Photo Project from It’s a Tradition for Funner in the Summer

Hi 30 Days readers! My name is Tauni and I blog (using this term somewhat loosely) at It’s a Tradition. Let’s be honest, another project has taken my time lately and it’s been a little slow over there for the last three months or so… Needless to say, I am feeling pretty lucky that Mique was willing to include me among the amazing group of guests she has rounded up this summer! Today I am sharing a great little home decor project that makes for a great Father’s Day gift, but would really work for any day of the year.

Wouldn’t you know that I would have to find a man that absolutely adores the very school that I can’t stand?

For this project, I featured his favorite sports team (something of a testament to how much I love him…), but I think it would be great filled with photos from a vacation, family pictures, etc.

Let’s get started. The supply list for this project is relatively short and you may even have all of the supplies right in your home!

Supplies needed:

• 1×6 board
• Wood tiles (I cut mine out of a larger board, but you can pick these up at the craft store)
• Sandpaper
• Mod Podge
• Wood glue
• Stain (I highly recommend Minwax)
• Polyurethane (Minwax again)
• Paint brush for stain
• Images (I printed my images on a regular computer on cardstock paper)

I had everything for this project in the house so it was free, but I am going to provide you some reference points you can use if you want to purchase.

The board I used was a plain pine 1×6 that I cut in half with the chop saw – it’s about 48″ long. This is going up on a rather long wall, so I needed the length.A piece of wood like this can be purchased for about $6.

I used the same saw to cut a piece of trim into a dozen 2.5×3 rectangles. This trim (or something similar) could be picked up for about $3.

Next I sanded down all of the wood items so that the edges were slightly rounded and smooth – you’ll be able to see those rounded corners in the next shot:

Once the edges were smooth, I used my foam brush to apply to coats of stain to the board. The stain dries fairly quickly and I was able to do this all in one night. It looks fancied up, right? You can pick up a small can of stain for right around $5.

Next, I applied stain to the outer edges of the trim pieces. Easy peasy.

After the stain dried, I applied a coat of polyurethane. Once it is dry, buff out the wood with a piece of superfine sandpaper. I don’t know that this sealing step is necessary, but I liked that it gave the wood a nice finished look. Polyurethane is also about $5.

The kids and I picked out a couple of our favorite photos, sized them, printed them on cardstock and then used Mod Podge to affix them to the small boards.

Once everything was dry, I used a little wood glue to affix the photos to the board.

Once it was done, I decided it needed a little something more and I used craft paint to spiffy it up and add a heading. I am sure that this would look great done in vinyl or with more precision on the Silhouette.

I installed a couple of saw hooks on the back for hanging, but you could use just about anything you wanted…

All finished!
Thanks Mique for letting me hang around today!

Thanks Tauni for sharing this fun idea-
there are endless possibilities with this project.
I can’t wait to make a big BYU one! :)

• Bio
• Twitter
• Facebook
• Latest Posts

Mique

Hi- I'm Mique (as in Mickey). I started 30days as an idea file a few years ago. After three years and hundreds of ideas, I now realize that I'll never check them all off my list. When I'm not creating, I love spending time with family and friends and long drives, especially if they end at the beach.

@30daysblog

Follow @30daysblog

Latest posts by Mique (see all)

• This Week’s Linky Party - May 17, 2013
• CrossFit: the Basics from a Newbie - May 15, 2013
• Random Acts of Kindness Summer List - May 14, 2013