Here’s a closer look at the little art piece I did this week for my St Patrick’s Day mantel.

 I only needed five items for this project.  I had this ”Writer” paint  and some gold paint on hand .  I made the shamrock template. I bought a small canvas ($5.00) and some metallic green paint ($2.00) from Hobby Lobby.

I planned the layout on a scrap piece of paper first.  Then I used a ruler to draw lines on my canvas to keep my writing straight.  I wrote the saying in pencil and traced my shamrock in pencil.  I then spent some time practicing writing with the “Writer” paint on a scrap of paper before I traced the pencil lines on my canvas.  I messed up a couple of times on the canvas, but discovered you can carefully wipe off the bad part and redo it (don’t wait too long because it won’t come off when it’s dry).  When the “Writer” paint was completely dry (I waited overnight) I painted the whole canvass with my metallic green paint.  I had planned to quit there but the writing was a little hard to make out so I highlighted it with some gold paint.

That’s it.  It was a quick (most of the time I spent was waiting for the paint to dry) and easy project. It was cheap too.  The final cost was just under $8.00.   I definitely want to try this again.

I wasn’t going to do a St. Patrick’s Day mantel this year.  I want to start setting up a permanent mantel here.  I haven’t decided how I want it to look yet though and I had a couple of craft ideas I wanted to try out.

This vase of four-leaf clovers was the first idea I wanted to bring to life.  I used some wallpaper and scrapbook paper I had leftover from other projects. I folded the paper in half with right sides together.   I made a clover template and traced it onto the paper.  I spray-painted a few wooden skewers green.  I inserted one skewer between the two wrong sides of the clover and then glued them together.  Voila, a bouquet of shamrocks.

This green sign was my second project.  It is an artist’s canvas with puffy paint writing.  It says “May the luck of the Irish enfold you.  May the blessings of St Patrick behold you”.  I will do a tutorial on this sign tomorrow in case anyone is interested in how it was made.  I think I may like this sign even better than the one I made for last year’s mantel.  Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

l.

I think I am the only one in my neighborhood who decorates for St. Patrick’s day.  I decorate for most of the holidays though.  I always have.  I don’t think that I have shared before the fact that I used to be the owner and operator of an in-home daycare.  I also worked at a couple of daycare centers.  I have always loved kids and enjoyed being a daycare provider.  I always looked forward to each new month and making projects with the kids and using those projects as our decorations.  I still enjoy doing projects with my kids, but they are growing up fast.  They aren’t as enthusiastic as I still am so I tend to channel my decorating in more grown up ways now.

 Like tablescapes.

I picked up the top ringed green plate, Royal Norfolk, the white plate, Mikasa (Parisian Ivy), and the green goblets at my favorite local thrift store.  I have had green chargers, Target, and the white placements and napkins, Homegoods, and the flatware, Oneida, for a while now.  I think they mix well even though they are from all over and not matched.

 A closer look.

I love the green glass.

I borrowed these green bottles from a larger collection I have displayed on the window ledge in my craft/laundry room.  These have been collected through the years.  My favorite source for glass bottles is eBay.  Thank you for visiting.  I am linking this post to Tablescape Thursday over at Between Naps on the Porch  and Centerpiece Wednesday over at The Style Sisters.  Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

      St. Patrick’s day is one of our favorite holidays.  We always have fun making green smoothies and green pancakes for breakfast.  And no St. Patrick’s Day would be complete without corned beef and cabbage for dinner.  For this table, I mixed and matched dishes. 

     I got the green chargers from Target last Christmas.  I bought the white plates at All A Dollar.  And I picked up the leaf plates at Walmart last Thanksgiving.  The green glasses were a gift from my sister-in-law many years ago. 

  I mixed in some of my Fiestaware and added these mossy balls which I usually keep in a wicker basket on this table when we aren’t eating here.  For a centerpiece, I layered a green candle in a bowl my Grandmother gave me and placed them on top of a plate my sister gave me.  Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

      I have never done much St. Patrick’s Day decorating before.  I decided to decorate our new family room fireplace mantel for St,Patrick’s day (see here for more about our uncovered fireplace).  I am thinking that I will use this mantel for holiday decorating instead of the living room mantel, partly because after four years I finally like how the living room mantle is arranged, and partly because we spend all of our time in the family room. 

     This is what I came up with this year.  I painted the pop artish shamrocks.  And I gathered some green things from around the house to fill in the rest of the mantel.  The only thing I had to buy was the canvas and the green paint.  I spent around $16.00.  I wish I could say that the painting only took an hour but no, I fussed with it and fussed with it for about a week.  I’m still not completely happy with it but I am tired of working on it.  Does anyone else ever call a project finished because you are sick of working on it?    Hope everyone is having a spectacular spring.