DIY "Ombre" Canvas Artwork - ScotchBlue Painting Party

Let's face it, Mondays usually suck. But I've actually been looking forward to this Monday, because I'm part of today’s ScotchBlue Painting Party! Here’s the low-down: A group of DIY bloggers (including moi) all completed projects with the help of ScotchBlue Painter’s Tape with Edge-Lock Paint Line Protector. Now we’re sharing our projects with you to give you ideas and inspiration. Before I go any further, please do make sure to check out all the other fantastic ladies participating in this party... after you're done here, of course! ;)

1. Wendy @ The Shabby Nest

2. Anna @ Take the Side Street
3. Amanda @ Little House on the Corner *You are here!*
4. Rachael @ Lovely Crafty Home *Continue to this blog next!*
5. Stacey @ A Sort of Fairytale

And as a shameless bribe additional incentive for sticking it out through my lengthy post, there’s a GIVEAWAY at the end for you! Three lucky ducks will win their own roll of ScotchBlue Painter’s Tape with Edge-Lock Paint Line Protector. Details to follow, but in the meantime, let’s get this party started!

I contemplated for weeks (yes, really) on what project I should use my tape for. I thought about painting an accent wall in our living room, but couldn’t decide exactly what color(s), so I’ll save that for another time.

Then I started thinking about other bare walls in our house, like the one in the guest bedroom. Don’t ask me why I'm putting so much effort into this room, since no one sees it that often, but it looks so much better after last year’s makeover that I might as well add the finishing touch with some artwork, right?

So, it was time for more decisions (in case you didn't already know, decision-making is not my strong suit). I’ll spare you all my thought processes that led up to my final idea. I’ve seen a lot of “ombre” projects around the web and really like the effect. Here are a couple different applications (i.e. pretty pictures!):

Exhibit A

Pink Ombre Swirl Cake

Exhibit B

Striped Bathroom via Better Homes and Gardens

Exhibit C

Ombre Lampshade

It was a great opportunity to use my painter’s tape for some stripes (not exactly an original idea, but I’ve never tried it myself). I picked up a 22x28” artist’s canvas at Jo-Ann’s for $12 (on sale). I was about ready to go buy some blue-ish paint, and then remembered that I had a sample of dark teal “oops” paint that I had found for 50 cents at Home Depot awhile back. At the time, I had no idea what to use it for, but now it would come in handy!

I had never painted on canvas before, so I was just hoping that wall paint would be okay to use on it. I decided to do 6 stripes on the canvas and made a small mark on each side at the appropriate width (about 3.6”). My measuring probably wasn’t perfect, but to the naked eye, it seemed pretty even. Then I used the marks as guides to tape off my first stripe, pressing down the edges onto the canvas and around the back of the frame. Time to paint!

Scotchblue painter's tape... The most important part of this ombre artwork.

I brushed on two coats of the teal color to get it nice and even. After it had dried most of the way, I carefully pulled up the tape. There were a few tiny spots that had leaked under onto the blank canvas, but I kind of expected that with this type of surface. It didn’t matter too much anyway, since I was painting another color right next to it.

After the first stripe had fully dried, I taped off my next stripe. For this color, I poured some of the teal into a paper bowl and added a little bit of white (which I also had a sample of). I continued this process with each stripe, but I was by no means precise with my increments of white. I just kind of mixed it until it looked about right, knowing that I wanted the final stripe at the top to be pretty light.

I was also getting really impatient waiting for each stripe to dry, so I eventually wised up and started using the blow dryer to speed up the process. Finally, my stripes were finished! I was pretty proud of myself with how it turned out.

 I'm debating whether I should add some other element to my canvas -- whether painted on or otherwise (any suggestions?). But I don't want to screw up the stripes and not be able to repair the colors, since they were just mixed willy-nilly. In the meantime, I'm pleased with it as is.  

I still needed to hang this baby on the nekkid wall, so I got some Sharks' Tooth Hangers at Hobby Lobby for $1.29 and hammered one of them into top center of the frame. All in all, my artwork cost me under 15 bucks. Whaddaya think?

* GIVEAWAY ALERT*  (This giveaway is now closed to new entries.)
This was a pretty fun project that I would probably do again sometime, in some form or another. Now, aren’t you all inspired to go use some painter’s tape on your own project?? You’re in luck, because three lucky readers will win a roll of ScotchBlue Painter’s Tape with Edge-Lock Paint Line Protector! It's easy to enter:

1) Leave a comment on this post telling me how you'd use your painter's tape.

2) If you want an extra entry, get on your Twitter and tweet the following:
@scotchbluebrand I want #supersharppaintlines for my next project!
Then, leave a separate comment here letting me know you’ve tweeted it.

While you’re at it, make sure you follow @scotchbluebrand on Twitter, and “like” their Facebook page. You’ll get the scoop on the rest of the painting parties and get all sorts of other painter’s tape inspiration that ScotchBlue shares! You'll be amazed at all the creative people and projects out there.

This giveaway will close on Monday, September 19 at 1 p.m. (CST), after which I'll notify the winners (so be sure you leave an e-mail address in your comment!).

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Disclosure: ScotchBlue Brand reached out to me to participate in the ScotchBlue Painting Party to celebrate the launch of their new ScotchBlue Painter’s Tape with Edge-Lock Paint Line Protector. My post represents my honest experience with ScotchBlue Painter’s Tape. I am not being paid for my answers, but I did receive ScotchBlue Painter’s Tape to assist in completion.

Speaking of parties...I'm linking this post up to:
Making Monday Marvelous @ C.R.A.F.T.
Motivate Me Monday
Made By You Monday
Toot Your Horn Tuesday
Get Your Craft On! Tuesday
Show & Tell @ Blue Cricket Design
Whatever Goes Wednesday
Inspired By You Wednesdays
What I Made Wednesday
Link Party @ Cookie Nut Creations
Weekend Bloggy Reading @ Serenity Now

NOTE: Little House on the Corner is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.