How To Make an Andy Warhol Pop Art Using Baby Pictures
Need a cheap, unique, personalized gift for Father's Day? Here is a step-by-step tutorial on how to make an extra-special gift with your child!
I was flipping through my latest issue of
Parenting Magazine when I came across some fun and easy Father's Day gift ideas. I love making homemade gifts, the thought and "
special touch" you can put into them makes it much more sentimental... not to mention, I'm a very crafty girl and love working on fun DIY projects!
I had a hard time choosing just one idea from the article, they were all so cute... so I picked 3 and gave each one a personalized twist to add more sentiment. My favorite project, the
Andy Warhol Pop Art, took a little more time and effort than the others, but I love how well it turned out and would like to share how I did it.
You can find tutorials for the other two DIY gifts on my blog later this week.
For this particular project, I already had a few of the materials at home, and a quick trip to
Michael's Arts & Crafts was all I needed to get everything I needed to begin.
Here's what you will need to have:
- Canvas (any size will do, I used an 8x11" canvas with a stapled back)
- 4 different colors of Non-Toxic Washable Finger Paint (I found a 4-pack at Michael's for $4.99)
- 4 printed photographs
- White paint (for a primer)
- Paintbrush/spongebrush
- Glue (I just used a stick of Elmer's glue)
- Tape
- Scissors
- Ruler or measuring tape
I prepared my pictures first since that is the most complicated task. I have a photo printer at home, but you can take an SD card to CVS and print pics for just a few bucks!
I used 4 distinct photos to add a little variety (plus it's too hard to chose just one photo of that precious baby!). Try to chose photos with their entire body in the picture, since the background will be removed (it may look funny with an arm or foot cut off). You can add a filter to your pictures (like Instagram) to give it a colorful "pop!"... I also ran a sepia/black&white filter to fade them out a bit.
Here are the steps to create your masterpiece!
1. Using scissors, carefully cut around your child's silhouette and remove as much background as possible. Do this to all 4 photos and set the cutouts aside.
2. Measure the length of the canvas and mark the exact middle with a pencil. Measure the width and mark the middle as well. Using your pencil markings as guidance, lightly draw a 'cross' through middle to form 4 equal sections, like this:
3. Place your tape across the penciled cross, this will be used to protect the canvas from any 'runaway paint'.
4. If your child has a hard time coloring in the lines (which isn't a bad thing!), tape paper over the sections you're not working on to protect the canvas from 'accident' paint and spills.
Tip: Before you begin painting - plan ahead! Play around with the pictures & colors and chose which section each color & picture will go in... I made a quick sketch on a piece of paper to remember my layout.
And now the fun part!!!
5. Setup an area for you child to get wild & messy!! I put a small table out on our balcony put a towel underneath. Be sure to have plenty of paper towels & baby wipes (a mother's best friend) on hand!
6. It's painting time! Choose one color of the non-toxic finger paint and let your baby go to town! There is no right or wrong, the more personal and 'child-like', the better:)
Just a thought: Give them a blank piece of paper to 'practice' on beforehand to help them get the gist. This was my 1-year-old's first time finger painting, so I let her practice a little!
7. Once your little artist has finished painting the first section, put the canvas in a safe and 'airy' place to dry. It doesn't take long for fingerpaint to dry, a quick 15-20 minutes and it was completely dry.
8. Repeat steps 4-7 until every section is painted a different color. Now marvel in your child's beautiful creation!
Remember, it's perfectly fine if the paints mix or go outside the lines... it only adds character.
9. Once the entire canvas is painted and completely dry, peel off the tape and remove any dried paint flakes left behind. Using a paintbrush or sponge brush, apply white paint over the cross where your tape lines are. You may need to add a second coat of white paint, especially if you're painting over gooey finger paint.
10. Apply glue to the back of your photo cutouts, and press the cutout onto its painted section. I placed a heavy book on top of each picture to add pressure until they dried.
Tip: If your picture is missing a leg or hand, try placing it along a border to give the illusion of your child 'peeking' around.
Voila!
Masterpiece complete.
Makes a fantastic, memorable gift... for Daddy's, grandparents, or even as just some fun deco pop art for the kids room!
It adds a bright, colorful touch to my daughter's room, don't you think?!
Happy Father's Day, to all the wonderful Daddy's out there!
Happy crafting:)
