Silhouettes

I hope all of you Mothers out there had a wonderful Mother's Day! The mothers in our lives have been especially kind and generous to us, so we wanted to thank them especially. We are in major budget mode at home right now, so I thought I'd make gifts this year. The first one we did was for Kathy - "Oma". I've seen some really cute silhouettes of children and I've been wanting to make one for my own wall, but its just one more thing on my to do wish list so I just hadn't gotten around to it yet. I thought they seemed just Kathy's style, so I made one of each of the three grandchildren. I hope I was right! Here's a quick how-to of how I did it:

Step 1: locate some profile pictures! With two of these little ones living in Germany this was not the easiest step. But here they are. Aren't they all adorable (especially the one on the right, hint hint)?

Step 2: choose your size/shape/surface. I found these little plaques at Michaels for about $1.50 each so they were perfect! They are about 5" x 7". I went with 3 different shapes because in the end I wanted these to all look very similar, but not look quite the same. This will be especially handy if she wants a full set when more grandchildren come along, because I won't have to worry about whether or not I can find the exact same thing I used originally.

Step 3: print your picture. I printed in black and white (to save on ink) and I also printed on card stock because it is easier to work with a heavier paper. I then cut out around the head and shoulders, being careful about all the little curves (and hair!).

Step 4: paint the silhouette. I used black, but another color could look good if you want to try something a bit different! This is where printing on heavy paper comes in handy - regular paper wouldn't hold up to the paint very well.

Step 5: finish the plaques. I painted them white and then used used Mod Podge and scrapbook paper to cover the main flat surface of the plaque just to add some interest (that part is optional). This was also part of me wanting to make them look similar but different. they are both all white, although in photos the one on the right really shows the pattern (in real life the pattern is not all that obvious)! 

Step 6: finish off with paint. I added some black around the outer edge because I felt like it just needed something more.

Step 7: attach the silhouette. Using Mod Podge I adhered the silhouettes to the plaques. I then used a fine tip pen to add their names, then finished the whole thing off with a coat or two of Mod Podge. I used the matte finish, although you might not know it from the photos! They look very shiny in the pictures. I used ribbon to hang one, and twine on the back of the other two.

 

What do you think?

I think they came out pretty good! I'm looking forward to making one of Matthew, and maybe our little Violet Face (our Boston) for our dining room. Thoughts? Comments? I hope you like them Kathy! I'd love a picture of wherever you hang them!