Vintage Truck Photo Canvas DIY

Today I'm going to show you the really simple canvas photo art I made to hang over our family room couch.

A couple of weeks ago, I decided it was long past due time to paint our family room.  17 years with the original beige, and lots of scuffs and dings.  I filled holes, sanded and painted in one day.  It's a tan with a hint of gray.  Now I have large walls that need some decorations.  Of course I went to my pinterest boards for inspiration, and decided to try this.  DIY Photo Canvas

I pretty much followed her directions, but did 3 - 16" x 20" canvases to fill the wall.  Trying to be cheap as usual, I figured out it was way less money to get a banner print than three 16 x 20's. Walgreens has banners 2' x 4' for $25 with a 30% off code it was about $18.50.  I cropped the free photo I found online to the right proportions and uploaded it to Walgreens photo. Done in an hour.

I picked up 16 x 20 canvases from Hobby Lobby at $7.99 for 2, with the 40% off came to $2.40 each. Brought the hubs along to get 2 of them with the coupon. :)

Found a can of flat black paint and a cheap brush and painted the edges and a little of the front.

Took the banner and cut out the 3 prints so they would look right on the wall.  This took a little figuring, and I was afraid they wouldn't look right with the space between them, but it turned out great.  Just doing one canvas would be way easier. 

Covered the canvas with matte Mod Podge, and glued the photo on. Pressed it down really well around the edges, flipped it over and pressed on the canvas to make sure it adhered well.  I cut the pictures about a 1/4" smaller than the canvas so the edges would glue down well.  Let it dry for about 30 minutes.

This is the part that I was worried about. I couldn't imagine painting the surface of a photo with a water based product and not having it ruin the picture. But, everyone's doing it, so I did it!

I used a foam brush, others said that left fewer brush marks.  I wasn't too worried about it, I was looking for a vintage feel. It looks creamy, but dries clear and beautiful!

I only did one coat, too anxious to hang them on the wall before my hubby got home.  He loves old pick up trucks!

If I was doing anything that got any use, I would do a few coats, but hanging on the wall it won't ever get touched.  

I'm so happy with the results. It was cheap, quick and easy.  Less than $30 for all three.  

One wall done, three to go....

Thanks for stopping by!

Karilyn