polka dots & stripes

I had some of you ask me about how to get the "perfect" polka dot on your project. All you do is find the size circle that you want, and trace.

I recommend making either a wax paper or cardboard template so that you can do multiple polka dots at one time. I personally like to space mine out before... or else I spend a lot of time re-painting (I'm slightly anal about things like that). 

However, at Michael's today, I found a set of 12 different size circles (you can paint them and glue them on your projects, but I thought they were just fabulous to use as templates) for only 99 cents! 

When painting stripes, I eyeball it. I know, I know-- crazy about polka dots and not so about stripes? Well, I really don't ever feel like getting the measuring tape out, sticking painter's tape on, etc. But, those are possibilities if you are worried about messing up your stripes.

I typically start off by brushing on a thin & very light coat of my stripes first to make sure they are evenly spaced out. Then, I go back and make the stripes darker and thicker. You can also try getting a square-tip brush to help you make those stripes straighter on the edges.

I hope these tips help you as you create your projects. I'm loving the messages about how this blog is helping to inspire your creativity. Please let me know if there is anything you are interested in learning more about.