DIY monogram stool - color outside the lines

Happy King Martin day! (as Amelia calls it)

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend. We’ve been fighting ear infections and some sort of stomach bug so besides a nice long walk; we didn’t get to do much. And tied to the house to monitor temperatures and naps, my hands were fidgeting for something to do.

Enter the victim.

A wonderful little stool my mom and I picked up at a salvage store a while back. It’s the perfect height for the girls and they love using it as a chair/ladder/stuffed animal fort/who knows what else.

This little dude is old though and has the marks to prove it. And to remove all of the layers of paint, scratches and dents would have taken more patience than I possess. So I embraced his battle scars and after a good sanding, declared him ready for paint.

I used spray paint I had left over from this project, and after a few coats step one was complete. Next was adding a bit of fun. My dear friend, and graphic design guru, helped me come up with a monogram for the girls (Amelia and Eve – not Arts and Entertainment). Modern and fun, I love it.

She also gave me the best advice ever. When I told her how much I was dreading cutting out the monogram stencil (remember, me and negative space don’t mix) she uttered two genius words – graphite paper.

$2.99 at Michael’s (minus 40% with their ubiquitous coupon) and I had myself an outlined monogram. Couldn’t have been easier. How did I not know about this genius paper?!

bad basement lighting

After tracing the monogram on the stool I grabbed some leftover navy paint, borrowed a paintbrush from the girls and got to work.

Keeping with the ‘not perfect’ theme of this stool, I tried not to curse (too much) over my coloring outside the lines. Flaws are good right?! Flaws = character. (just keep repeating that to yourself like I do)

If you follow me on Facebook, like all cool people do, then you know I made a game time decision to add the border...using a dinner plate and painters tape of course.

Lovely.

A great stool for two fabulous girls in one of my all time favorite color combos. Outside the lines and perfect.

Try any DIY projects this weekend? Ever used graphite paper? I tell you, I'm looking for something else to create just so I can use it again!

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