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OMTWI Week Two – Brag Blocks

By on January 14, 2012 in One Month To Win It, Photography
Well, I made it past week two!  Yippee!  I had a really fun time putting together my banner project for week three.  Here’s my entry for the DecoArt challenge – with the pixelation removed from the photos.
I’m so excited and honored to have made it past the first round of competition!  There were some pretty amazing projects put forth last week, and I’m sure this week will be just as inspiring (and intimidating)! 
For this week’s DecoArt challenge, I wanted to try to flesh out a project that had been floating around in my head for some time – sort of a shadow box frame that could hold photo blocks for my Mother, an idea which became Grandma’s Brag Blocks.
I had great intentions of finding a cool thrift store frame to use, but after scouring three different stores in the area, I had to go to plan B – an open back frame from Hobby Lobby for 50% off.  It ended up being only a little more than the prices I was seeing for frames at the thrift stores.  I painted the frame with DecoArt Desert Turquoise Americana acrylic paint, then mixed and applied a wash made from water and DecoArt Raw Umber to get into the nooks and crannies.  I ragged most of the wash off using scraps of an old t-shirt.  Finally I used DecoArt DuraClear gloss varnish to seal the paint and give it a brilliant shine.  I ended up with an accidental faux verdigris finish that is really pretty!
For the shadowbox and blocks, I built a box to fit in the frame from a piece of plywood and some poplar 1/4″x2″ pieces of wood.  I cut and sanded the 2″x4″s to fit nicely in the frame.  I brushed on the same wash to stain the blocks and then decoupaged the trimmed photos to both sides of the blocks.

Now Grandma can swap and rearrange photos as she likes, and I can always make additional photo blocks as grandbabies get older.
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24 Responses to OMTWI Week Two – Brag Blocks

  1. Krystal January 14, 2012 at 10:47 PM #

    so cute! what a great idea.

  2. Lisa ~ The SweetTalk Shop January 15, 2012 at 1:33 AM #

    This is a really great idea!!!

  3. Tutus & Tea Parties January 15, 2012 at 1:32 PM #

    Oh my goodness, I love this idea! SO awesome! Thanks for linking up to A Pinteresting Party. I’m totally pinning this!

  4. Megan Hellrung January 16, 2012 at 5:06 AM #

    This is adorable !

    I hope you will share this at my party, Some Good Stuff: http://some-good-times.blogspot.com/2012/01/some-good-stuff-3.html

    Megan

  5. Cherished Bliss January 17, 2012 at 1:48 AM #

    Congrats on moving on! I totally love this idea : ) Can’t wait to see what you do this week : )

  6. Sarah January 17, 2012 at 5:12 AM #

    Came over from Tutus and Tea Parties. LOVE this idea. Pinning now 🙂

  7. Craft Crazy Mom January 17, 2012 at 6:32 AM #

    I absolutely LOVE this idea. It’s brilliant! Newest follower and I absolutely love it!
    http://www.craftcrazymom.com/

  8. Jessica @ My World - Made By Hand January 17, 2012 at 9:55 PM #

    This is a great idea. LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it! Thank you so much for linking to Totally Tutorial Tuesdays. Be sure to check back on Friday to see if you were featured. 🙂

  9. Nikki@EverythingUndertheMoon January 19, 2012 at 12:41 AM #

    This is a great idea!! It is super cute!! I would love it if you would share this at my linky party going on right now 🙂 http://everything-underthemoon.blogspot.com/2012/01/bedazzle-me-monday-16.html

    Have great rest of the week!!

  10. Life: Designed January 22, 2012 at 6:23 AM #

    Aw.. this is really sweet! What a great idea!

    Nancy
    alifedesigned.blogspot.com

  11. Megan Hellrung January 23, 2012 at 5:01 AM #

    This post was featured at Some Good Stuff ! Come grab a button to show off how fabulous you are !

    Megan @ Some Good Stuff
    http://some-good-times.blogspot.com/2012/01/some-good-stuff-4.html

  12. Anonymous June 22, 2012 at 12:52 AM #

    Is this a piece to sit on a coffee table? or is it something that can hang on the wall? thanks.

  13. Breezy December 14, 2012 at 1:39 AM #

    What size frame did you use? The one you purchased from Hobby Lobby?

    • Jenn - A Jennuine Life December 14, 2012 at 10:39 PM #

      I’m pretty sure it was 11″ x 14″. It’s at my parent’s house in Florida now, so I can’t measure it to be sure. I remember my blocks being something like 3.5 x 4.5, so that makes sense. I’d love to see your version if you make one!

  14. Trina January 17, 2013 at 4:38 PM #

    Is this to hang on a wall or set on a coffee table? I love it!

  15. Danielle Doerr May 30, 2013 at 5:19 AM #

    What a fantastic idea and it makes such a great gift! Thanks again for linking up today for Craft With What You’ve Got!

    Danielle at Framed Frosting

  16. Paige Summers May 30, 2013 at 5:24 AM #

    This is such a good idea!!!

  17. Tranae May 30, 2013 at 5:34 AM #

    love!!

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