How To Mod Podge Photo Plaques

Hi there!

Yes,  I know it's been awhile...

My baby girl has been home for spring break! :)

But I have been working on these...

Let's look at my options, hmmm.... sitting at the computer for a couple of hours OR have fun shopping with my baby girl....

Shopping!!! :D

So, now it's the crack of dawn and everyone else is asleep. 
This is my best time to write.  I'm a morning person anyway!

If you remember, I said in my last post that this one was CHEAP! 

I got these 2 plaques at Hobby Lobby.  They were $2.49 a piece. 

Perfect! To me that's cheap!

First... Let's get a bit distressed, these guys were looking too perfect.

So, I just hit them up with a hammer and another piece of wood.
I wanted a bit of an aged look, so I painted the edges black 
with some acrylic paint I had.

Definitely coming along... :)
Next on the list, was to use my FAVORITE spray paint in the world!!!

This is an older picture, I really don't care what primer I use... 
But the Rust-Oleum Ultra Cover 2X is the BEST! 
I can only find it at Home Depot.
I never have to use more than 2 coats. 
Plus, Heirloom White is the perfect white! L-O-V-E!
Ok, Lori, get back in the game!
Here's a little rabbit trail... You all talk to yourself, right?  I mean, I do it all the time.  I figured it's normal. Yes, I also answer myself too. Well, at least I only do it in the privacy of my own home.  It would be a little weird, if I started this up, in say... Walmart.
Haha! It might actually be acceptable there....hahaha. Ok. I'm done.  :)

Look how great these came out!!
I already sanded the edges and I love how the black came through.  
It did just what I wanted. Yay!

Now to work on the pictures.

I took their baby pictures and scanned them in to my computer and printed them on some paper I had laying around the house.  It was thicker than copy paper.  More like resume' paper.

Omg! Isn't he the cutest little bundle? This is my son at 3 months, and the picture of my daughter is also at 3 months, they are too adorable!  Where did the time go??? As you can see, this gallery wall is taking me down memory lane. I'm loving it...
Next, I traced the shape of the plaque onto the copy.

Easy enough.
Then I just cut it out.

As you can see, I'm about ready to glue (Mod Podge).

I wasn't really happy about the proportions on the plaques.  They seemed too big. (Those are the ones scattered in the background) So, I resized the picture and printed out new ones.  But now they weren't big enough for the plaque and I was left with some areas that were cut off.

So, I just cut some extra and added it in.

Perfect? No, but neither is our family.  We all have a few flaws here and there.
So, here we go!  I just went for it. Didn't put a lot of thought into how I was going to glue them down. I slapped on a bunch of glue, and layed the picture down.  It wouldn't move to adjust and it had all kinds of bubbles. 
It looked awful!

So, I ripped it off before it dried. 
Baby girl's came out pretty good! I took more time. I put a bit of glue on the wood and smoothed it out, then lifted the picture and added a little more, and so on til finished.  It worked SO MUCH better.
The second one came out even better! See!
After I glued them down, I painted Mod Podge all over the top.  
It was weird, I guess because it was paper, the color started to bleed a bit. 
I did 2 coats. Baby girl's bled a bit more.  I started to do it quicker on baby boy's. After it was all dry, I sanded the edges to complete the look. You can see the difference it makes.

There are done! Except for hanging them.  I thought they would look precious to hang them with some ivory ribbon.

Omg! Precious!! I still can't believe that these beautiful babies are now 22 and almost 20!  Life is flying by!  I haven't hung any pictures, yet.  I'm still working on more frames for the "gallery wall". I can't wait for this wall to be complete.
I'm loving the process though! 
Oh, and for those that have been waiting for the nail update... 
That's coming next!
Blessings,
Lori