paint in with the white to give its a subtle “sparkle”.

TIPS:

• Lay the insert / cardboard lining inside your picture frame down flat on your paper and trace! This will give you the perfect size & idea of where your littles' artwork will be. Encourage painting slightly outside the lines! When it comes time for framing, it looks a lot more aesthetically pleasing.

• I like to use acrylic paints for permanent projects like these. Not only are there a ton of colours & shades to choose from, they also hold up over time. They do stain fabrics, however, so I recommend using paint smocks and/or wearing clothes you don't mind getting paint on.

• When choosing colours for your painting project, take a look around your space! Which colours might be the most aesthetically pleasing? Opt for those.

And just like that - a simple activity, inexpensive custom framed art, and two very proud little artists!

Happy painting!