Hello gorgeous humans and welcome back to me having a slow mental breakdown. Is this the DIY we were planning today? Absolutely not. Do I want to talk about the stress-inducing attempt at using air dry clay? Absolutely not. What are we making instead?
This bad boy! I love how this canvas turned out and it the easiest, most relaxing DIY I could have imagined.
Today’s craft has redeemed my faith in – well, not quite humanity, but maybe in Pinterest. I saw a handy tutorial pop up on my feed for something similar and instantly was like “I must try!”. Embroidery and painting? Big yes from me.
Plus it’s just so . . . straightforward. And after spending literal hours battling with air dry clay, I needed easy. I needed relaxed. I needed to paint some block colours on a canvas with minimal risk of shit going wrong.
So we enjoyed the process – but what about the finished product? Well, I love it. It’s very Pinterest-minimal-chic. I drew inspiration from this board here and it’s a lot of block colours, minimall colour palettes and geometric designs. (All things that are easy for even a beginner DIY-er to recreate!) I chose this colour palette because it fits my office perfectly. but the beauty of it this is that you can completely switch out the colours for something you prefer!
The addition of the embroidery looks far fancier than it is – and I’ll show you a few tips and tricks for how to do that with minimal effort too! All in all, this is a super cheap and super cute room decoration.
WHAT YOU NEED:
- A canvas
- Acrylic paints in your chosen colours
- Embroidery thread + sewing needles
And that’s it! Like I said, this is a super cheap DIY – if you’re an avid crafter, you might have all these things already.
(BTW: if you like easy wall art ideas, why not check out these DIYs too?)
STEP-BY-STEP:
1. Cover your canvas in a background colour. (I used a light pink-ish colour) Use a thin coat and leave to dry for 10-15 minutes.
2. Paint a variety of circles in different sizes and colours on the canvas. I recommend using a mix of warm tones because then it looks vaguely fruity. The good thing about acrylic paint is that it’s opaque, so you can paint on top of it without it mixing. I always paint full circles, then just paint another one on top and it works fine! Leave to dry for 20 minutes.
3. Once dry, choose some embroidery thread in complementing colours.
4. Using simple stitches, add detailing to your circles. I kept this incredibly simple – just straight running stitches. The benefit of this is that, if anything goes wrong, you can just pull the thread straight out and start again.
5. Finally, embroider some black stalks onto the top of your circles. And that’s it!
I’m honestly so pleased with how this turned out.
It was actually really weird – as I was painting I felt this sagging sense of almost relief. During isolation, I’ve been desperately searching for off-screen hobbies. You guys have seen my attempt at sewing, I’ve been playing with clay – pre puppy, my boyfriend and I even got into puzzling. Something about painting just felt . . . right. Relaxing. Fun, rather than mental breakdown inducing.
(Guys, I’m seriously not okay after my attempts with air dry clay. It’s been days – and even the thought of it drives me to anger.)
This craft has given me so many ideas for more canvases in this style. I have some more detailed ones in the works that I’m super excited to share, so let me know if you like this kind of DIY! Here’s another canvas I was working on if you’d like some more inspo for the day.
As always, because it wouldn’t be a Mia DIY post without one, here’s a shameless plug of my DIY Pinterest boards. If you love to craft, I share ridiculous amounts of craft projects & ideas on there, so hop on over!
Alright, my loves, that’s all I’ve got for you today! I hope you enjoyed this little craft project – would you recreate it yourself? Let me know your thoughts down below!
Peace,
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So beautiful and cute! I love how easy it is to make 😍
Thank you lovely! It’s SO easy and relaxing, highly recommend trying it!xx
Loved this ❤️ followed your Pinterest board btw!
Loved this! Followed your Pinterest board btw!
Aw thank you 🙂
I love the warm colors you used! Great DIY as always Mia, I hope you didn’t have to much of a mental breakdown.
https://kerielaine.com
Keri
Thank you, Keri! AHAHAH i most definitely did, i spent three hours trying to do something SUPER simple that failed spectacularly and after that just kind of gave up x
Stop it omg – those look so cute!!! I tackled macrame and loved it but embroidery has been another challenge I’ve been trying to make my way to – I’m just so keen to be able to embroider whatever I want onto a t-shirt??? x
UGH i want to learn to embroider so badly! & thank you! xx
Here are all the frickin creative mics in the world sweets, because hoy mic drop! Is there ANYTHING you can’t do?!?! I know I know you were talking about air dry clay (ummm what the heck is that?!) but I am sure you were kicking booty even with THAT! These are gorgeous! Thanks for sharing and letting us drool over your talents, because I am living vicariously through you when it comes to art! <3
Oh my god, Kate, you cannot believe how much I failed with air dry clay… it would’ve been funny had i not wanted to jump out a window LOL. But thank you so much lovely, I’m glad you liked the finished project <3
This looks incredible! You would never know that it is as simple to make as it actually is. It looks like something you would buy at a home decor shop but actually you just made it at home!! xx
Thank you Hannah! It’s honestly one of the most simple crafts I’ve done but I really like how it turned out!xx
Mia, these are stunning! You’re so talented. Love the beautiful warm colours you used x
Thank you Maryam! x
I thought this was going to be so hard when I saw the photo but it actually looks really simple which is amazing! This looks so good! I’d love something like this x
Sophie
Thank you, Sophie! It’s honestly so chill but ends up real cute – highly recommend if you’re wanting an easy craft!xx
This is so adorable, Mia! I don’t know how to explain it, but it seems like the tangible, canvas version of a lullaby. This is really something my minimal-effort-no-commitment-to-crafts-ass can try!
xx
Aww thank you Arshia! I’m a big fan of the easier crafts tbh xx
This is so cute!! I absolutely love the final look, it makes such a lovely wall decoration! 😍
Aw, thank you Caroline! x
This is such a cute idea, and I love the colour scheme you went with – so pretty!
I have acrylic paints and embroidery thread at home so this is totally something I want to try with a new canvas.
Anika | chaptersofmay.com
These look GORGEOUS! I love them! I will be purchasing my supplies ASAP. You should totally start selling these; they are amazing! x
Paige // Paige Eades
I love this – I would definitely buy it! I’ve seen so many people try this recently and I’m desperate to give it a go – it seems like something even someone as awful as me at arty things might be able to manage!
Tash – http://www.agirlwithview.co.uk
Oh its so cute! What a great idea! I like the colour palette you used too!
https://www.emilyclareskinner.com
What a great idea! I love the colours you’ve used and the embroidery really makes it pop. You are so talented xx
Hannah | https://luxuryblush.co.uk/
I love mixed media art and this turned out so lovely! It’s such a cute piece! I would love to try this myself too 🙂
Cheers,
Eileen | yesmissy.com
This is so cute! Really love this I wish I was this creative!!
Also I’m obsessed with your blog design your homepage is so groovy, I loveeeeee it!
Amber x | https://amberosullivanblog.wordpress.com/
This is so cute! It looks really nice!
This looks so so gorgeous! Where do I get one for my house! I would love to be this creative and make one for myself – this would make a beautiful gift idea too. I think it is a funky way to jazz up a room. Maybe you should sell some 😉
Em | http://www.loveemblog.com xx
I love this, it looks so pretty and summery! I love the colours. You’re very talented! xx
This looks awesome! So easy and simple to create too. Thank you for reading and commenting.
Lauren | http://www.bournemouthgirl.com
I love this so much! X
I love this embroidered canvas art! Looks so creative and posh. I need to give this a try someday. You can always start simple and build on it :). I love that this just looks like a bunch of fruits hehe. Can’t go wrong with hanging that up! Thanks for sharing!
Nancy ✨ exquisitely.me
I love it! It looks beautiful and it is a very creative activity! The colors are perfect.
Lindifique
Oh this is beautiful !
I love the illustration you made on this canvas with some embroidery touches.
xx
Margot
https://troughthepasturesofthesky.com
this is soooo beautiful Mia!!!! wow! 😀 well done!
This is such a gorgeous canvas! I think it is such a great idea!
Grace xx
gracexkate.com
So beautiful
its a very beautiful to read and thanks for sharing this.