Thursday, September 02, 2010

painted puzzle tutorial

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Recently I gathered some fun things for a birthday package that I was putting together to send off to my friend's little girl. While doing my weekly browsing at Target's dollar bin, I came across a puzzle for $1 and suddenly had the idea to paint over it to make a brand new colorful kids puzzle to include in the package. This puzzle was super easy and would actually make a great project create with kids!


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I started with the puzzle- how boring was it before?!?!?


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I painted over everything with acrylic paint.
Tip- mix a little white paint with your color to get better coverage when painting over something with dark images.

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I painted over the base and the frame of the puzzle


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and let it all dry.


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Once everything was dry, I took apart the puzzle just to make sure that nothing was sticking to each other.

Another tip- when painting a cheaper chipboard or cardboard puzzle- keep your brush dry (don't dip in water) and keep the paint thin. Too much moisture will cause the puzzle pieces to expand and contract.

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I put the puzzle back together...ummm...this took me forever...I am NOT a puzzle person!


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I then started to cover the surface with drawings ( I decided on a surface full of my favorite flower designs)


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Next I filled the flowers with color.


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Once the entire surface was filled and the paint was dry I used a thin coat of gel matte medium (Claudine Hellmuth's FABULOUS gel medium to be exact!) to seal everything.


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VIOLA! A super cute, one of a kind kids puzzle! A perfect gift!


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Of course I couldn't resist taking it apart and putting it back together.

It took me forever and my husband had to step in and finish it for me :)


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66 comments:

Anonymous said...

this is so awesome Alisa, and what a fantastic idea, will definitely keep this idea in mind ;)

Papier, Ciseaux, Cailloux... said...

Ilt"s really nice and a excellent idea... So great !

Nani Luculescu said...

oh yes, love this great idea. YOU ROCK Alisa!!!

Maria-Isabel @ Agape Love Designs said...

I just love this idea! And I simply adore your painting, all your paintings Ive seen are just gorgeous!

Jamie Fingal said...

awesome idea! you are so talented and clever. thanks so much for sharing! it is always such a treat to read your blog.

LR said...

i am sure she will treasure it. one of a kind.

Claire Kiefer said...

adorable! I love it, and what a meaningful gift. your design is perfect!

Kittyj said...

What a lucky kid!!! I'm sure we all want one!

Cindy Pestka said...

That is one of the coolest projects I have seen in a long time. How great would it be to get a present like that!!! Wowza...your creativity just never stops!

la.daridari said...

your flower design is crazy as your colors... I love it!!
Daria

Christie // lemon squeezy home said...

This is such a cool idea! You have such an awesome, unique style. I love it!

Eden said...

This is so clever!! Love the colorful flowers, your signature :D

Beatrice said...

OMG!! That's gorgeous! Your painting is something incredible, so colorful and stylish! :-)

OrangeFarmhouse / www.moodkids.nl said...

Is this amazing or what! Thanks for sharing again a great idea.

Катаринка said...

Очень , очень , очень красиво !!!!!!!
Катя из Сибири )))

Jeanne Nelson said...

Another great project you've shared with us. Love this idea. You're total awesomeness, Alisa. thanks for sharing!

Karen said...

VERY extremely cool! Can't wait to try it!

Natalya Khorover Aikens said...

what a fab idea! thank you for sharing!

Janet Ghio said...

Fabulous! What a great idea!

bonnie said...

What a fabulous idea....everyone knows a kid (or adult) who would love this. Thank you.....off to Target!

nest full of eggs said...

you have such clever ideas !

Jenny Stevning said...

Simply wonderful! As always...inspiring!

Romi-damelalata- said...

¡¡qué bonito!!
¡muchas gracias por compartir tus ideas!
adoro tu blog, es muy inspirador!

Krista said...

Oh my gosh, it's fabulous!

rosechic said...

Thanks for keeping me happy and inspired with your brillant ideas. You are like the energizer bunny.

Anonymous said...

Wow! you never cease to amaze me! absolutely gorgeous. I love your work
Tals

Stephanie ;) said...

I love this tutorial! Thanks for sharing! I'm such a huge fan of your art! :)

Kacie said...

this is a BRILL idea :)

Ruth @ Hammer and Thread said...

What a great Idea for a personal gift. Thanks so much

Dagny said...

This is *such* a great idea. I was just trying to think of something fun to make my friend's daughter (she's turning 5) for her birthday. I will definitely have to hit up Target to see if I can find a little puzzle to paint myself. I'm not that artistic but I don't think a 5-year-old will be too harsh a judge. And in my experience, people are too surprised that you took the time to hand-make a gift to worry about how talented you are (or aren't in my case). Thanks for another fabulous project. I love your work.

A tired retired recluse @ Swallowcliffs.blogspot.com/ said...

Puzzling idea! Love it. Did the child like it?

Kate Robertson said...

What an awesome idea. I actually have some small puzzle that are meant to have a letter written on them but I think this seems like more fun. Now only to remember where I put the puzzle.

I think thrifts stores would be great sources to find old puzzles that you can re-purpose as art.

Aly B said...

This is so lovely! Did you take the puzzle apart before sealing it and do it piece by piece, or did you just put a clear coat down while it was still put together?

Amy said...

this is so much fun! So creative, thanks for sharing!

Rachel@oneprettything.com said...

I love this idea Alisa. Another one I have to add to my list! I'll be linking as well.

whyducks said...

I love this, once she has done it, it would make a wonderful picture for the little girls room wall. In fact I wouldn't mind it on my wall!

Cindy Lietz, Polymer Clay Tutor said...

Sooo cool! The great thing is that if you get tired of using it as a puzzle you can turn each puzzle piece into a pendant!

Unknown said...

i know I've said it before, but I'll say it again. You rock Alisa! Fabulous idea, what a beautiful puzzle and gift!

☼ Carolina ☼ said...

nice!!
greatb idea!!
hugs from Chile
c@

Jillian and Claire said...

Great idea- awesome print!

huana said...

What a great idea!

Re Use said...

cool!!
fantastic idea!!

amy said...

Love this idea! Thanks for sharing! I like the idea of using some really unique imagery on it too for my two girls to see. :)

grayzeee said...

Once again- thanks for the inspiration!

M'Lynn said...

Your puzzle is BEAUTIFULI LOVE this idea! Thanks for being so fun and creative! Keep it coming!

donna joy said...

what a great idea and sooo much cooler than the original!

Jo Reimer said...

I'm thinking that this would make a great gift for an adult. The big problem with doing one with a 500 piece puzzle is putting it together in the first place, but I think I'll try. Thanks for the inspiration.... AGAIN!

Dana said...

What a great puzzle and activity.

Michelle L. said...

Wonderful project, I just love it. You blew me away with the art AND the cool idea. Thanks for inspiring us!

Sandy Ang said...

What a fantastic piece of art you've created from a humble puzzle !

Tammie Lee said...

such a great idea!!!!
thank you, I think I might make one or two for xmas gifts.

Lisa said...

I would DIE if I received this as a present. I hope this little girl is old enough to realize what a wonderful gift you've sent!

Anonymous said...

Very cool idea! Love the design. :)

Juliette said...

What an amazing idea! Love the painting! Greetings from Belgium.

Dori Patrick said...

What a fabulous puzzle!!!! This would be such a fun gift for loved ones! Especially if you had a special message to give them!!!

Jill said...

My two youngest gals 3 & 4 are puzzle nuts! This is so cute!

David DeAngelo said...

This is *such* a great idea. I was just trying to think of something fun to make my friend's daughter (she's turning 5) for her birthday. I will definitely have to hit up Target to see if I can find a little puzzle to paint myself. I'm not that artistic but I don't think a 5-year-old will be too harsh a judge. And in my experience, people are too surprised that you took the time to hand-make a gift to worry about how talented you are (or aren't in my case). Thanks for another fabulous project. I love your work.

Unknown said...

Beautiful as usual and fun too! I linked tho this in my Friday Favorites...

http://www.laniejandco.com/2010/09/friday-favorites-91610.html

LeeAnn@Encouragement Is Contagious said...

Oh my goodness! This is one of the greatest projects I've seen. I have a 4 yr old granddaughter who lives 9 hours away and I'm always looking for fun things to send to her in the mail. I think I will paint on a puzzle for her and personalize it with her name fancied up. Just LOVE this creative idea.

Thank you!
Lee Ann

Rhea said...

Hi

Love your blog! Can you do a tutorial on taking pictures of products. You always have such fantastic product photography in all the DIYs.

Thanks!

Mapiurka said...

So so nice!

Sleepyhead Designs Studio said...

This is fabulous! What a wonderful idea for a fun canvas! Love it!

I Love Crafts said...

I teach craft classes in the Philippines and will use this idea for one of my classes some time this year. I'll link back to you once I post pictures of what the children did! Have to find cheap puzzles first! Thanks for all the good ideas, I do love your blog!

Beth Norman said...

This is way too cool. I am so in love with your hand drawn images and the colours.

Danina said...

Loved the idea , it came out extremely pretty!!

Wendy said...

Frickin' GENIUS! Love this idea....

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