Fauxnet

…pronounced foe-nay (as in Claude Monet); not fox-net (as in the fox is caught in a net).

A couple months ago I found this vintage art at a local resale shop. I paid $5. At the time I bought the piece, I really didn’t have a plan of how I wanted to use it.

As I mentioned last week, I have plans to redo one of my guest rooms. With pennies pinched, I needed to create some inexpensive wall art. Last night I was in the mood to paint so I grabbed my thrift store find from the basement and got to work!

As you can see, the painting was a bit drab. My goal was to brighten the whole thing up. I envisioned a yellow gold frame with a fresh new take on the current artwork using the colors (turquoise, light blue, white and green) I plan on using in my new space.

First, I removed the art from the frame to make painting everything a bit easier. I began by peeling off the paper baking. I then bent up the staples holding in the art. I kept the staples in the frame so I could use them to secure the painting to the frame when I was finished.

Once the art was out of the frame I used two colors of bright yellow craft paint to cover the frame.

After that was finished I used a gold metallic paint on top of the yellow.

I did this step after the sun when down, so I don’t have any pictures. Sorry about that. After I applied the gold I went over everything with a white wash … then a little more yellow, a little more gold, a little more white, etc. I just continued to add layers until I was pleased with the look.

After the frame was finished I moved onto the artwork. I used the original painting as a guide and added brighter colors to the whole piece.

It took many attempts to figure out what was going to look best. Honestly, at one point I almost gave up and threw the whole thing in the trash. I ultimately ending up liking the look of adding dots of color. The finished look reminds me of paintings done by Claude Monet.

This was the painting shortly after I started adding color.

You can see the turquoise and blue in the sky/water and the green I added to the trees. For paint, I just used the cheap acrylic craft paint you can buy at Wal-mart or your local craft store.

After about three hours of working on the piece (and unfortunately not taking any more pictures, as I was both focused and frustrated) here’s what I came up with.

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Pretty fabulous, right!?

I’m loving the new look! It went from drab and dusty to fab and fun!

It’s cheerful and bold and I just love it! I think the colors will be a perfect addition to my room redo.

The desk below the art (found at a local antique shop) and the glass vase (found at TJ Maxx for $20) will also be additions to the space.

I’m also really pleased with the yellow gold frame. It couldn’t have came out more perfect! The bright yellow base added a much need pop of color underneath the whitewashed gold.

I also decided to paint the little house purple, inspired by this post I read earlier in the day.

You’ll also noticed the horse and cart were completely eliminated from the pond. Much better.

Until I actually start my room redo, my new piece of artwork will sit on my vintage corbel shelf in my hall.

A lovely reminder that spring and summer are quickly approaching!

So what do you think of my Monet-inspired-upcycled-artwork?