January 26, 2012

✥ Matthew Heller Art Knock Off ✥


I saw the pic below ages ago, probably last Spring right when I began blogging. I adore the silvery letters, the classic look of the typography. 
From the moment I saw it I knew it was meant to sit over my couch, like from before I had even bought our new sectional. I also knew I just had to put "our song" on it, "Bubble Toes" by Jack Johnson. That was before I knew the name of the art- it's "Homage to Music" check it out m-kay, Matthew Heller and I are on the same wavelength for this one. Oh- and in case you were wondering, Molly Sim's has Heaven by Bryan Adams.
And here's a pic of the same piece from the artist's {Matthew Heller} website.
I like the pic from Molly Sim's home a lot more- the words look much softer and purpley- probably from photo editing or maybe the lighting in the room- but whatever the case I dig it.

This project was a real pain the buttocks. Like serious. I don't think I would ever do it again, well, maybe I would BUT NOT the way I did the first time.
Here's how it went down.
1] I scored a super large "piece of art" many moons ago at the close of a yard sale. Yes, sometimes being the last stragglers into a yard sale can score ya a massive piece of original Santa Fe art {and the before pic seems to be MIA, since I took it a million years ago last summer!}

2] Have it sit in your spare bedroom/office/"trash pit for projects" for months while you decide what color the frame will be. Prime the frame and the whole painting to cover the Santa Fe-ness. Wait an inordinate amount of time, decide on oil-rubbed bronze and finally spray paint the sucker during a wind storm off your third floor balcony.
{3rd floor balcony and wind storm optional, in fact- avoid them if at all possible.}
3] Because I was repurposing this canvas I had to level out some of the crazy shrubs painted at the bottom. The artist had built up the paint and it stuck up off the frame at least 2mm. First, I sanded down the most prominent areas.
Then, I mixed paint and Blended Fibers Texture Gel to create a thicker paint, looking more like putty, to level out the texture a bit. I painted on layers of this mixture until I was left with a texture I thought would work for my new piece.
Then I used plain old white paint for the entire background.

4] Format the text to your song on Microsoft Word, I used Publisher. I measured my frame, then set up a text box in the same length width ratio. For example, if you frame is 24 in. by 36 in. then you would want the text box to be in a 2:3 ratio, so you could make the box 2" by 3" or more realistically 6" by 9".

5] Copy the text you've picked into your box and change the "Alignment and Spacing" so the text fills the line.

6] Print'er up- You all know I use Staples to print cuz they're cheap yo! This print cost me $3.40.
 
7] I use spray adhesive to attach the print up to contact paper- you know the shelf liner that comes on a roll. I bought the cheapest kind- it was like 3-4 bucks. If you spray the back of your paper, then spray the front of the plastic, then wait for a minute or two, they will be stuck together permanently!

8] Now you need to make a stencil- this is the part that super sucked. I used my Exacto knife and several refills blades to cut the letters out.
To be honest, I thought about buying a Cricket or Silhouette for this project. I thought if there were ever a project to make the buy worth it, this would've been it. But then my crazy type A personality kicked in and I was all, hey if I cut the letters out I wont' have to worry about spacing of the letters or letters not being perfectly straight. And then I thought- I can do this, who needs a fancy schmancy machine? Answer. I do, or I did.


9] The good news is- once the letters were cut out I was able peel off the backing to the shelf liner and attach my stencil to the canvas. Use a credit card or something like it to rub all over the stencil, making sure it adheres well. I had good adhesion everywhere except where there was still lot of texture.


10] I mixed versions of silver paint and painted the letters the darkest at the bottom and lightest at the top. I added a few drops of purple paint, cause remember, I was looking for a result more like Molly Sim's room.
Here's the stencil coming off-
Then the after shot-

I decided I'm not really good with random. If I copied my inspiration piece and used darker paint randomly in places my mind would constantly be looking for a pattern in the dark and light paint. So  a ombre color pallet makes a lot more sense for me.

So there you have it.
If I was to do it again, I would def use vinyl lettering cut by a machine or if not that, then plain old stencils. This project was craaazy long- but, it's good to know you can make your own stencils using contact paper, right?- Even stencils that are as complicated as this one.

Molly Sims' art piece, Heaven, measured 48” by 80”. My homemade art is 40" by 50". I would've liked it to be a little wider- but no worries, I  think it fills the space.





So that's how you do it- if you're crazy type-A and decide you want your very own copy of a super duper famous and expensive art piece.
What have you made lately?

63 comments:

  1. Wow, that's a ton of work but VERY cool. Love it :)

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  2. WOW, WOW, WOW. I think it looks amazing. It really looks like it took a lot of work. It paid off, it looks great. Good job!

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  3. AMAZING! I love the way it fits in your space.... perfection! Great Job :)

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  4. This is absolutely lovely. I really like it. Thanks for sharing.
    Greetings from Germany
    Catrin

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  5. Wow--this looks great! As a fellow no-fancy-machine-DIYer, I'm impressed with how you even tried tackling such a large stencil by hand. And thanks for the tips, too, on how to level out a repurposed canvas.

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  6. Love this idea, so stylish, and it really has that wow-effect!

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  7. that looks great, and man, a lot of work. but it's a really big (and meaningful) impact piece.

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  8. Wow, you really put a lot of effort into that! It is an amazing finished piece though, one to keep for a long time!

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  9. That's awesome!
    I totally pinned this as a project I'd love to do in the future!

    Biz

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  10. That is crazy ridiculous awesome. I cannot believe the time it must've taken you to cut out all those letters! It totally paid off - the art is AMAZING!

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  11. That's awesome - sooo much work - good for you for finishing it to the end...it looks great!

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  12. This is amazing! I've been planning a project like this, but haven't started yet. This makes me want to get going!

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  13. Love it!!! I CAN NOT believe you cut out all those letters...Kudos to you!

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  14. Wow! So much work, but so worth it... looks awesome!

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  15. Are you KIDDING ME!? I can't believe you cut every letter out...girl, I'd have given up after one word! But wow, it looks so gorgeous! Totally worth the effort, in my opinion {of course, it wasn't MY effort...lol}. So glad you shared at shine on fridays!

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  16. Wow- I love this! Looks like a lot of work- but so worth it! It's gorgeous~ thanks for sharing at Feathered Nest Friday!

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  17. Holy cow that is a LOT of work! Do you know if they make a giant industrial size Silhouette type machine? I'd love to do something like this, but it really wouldn't even fit in one of those regular Silhouettes or Cricuts. I guess you'd have to break it up into smaller sizes? So complicated. ANYway...it turned out great. Nice work! ;)

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  18. I really like how it turned out! I think your struggle with this was definitely worth it, at least from my point of view!

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  19. A true labor of love (off your third story balcony no less)

    WOW- Stunning Becca!

    Thanks for the smiles,
    Visiting from Homemaker On A Dime linky party,
    ~Suzanne at WhyCuzICan in NW Illinois

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  20. My goodness Becca - what an amount of work! But well worth it - amazing work of art - I love the idea, but don't think I'd have the patience for it!


    Thanks for linking to a Round Tuit!
    Hope you have a fabulous week!
    Jill @ Creating my way to Success
    http://www.jembellish.blogspot.com/

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  21. I'm tired just reading the process, much less actually DOING it. You're patience paid off, it's original and amazing!

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  22. Amazing! You are always sooooo creative! Thank you for sharing your lovely post at Potpourri Friday!

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  23. Wow - that took an AMAZING amount of time and energy. I applaud you . . . and I am now the proud owner of a Silhouette, so I'll be using that if I try this out ;)

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  24. That is so impressive! I don't know that I could have sat still long enough to cut all those letters by hand or held my hand steady enough! Your piece turned out so beautifully. Now I'm wishing I had done something like that with my wedding lyrics for my living room.

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  25. This is absolutely gorgeous! What a wonderfully creative way to make a space personal. Found you on Today's Creative Blog Link Party

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  26. This turned out so cute! I love that it is sooo big! Thanks for linking up with "Strut Your Stuff Saturday." We loved having you and hope you'll be back next Saturday to share more terrific ideas! -The Sisters

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  27. This turned out great!!! I've been wanting to do something with some lyrics and hadn't quite come up with it....this is it!! Thank you!! ~Zuni

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  28. LOL!! I'm sitting here reading this thinking, "Yes, we should be friends!" Maybe we could encourage each other to buy a silhouette!? Do you know how many letters I've cut out this year?! Enough to give me carpel tunnel! ok that's a side note. I was just seeing those pictures of you cutting out all those letters thinking, yup, that's me!

    I LOVE this art work! It's simple and big and beautiful and goes great in your room! TOTALLY worth the work!!! (of course I wasn't the one doing the cutting)

    Thanks for linking up @ Creatively Living!
    --Katie

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  29. Wow...your piece looks amazing! Your hard work really paid off. (By the way, I loved your line "trash pit for projects." I totally have one of those!!)

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  30. Hey, Becca, I wanted to let you know that your project was one of the top 8 in last week's Shine on Fridays. You're going to be featured on Happy Go Lucky tomorrow!

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  31. Wow! Great job Becca! I love it!

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  32. This is fabulous!! I'm featuring it tomorrow. Thanks for sharing and inspiring us!

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  33. That is an amazing project! You did a great job with this! I love that song, too.

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  34. That looks wonderful, even if it was a pain in the buttocks I would say it was worth it in the end. You have a great piece of art that is so personal. I love it, nice job.

    ~Bliss~

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  35. I can't believe you cut that out by hand. It looks terrific, no doubt about it...but there's some serious head-shaking going on over here ;-)

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  36. Wow, that was a ton of work! I am not sure I would have had the patience nor the wind storm (hee hee) to do this.
    Great job.
    ~Naila Moon

    http://yaknowstuff.blogspot.com/2012/02/fridaywhee.html

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  37. Becca - just a head's up! I'm featuring this in this week's DIY Project Parade highlights! ;)

    Have a great weekend!

    Roeshel

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  38. Becca it turned out great, I can't believe we both did giant lyric wall art in the same week! And both were featured together at Carolyn's and then I saw yours over at DIY (along with my kitchen). And I still can't believe you cut out every letter with an exacto, that is serious time commitment. The end result was worth it, way better than the inspiration.

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  39. Brilliant! This project would take me an eternity to complete, well done. It looks great :)

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  40. You are one patient gal (I would have been driven to drink)!! The end result is so worth it!! It definitely fits the space perfectly. Thanks for joining our Impossibilities Challenge!
    Kelly

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  41. Impressive! Nice Job! Thanks for sharing.

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  42. You obviously have a TON of patience! Wow! I can't imagine cutting out all those letters.... but so worth the time it took, because your artwork came out great :-)

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  43. Holy Cow! What an amazing amount of work, and what a rewarding result! It is just awesome, like everything you do!!

    Thanks so much for linking up to the challenge!
    Karah

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  44. I'm featuring this tonight at Creatively Living!

    --Katie

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  45. Featuring this on my FB page and Pinterest!
    https://www.facebook.com/Eclecticallyvintage?ref=tn_tnmn
    Kelly

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  46. Pain in the booty or not, it turned out absolutely fantastic!!

    Thanks so much for linking up to the Feature Friday FREE-FOR-ALL!

    ~Abbie

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  47. It looks awesome... your hard work was not in vain. I can't believe you cut those letters out by hand. I think I would have pulled my hair out! It paid off though and looks fantastic. Thanks for sharing!

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  48. I LOVE this! This is a perfect gift for my husband and his "man cave" aka the garage. LOL! I just need to figure out his favorite song and lyrics. You did a fantastic job! I'm about to look around your blog some more to see what other fabulous ideas you have. Thank you for the inspiration!

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  49. I stumbled upon your blog through the Knock off Decor link, and my mouth dropped open. Seriously? I have been obsessed with this Matthew Heller collection ever since the Molly Sims photo was printed, to the point of where I called his studio to see if they would ever put out replica prints (the answer, sadly, no). I fell in love again when I saw your inspiration photo, and you have just done such a fantastic job with yours. The only sad part now is I could never do this project with the level of success that you have achieved. Something to totally be super proud of. Well done!!!

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  50. I am not sure I could keep my sloppy under control enough to do this one.

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  51. Hi! I pinned this on Pinterest, posted on fb, and featured at Creative DIYers Club. Please feel free to grab the feature button :)

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  52. I'd never have that kind of patience, but yours was definitely rewarded. It looks grand.

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  53. Bec, you are an amazingly talented woman. Love it! Can't wait to see your place again! Things are looking fantastic (designer studio!)...beautiful!!! xoxxoSue

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  54. Amazing!! This is such a great idea for a big space in our livingroom!! I hope you'll find some time to swing by our linky party this week!! xoxo Debbie at www.inspiredhoneybee.blogspot.com

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  55. I love that you aren't good at "random," because neither am I! I tried to explain to my husband how difficult this was but he looked at me like I was crazy.

    Great Project

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  56. That looks great! How long did it take you to make that? And I totally get what you mean about not being random; I prefer defined patterns.

    ~em at small girl, big world

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  57. Pain in the butt or not, it turned out really well! This totally looks like something you'd buy from Home Goods for a pretty penny, but you pulled it off! Great job, and thanks for linking up with the Winter Pinterest Challenge!

    Erin @ The Great Indoors

    P.S. I couldn't help but think of Forrest Gump after I read your line about the project being a pain in the buttocks. "I got shot in the buttocks." :-)

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  58. Very cool! You've got lot's of patience. Looks great!!

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  59. Really nice! Thank you for joining me at Home Sweet Home!
    Sherry

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  60. wow.
    i am a little speechless after seeing this one, becca.
    make more?
    sell them?
    i think you'd have a ton of buyers!

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  61. Okay... now I seriously think you are NUTS woman! You cut that entire thing!!! I can't believe it. What if it hadn't turned out how you expected?
    Wow- but it just looks so good. So, well done you! Not so nuts after all... lol.

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  62. Would you be able to tell me what font you used?
    This is amazing!
    Thanks

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