Hello again! I am back to talk about the FAMILY RULES project. If you walk into our house, you cannot miss a pair of old Indonesian doors. They were used in a store front in their native home and made their way to LA and then to a sweet little, funky store in Bend, Oregon. I paid way too much money for them when that store closed down and punished my hubby and his subcontractors by moving them all around the house before settling on a spot. They are fabulous and difficult all at once. I am always struggling with what to put in the space behind the open doors. At Christmas, it is advent calendar…Tree of Thanks for Fall…and so on. However, from March until November, I have nothing to put there. I had originally envisioned old blue prints of our house. We lived in an 800 sq foot house on the same lot before building. No luck there…the stuff my husband found at the city was b o r i n g .
So, I brought an old canvas down from the attic…I bought it years ago. It is huge (40″x30″) and is a beautiful gallery wrap. I first thought I would put a family tree on it…maybe something like that anthro print again. But somehow this family rules kept calling me.
Here is how I did it…
1. Paint the canvas (you see the paint on the border and on the sides)
2. Spend a whole lot of time at the paper store picking out paper you cannot resist
3. Write your rules. Be careful of what you put. My kids often refer to the canvas. My favorite is…”Daddy, hug mommy”. A rule is a rule, ya know? I should have put HUSBAND- MASSAGE YOUR WIFE’S BACK DAILY
4. Now, cut that beautiful paper into strips. I varied the widths, used “torn” scissors, scalloped scissors, and so on. Use glue, mod podge, or spray adhesive to lay it out on the canvas.
5. I then went on to the computer and typed all the rules in different fonts. I am a font junky thanks to lindsey’s sister, Jennifer, showing us how to download free fonts. Do it…get hooked! It is easy and wonderful!
6. I printed them and “eyed” or copied them onto my papers with black and white paint pens.
7. Cover that baby in mod podge and make your man hang it!
2. Spend a whole lot of time at the paper store picking out paper you cannot resist
3. Write your rules. Be careful of what you put. My kids often refer to the canvas. My favorite is…”Daddy, hug mommy”. A rule is a rule, ya know? I should have put HUSBAND- MASSAGE YOUR WIFE’S BACK DAILY
4. Now, cut that beautiful paper into strips. I varied the widths, used “torn” scissors, scalloped scissors, and so on. Use glue, mod podge, or spray adhesive to lay it out on the canvas.
5. I then went on to the computer and typed all the rules in different fonts. I am a font junky thanks to lindsey’s sister, Jennifer, showing us how to download free fonts. Do it…get hooked! It is easy and wonderful!
6. I printed them and “eyed” or copied them onto my papers with black and white paint pens.
7. Cover that baby in mod podge and make your man hang it!
post any questions you have! i would love to hear that your family rules too! :)
So…for next time: You tell me! A tour of my basement…where I craft and never clean up OR a tour of my kitchen and my big, bright turquoise island! Leave a comment and let me know!
tata…
***edited to add: if you want a more detailed description on how to do this, click here!***
nicole
That is such a great project … and one I think I could actually DO!! I may have to try it when we get back to the states. As for your next post, please do your kitchen!!! I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE seeing people’s kitchens! Must be the whole “kitchen is the heart of the home” thing. :o)
kitchen first. need to see the island i’ve heard about. and those indonesian doors are way cool.
I am in love with the family rules!!! =) I am going to have to copy your idea!! The Indonesian doors are gorgeous! I would love to see your kitchen! I love peeking into people’s kitchens!!! =)
that is fantastic. i’m keeping a list of projects for my maternity leave (pre babies) and that has made the list! super cute!
Okay, that is WAAAAAAAAY too cute! I will definitely be copycatting this idea. Thanks for the inspiration (as always)!
i’ve got my canvas and now just need to DO IT! i love all the fun and sweet rules you came up with.
and i want you to show your kitchen next, too. with TONS of pictures, because its beautiful and has so many fun details. i can’t wait for everyone to see!
yep, my vote is also for the kitchen. and I love this project idea and am adding it to my very long, growing list of projects. :)
Ooh, ooh, pick me! I want to hear about the messy basement. THAT I can relate to.
Can we see a photo of the canvas on the wall?
It’s beautiful.
This is FABULOUS! Thanks for the idea/instructions! :) Hmmm…my vote is for the messy craft area. I love being reminded that I’m not the only one that thinks it’s more fun to make a mess than clean it up!
I absolutely love this and have added it to my list of “must do immediately!” I love your rules. I would love to see how you accessorize your home – I’m terrible at that!
so do the family rules hang between the doors? i never really caught that…
what a great project. i love it.
please show us your kitchen…i am dying for some turquoise.
island. I’ll do the craft. Sorry so short…..babies are waking up!
Such a great idea! I’ve been plotting a family rules project already!
I vote for kitchen island, but only if you promise to show the basement the next week. ;)
Oh, tour both! They BOTH sound fabulous!!!- Love the “rules”- definately gonna try this sweet project- thanks for sharing!
Blessings!
LOVE that! and i even think i have a canvas lying around.
and i vote for the kitchen. wanna see that island!
Love it! I say the tour of the craft room…
Love, love, love it! So fun! My vote is for all. They all sound so cool.
One question, when you say ‘eyed’ do you mean that you just free hand wrote them looking at the font for a guide or some how traced them? Thanks for sharing!
when i say “eyed” it, that is exactly what i did…freehand copied it on to the paper.
for those who want to see it actually hanging between the old doors, look at my photo last friday…it is the last photo there.
what a great project! can we see a picture that is a little more close up?
oh, and for your question, i say BOTH!
LOVE IT!! Can we see it a little closer up or at least post what the rules were? Not that we’re copying or anything… :)
here are our rules…
FAMILY RULES
ALWAYS TELL THE TRUTH
HAVE FUN, BE KIND, ASK FIRST, NO FUSSING, NO WHINING
BE CREATIVE AT ALL TIMES
ENCOURAGE YOUR SIBLINGS…SHARE IN THEIR JOY
HUSBAND-HUG YOUR WIFE DAILY & WIFE- ALWAYS BE ON HIS SIDE
OBEY YOUR PARENTS
NEVER LEAVE ANGRY
SING SILLY, DANCE CRAZY, HUG OFTEN, SNUGGLE OFTEN, SAY I LOVE YOU
KEEP YOUR PROMISES
USE YOUR MANNERS- YES, PLEASE…NO, THANK YOU
ALWAYS GIVE TO OTHERS FIRST
TOO MUCH TV IS BAD…TOO MUCH READING IS GOOD
USE NICE WORDS…IGNORE DIRTY WORDS
BLESS YOUR FOOD, BE GRATEFUL, EAT TOGETHER, CLEAN UP AFTER YOURSELF
SHARE EVERYTHING EXCEPT BAD IDEAS
SAY YOUR PRAYERS…THANK GOD FOR THIS FAMILY
I LOOVEEE this and want to do one for my family now, however I have a quick question… is there a reason you didn’t just run the pretty papers through the printer to get the neat fonts before you tore them and glued them on? Thanks! =) ~Jennifer
I love this idea. I am in the process of adopting 2 children, instantly taking me from 1 to 3 (between 5 and 12 years old). I am going to NEED some rules!
Can you please teach me how to download free fonts?
I'm just curious how to download cute fonts like that??
Well, I guess you would have to have a fairly big printer to run an 12 x 12 through it. Hmmm, we are going to get a group together to do this. Did you just eye ball your lettering on this project? Initially we thought of using a bunch of cricuts, but I don't know if that would take too long.
nicole actually cut her paper in strips that you can then run through the printer. and each row is made with 2 pieces of paper side by side since she didn't have paper long enough to span the width. i think a cricut would look nice, but you'd most likely have fewer font options, and it would take a really long time. and yes, she did eyeball most of he words that she ended up hand writing.
New to your blog from JUST A GIRL!
Love your rules, here is a link to mine that I did this summer!
http://labbabslife.blogspot.com/2009/07/rules-for-my-home.html
Blessings,
Leigh Ann
Over here from JAG. Umm, wow, wow, wow!! I am doing this!! Questions…yes. lol ;)
1) If it is so big how do you get paper with strips that long??
2) what is "eying" the words to copy? Did you write that free hand??!! Or did you somehow trace it?
Thank you and I am in love. Your blog is incredible too and I'm a new follower. :)
Oops, just noticed this was a guest post. I hope she is able to answer my Qs still. :)
Regarding your blog though…that playroom redo is a dream… I would love to have that. I home school my oldest and just designed a fun home school area for him, I posted about it a few days ago.
You have many excellent photos and great ideas! a
How adorable! This is a great idea! Another idea for the lettering would be to use leftover scrapbook letters, stickers, etc. in the stash!! I think I would add some flowers, bows, and maybe some bling. Thanks for the idea! I can't wait to get started!!
Okay, I NEVER and I mean NEVER comment on blogs, but I somehow stumbled across just a picture of this project on another blog with no link (what the heck, right?? I KNOW) and I FELL IN LOVE!! I saved in on my computer but could never read all the rules and I am SOOOOO HAPPY that I finally found you AND the instructions!! What a GREAT IDEA!! Thank you!
What a great idea and a beautiful reminder of the family rules. I'm so glad I found this idea so I can now try and creatively come up with something for my own home.
This is so cool!! I am actually going to do a digital version of it and then get it printed onto a canvas, which will take pride of place in our kitchen :)
Hi there!
Thank you for sharing this wonderful idea… and posting the directions. I made my own which was hung tonight. I love it… even with my minor crooked rule (luckily only one is really crooked). :)
Heres my blog in case you want to check it out! Thanks again!
travandmelissa.blogspot.com
Thank you so much for this great project! I loved making my own! Here it is~
http://theprettyneatcompany.blogspot.com/2009/11/family-values-canvas.html