DIY Photo Canvas...yes please!

For Valentine's Day I asked for the tools and supplies to update a pair of circa 1970 nightstands into chic mirrored nightstands (look for that tutorial in the future).  However, that is more like a weekend project so last night we decided to make a little artwork for our home :)

We had our engagement pictures taken a while back at a family farm and got them back just in time for Valentine's Day thanks to our amazing photographer Jenny Benson.  I had planned to make this photo canvas for Brady for a little v-day present, but the pictures took too long to download so we ended up making it together when Brady got back in town from work- which turned out to be much better!

So here is how it went down:

1.  Even thought I bought it on sale at TJ Maxx about five years ago for $29.99, it was getting super boring to me, plus our recently retired Captain drew cows and birds on it, I'm considering this as free since it was going to the donate pile otherwise.  Oh it's 24" X 36".

2.  I rolled a fresh coat of paint onto the canvas--INCLUDING the sides.  After letting it dry between coats I ended up doing 3 coats to cover up the painting below.  I don't think that many coats would be necessary if starting with a blank canvas.

I used Sherwin Williams "Mindful Grey" for my canvas.  I had this on hand because it was a color sample I tried for the dining room, but Brady outvoted me on that one.  BTW I love these skinny little rollers because they are so easy to wash out and reuse.  They are a little pricier than the normal rollers, but I saw them super cheap at our Habitat for Humanity Restore recently.

3.  I contacted our local Office Depot, because I was having trouble uploading and ordering reprints through their website.  They were very helpful and just gave me their copy center e-mail address to send the pictures straight to with instructions for them on what you want.  Since my canvas is 24"X36" we ordered the print in the same size.  We asked it to be printed in black and white on basic paper.  I have read several blogs and they say to request an "Engineered Print", but at Office Depot that cost $1.67 a square foot, and just printing it on regular paper only cost $2.98 TOTAL!!

Here is a close up shot to show the quality of the photo enlargement (pretty dang good if you ask me)

4.  We did a "dry run" to make sure that it fit on the canvas and it ended up being about a 1/4" too tall.  We decided to line the paper up with the bottom of the canvas and work our way up, leaving the extra paper at the top.  There are numerous types of spray adhesive at Wal-Mart, I went with this one because it was the cheapest.  Don't be fooled by the $16 spray glue with the elmer's glue, got this same size bottle for $5 located next to the Mod Podge.

 

While Brady held the paper into place on the canvas, I pulled back the bottom 5-6" and applied spray adhesive to the canvas.  (This pic reminds me that I need to start tanning for the wedding sooner than later!)

I went pretty light on the adhesive because I didn't know how it would effect the ink through the paper, but I think I could have used more, especially on the edges.  Press the paper down onto the canvas and make sure to smooth out any air bubbles.  

4.  Apply spray adhesive to the rest of the of the canvas and smooth the print down.  Wait about a minute after you spray before adhering the paper.  This is on the directions on the adhesive can.  I guess it gives it time to get tacky?? 

 

5.  Trim off the excess paper along the top, as close as you can so that it doesn't hang over the edge of the canvas.

6.  I don't know what happened to the picture for the next step, but I will explain without the picture.  Using a paint brush and the same paint that you used to paint the canvas, "dab" the paint around the perimeter of the canvas, covering the white edge made from the printer.  I used a brush that was 1" wide and only about 1/4" thick.  I suggest going over it multiple times with very little paint on your brush just until the white is all covered, to avoid globs of paint warping the paper.  Here is a picture with the completed border, that blends really well with the sides of the canvas.

7.  I did some blog researchin' on this photo canvas project before going at it, and the biggest mistake people said they made was mod podge ruining the photo by smearing the ink.  Perfect solution...SPRAY Mod Podge!!  They have it in both matte and gloss, but I decided to go with the matte.  This stuff runs a little under $6 a can.  

We applied VERY light coats because we didn't want to mess up our project on the last step. We ended up applying three coats, letting it dry about 10 minutes between coats. I'll be honest that you can't really see a difference after this step, but you can feel the difference. I'm guessing there would have been a bigger change if I had chosen the glossy version. Regardless, our print has been protected with an acrylic sealer :)    

Done and Done.... 

Don't forget to put the date on the back and who you made it with!  All in all this project cost us less than $15 and it made for a fun Valentine's Day project.  Also I have tons of leftover spray adhesive and mod podge for future projects.  You could also use wood or foam or even cardboard to make a faux photo canvas, just make sure to paint the sides of your material.

I hope this tutorial was easy to understand, because the project was super easy.  The hardest part was making ourselves wait for things to dry before jumpipng to the next step :) 

Please comment if you have any questions or need me to clarify something.  If you make one be sure to post a picture for everyone to see.  Check back after the weekend to see how the mirrored nightstands turn out!