Easy Painting

A while ago I bought some really cool decorative screen panels from The Container Store.  

http://www.containerstore.com/shop?productId=10029991&N=&Ntt=decorative+screen

I honestly didn't have anywhere in mind for hanging them.  They still haven't found a home in our little apartment.  I am thinking that eventually they will make their way into Bean's room as they are superbly fem. Then I thought...Oooooh!  I could make a set of paintings from them and hang them above my headboard.  We have a lovely king size bed and it is calling out for some art work above it.  So, I drove to Michael's and bought a 20" square canvas, two tubes of BASICS acrylic paint....one in white and one in bright aqua green....and a flat paintbrush.  I adore aqua...it's the only shade of green I really like (probably that hint of blue it contains!).  I laid one of the panels on the canvas and began lightly tracing it.  If you have curious kids who like to bump into you, I recommend taping it with some painters tape to hold it in place.  Then...I took a bowl (not a good one silly! Although acrylic paint is easily removed with hot soapy water, it may leave a stain) and squeezed two heaping amounts of white and aqua side by side.  I ran my brush right down the center of those bad boys and started painting.  

And painted.....don't start this project at 10 p.m.  You won't get any sleep.  

I finished all the aqua that night and waited for it to dry.  The next day I came back in with solid white to touch up those pencil marks, and add a little texture to the negative space.  I love the variegation in the aqua.  It was so simple to do too.  I thought I was done, but when I hung it I found the texture in the solid white areas to be nearly invisible unless you were up close.  So, after waiting to make sure all the paint was dry, I took some cheap acrylic paint in Nutmeg, a spicy brown, I had laying around and watered it down.  Then with a big natural bristle brush I bathed that sucker.  Then, I wiped the excess off with a paper towel.  

This is what I got.  

Over all, I'd say I'm happy with it.  I might do another layer of the brown wash just to make it pop a bit more, but it was cheap, easy, and entertaining.  It won't end up above our bed.  It's a little too big for the set of three I had envisioned.   So, I'm happy.  The hubs must be too, because he suggested hanging it in the ENTRYWAY for all to see.  Yea Me!