Using Wall Stickers to Create Cool Wall Art

Easy DIY Wall Art for Kids Rooms

ByEileen June 10, 2017May 23, 2022

This post is sponsored by My Wonderful Walls. All opinions are entirely my own.

Recently, Ash and I have been getting a toddler room ready for our sweet little son, which means new furniture, new color schemes, and of course, new wall decorations. His nursery decorations were random things that I put together before he was born. So it was time to decorate with something he really enjoys. With all of the adorable (and expensive!) artwork out there for kids’ rooms, I decided to venture out and make my own.

My goal was to create something special to hang on his walls that he would treasure – and that I wouldn’t grow tired of later. So, with just a few key materials, I was able to create these adorable DIY canvas wraps. They are so simple to make!

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We love My Wonderful Walls products so much that we also have a 15% off coupon code for everyone. Just visit My Wonderful Walls and use JUNE15 at checkout (expiration June 30, 2017).

If you are the lucky winner of the giveaway, you can use the coupon code too. They have some awesome stickers, decals, and stencils 🙂

How to Make DIY Wall Art for Kid’s Rooms

I had this vision to create something with little effort that would also save others time and money on room decorations.

This vision included using gallery wraps or wrapped canvases. I wanted to avoid the hassle of frames – it’s a lot of work to pick out frames, mats, and work out sizing. As an added bonus, wrapped canvases are super easy to find at craft stores, usually are on sale, and definitely save money- as frames and mats are much more expensive. Plus, I was happy to avoid having a bunch of glass frames hanging in my son’s room.

Next, I searched high and low looking for wall stickers or wall decals that I liked. Yet, rather than stick these directly to the walls to create a mural-like piece, my thinking was that I could easily stick these wall decals to the canvases. It would certainly make for a really simple but elegant project.

The problem? A lot of wall decals for kids look really cartoony. I wanted to find something that looked more authentic and artistic.

Then, I stumbled across My Wonderful Walls and LOVED the vehicle stickers they had. Their vehicle stickers have so many colors and details – they look almost textured. I fell in love with this rusty truck (pictured below). Isn’t it adorable?!

Also, their wall stickers were a really nice size and would definitely fill 9×12 and 8×10 canvases.

Materials for DIY Wall Art

Canvas Wraps – easily found at craft stores
Acrylic Paint – found at craft stores
Painter’s tape – only if painting stripes or chevron designs
Washi tape, if desired
Alphabet stickers, if desired – easy to find at craft stores
Vehicle Wall Stickers – from My Wonderful Walls (15% off using JUNE15 – exp. June 30, 2017)

Creating Kids Room Wall Art Galleries - with stickers and washi tape!

Budget-Friendly Tip – When buying the canvases, paint, and other materials from the craft stores, check for sales and coupons before going. A lot of times the craft stores run 40%-60% off canvases. You could also use a coupon and buy a pack in bulk. Some craft stores even have surveys you can fill out that give you a discount on your next purchase.

In order to get the sizes right on the canvases, I waited to purchase the canvases until I received the stickers. Then, I took the vehicle decals to the craft store with me, so that I would get the canvas sizes right. The wall decals came in one long roll, so it was easy to bring to the store with me.

Because the vehicle stickers from My Wonderful Walls were a really nice size (and this was their mini kit), most of the canvases I bought were 9×12, 8×10, and a few 8x8s.

I also picked up a few little 4×6 canvases for the road signs. With all of the stickers and canvases, I definitely had enough to decorate a large room.

Making the Wall Decorations

After I had my materials together, I first cut out each wall sticker and placed it on the canvas that it would go on. I also arranged groups of canvases together to visualize how they would look on the wall.

Painting the Canvases

Time to paint! You could do this in a few different ways – you could just paint a solid background or you could create a design with painter’s tape – like stripes or chevron. You could even do polka dots if you have adhesive circles! It’s up to you how creative you’d like to be.

I decided to opt for mostly solid backgrounds with a few striped canvases too. The solid background was easy to do. It took me two coats of acrylic paint. Be sure to paint the sides too – to give it the gallery wrap look.

Making the Perfect Stripes

Painting the stripes was a little more difficult, but I eventually got a perfect technique down. I would highly recommend using painter’s tape and nothing else, as you will get the strongest stick.

Using Wall Stickers and Washi Tape to Make Awesome Kids Room Picture Galleries

On my first attempt, I used painter’s tape and then painted the blue stripes – and I got a very imperfect line. After a bunch of experimenting (even tried gesso – which made no impact), this is how I got perfect stripes.

Place your painter’s tape on the canvas.
Next, use white acrylic paint to seal the edges of the painter’s tape to the canvas. You are essentially creating a seal, so the intended color (blue in my case) doesn’t leak under the tape.
Wait a minute or two – but don’t let the white dry completely, and paint the stripe your intended color. Do an even stroke, going only one direction, so that your intended color doesn’t get underneath the tape.
Peel the tape off right away (after you are done with the top and bottom line). Once acrylic paint dries, it’s very plastery, so you want to remove the tape before the paint dries.

In the below picture, you can see the first stripe painted, with a perfectly straight line. Above that, you can see the white sealed edges along with the green painter’s tape.

Painting Stripes on Canvas to Make DIY Wall Art for Kids Rooms

Now, some of my blue stripes were streaked with white from the seal I painted, but I much preferred going over the stripe again rather than having a jagged edge.

I also recommend having a practice canvas and painting short stripes, before attempting a good canvas. Once I had the routine down, each of my canvases came out perfect.

Decorating the Canvases

Now for the fun part! It was time to stick the vehicle wall decals to the canvases. The wall stickers were such great quality and so easy to work with. The stick was perfect – and they were easy to move when I changed my mind on placement.

Adding a Few Extras

One of the things I definitely wanted on the canvases was the name of the vehicle. My son is very visual and has taught himself lower case letters just from observation, so I figured if I passively have the names of the vehicles on the canvases, he will learn to spell.

So, I labeled as many vehicles as I could with the alphabet stickers I had. (This involved getting a little creative and “making” some letters).

DIY Wall Art with stickers, canvas and washi tape

Last, I felt that some of the canvases needed a little extra touch. I saw some cool washi tape at the craft store and added it to the canvases.

Using Washi Tape for a Magical Touch - DIY Wall Art

I’ve never used washi tape before, but I’ve seen so many cute creations with it that I thought I could use the washi tape to give the look of roads, construction signs, and railroads. It was the perfect touch!

Time & Cost

After collecting the materials, the DIY wall canvases took about one to two days to make, including dry time for the coats of paint. It was a super quick project.

The cost really depends on how many of the materials you need to purchase. If you have paint and alphabet stickers, then you’ll just need the canvases and stickers.

And, if you are interested in FREE wall decals, enter our giveaway – and you’ll be well on your way to making these adorable room decorations. Free wall decals plus the coupon code (JUNE15) will definitely save you money on the project 🙂

DIY Wall Art for Kids Rooms - Easy Tutorial Using Stickers & Canvas

If you are looking for a simple tutorial to make DIY wall art for kids’ rooms, definitely consider this one. The materials were easy, the canvases were simple to put together, and they turned out great. You’ll definitely save money while creating something your children will adore.

DIY Wall Art that Everyone Can Do! Perfect for kids rooms

120 Comments

Carly says:
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What an awesome project! Love how you brought everything together.
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Carly! They were fun to make:)
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ZK says:
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These are so cool! I love how you took simple stickers and upcycled them into wall art!
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks ZK! It was a simple project and turned out really nice:)
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Akbar says:
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Fantastic Job, Eileen! Very creative! I’m sure your son would be excited by your creations. The washi tapes were a marvelous addition to the designs. I love the stickers from My Wonderful Walls – will have to check them out. The addition of the lettering was also superb – good luck with his spelling. Looking forward to seeing more of your projects.
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks so much Akbar! Yes, my son loves them and My Wonderful Walls has some really awesome decals and stencils! You’ll love them:)
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Meg says:
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How creative and cute! An added bonus that they don’t use glass and reduce the pain of framing, etc. I love this idea… and I can see how it would be easy to swap out “themes” for a child’s room as their taste and favorite things change as they grow. I am sharing this with my new mommy friends! : )
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thank you so much, Meg! Yes, glass always worries me, so I love eliminating the need for it! Swapping out themes is an awesome idea!! 🙂
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Gentle Joy Photography says:
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These are really cute! Great idea. 🙂
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thank you!! We love how they turned out:)
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Corey Palmer says:
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These look fantastic! I’m amazed at how easy this is to do yourself! I’ll be using this as a guide for some ideas I have of my own. I will definitely be sharing this with my friends of varying craftiness ability as it seems easy enough for anyone to do yet intricate enough to get as masterful as you want! Great stuff!
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks so much Corey!! They were very simple to make that anyone can do it:) good luck with your ideas:)
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Danielle @ A Sprinkle of Joy says:
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This is so cute! I’ve been wanting to add a little something to my daughter’s room, and this is great! Plus I’ll have to try your tip with the white paint, as I always seem to have the paint seep through a little,
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Danielle! These are perfect for kids rooms – and so easy to make 🙂 Yes, the white paint definitely made the perfect stripe on canvas!
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Dara says:
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These are so cute!
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Dara:)
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Emily says:
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Oh, my, these are the cutest! I agree it is hard to find stickers that aren’t cartoons.
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Emily! Yes, My Wonder Walls ha awesome stickers:)
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Becky says:
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These are so cute! I love the striped canvases!
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Becky!! I wanted to try chevron too – maybe next time:)
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Stephanie says:
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What a fun way to decorate! Or even have a small play date and let little ones create their own masterpieces.
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks, Stephanie! Great idea:)) I did let my little guy help paint the stripes which he loved!
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Jess says:
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SO much fun! 🙂

I would love for you to share this with my Facebook Group for recipes, crafts, tips, and tricks: https://www.facebook.com/groups/pluckyrecipescraftstips/

Thanks for joining Cooking and Crafting with J & J!
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Jess – will do!
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Jessica @ It's A Moms' Life says:
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Hey this is Jessica from itsamomslife.blig and I followed you through the Inspire Me linky party.

I love this idea for my son’s bedroom. I think it would be a cool idea to add to my son’s room. I’m going to see if they have other items as well.
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1. Eileen says:
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  Hi Jessica! Yes they have tons of awesome decals. The quality and selection are great! And they have stencils and decals that are non-kid related too!
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Tif says:
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These turned out amazing!!!
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Tif! 🙂 Our little guy loves them!
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Heather says:
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So cool!! We love making canvases over here!!
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Heather – yes, such a fun activity:)
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Patty says:
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Love the stickers! And the letters to compliment each vehicle – you’ve created very whimsical pieces – your little guy is going to be a great speller!!
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks for your compliments, Patty! Haha he does love to spell 🙂
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STEPHANIE ABBOTT says:
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Looks so cute. Love the set up and those stickers look so nice!
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Stephanie 🙂 They were so simple to make 🙂
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Mary Bost says:
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What a fun craft! The stickers are too cute!
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Mary 🙂 Yes, the stickers were awesome!
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Cecilia MyThriftStoreAddiction says:
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These are super cute!
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Cecilia! 🙂
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Leslie says:
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These are so cute! And the washi tape is the perfect accent. Pinning the heck out of this one! ? Thanks so much for sharing at the #happynowlinkup!
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Leslie! Yes, the washi tape really was the perfect touch! Thanks so much for the pinning 🙂
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Dori says:
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Such a fun idea! Makes me wish I had seen it about 7 years ago when all my babies were a little younger! My youngest is almost 12, so I think that ship has sailed, unfortunately.! It’s a great idea and you did such a good job giving all the detailed instructions and pictures!
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1. Eileen says:
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  Awww thanks so much, Dori! I loved making them – and my son loves them! 🙂
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Christene Holder says:
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These are so cute and they look super professional! Well done!

>> Christene
Keys to Inspiration
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks so much Christene 🙂 I was aiming to make something that looked store-bought 🙂
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Stephanie Grant says:
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I am in love with these! My little would go nuts to find a set of these on his wall!
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1. Eileen says:
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  Awww thanks Stephanie! They were so easy to make!
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Stephanie says:
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What an inspired idea! We love what you came up with in your son’s room. Thanks so much for allowing My Wonderful Walls to be a part of your awesome project!
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1. Eileen says:
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  Hi Stephanie, Thank you SO much for working with us! We love your wall stickers – the artwork is amazing and they make DIY projects for others more accessible! 🙂 I loved finding wall stickers that were artistic and not cartoony:)
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bitten by that creative spider says:
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These are absolutely gorgeous! My boys would have loved them when they were younger!
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks so much! We love the way they turned out:)
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Emily says:
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These look great! Super cute!! Great job, mama!
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Emily!:)) I love a good DIY project!
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Heather Bixler says:
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So adorable and very creative!
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Heather! We are loving them:)
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Tiffany says:
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I love this art project! I’m obsessed with washi tape, can’t wait to see his finished big boy room.
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Tiffany!! I loved using washi tape! His big boy room is almost ready:)
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Jessica K says:
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Okay, these are absolutely adorable!!! I love them so much. They turned out so well. DIY projects are my favorite. I much prefer them to store bought.
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Jessica! yes I agree – and I love when DIY projects look store-bought!:)
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Jann Olson says:
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These are absolutely darling! Clever idea to add the Washi tape. Thanks for sharing with SYC. I’m sure it’s not intentional, but I’m not seeing a link back to the party.
hugs,
Jann
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Jann – the washi tape was a great touch! I’ll be using it with more projects for sure 🙂
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Leanna says:
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DIY artwork is the best and these are fantastic examples. Love how you put these together. Really cute and I love that they are for boys.
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Leanne! I agree with you – I love creating things – especially when they look like they came from a store:)
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Angela says:
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What an awesome idea! This looks just like something you’d spend a lot of money on.
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Angela! Yes, my motivation in DIYing these was the prices at the store:)
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amanda whitley says:
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i love the pictures. i love to diy as much of my decor as possible and never even thought to use stickers like these.
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Amanda! Yes, me too! My inspiration was the store prices and I loved that I found the stickers from My Wonderful Walls- they are so artistic!
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Michelle says:
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How cute is that Eileen. That rusty truck is just gorgeous. So tactile on the eyes and probably under a little ones finger tips too. He is going to love it. I love the way you added an extra construction layer with the washi tape. Super cool
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks so much, Michelle! The rusty truck was my favorite too! You always leave the sweetest comments 🙂 Hope you are having a good week!
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LAURA says:
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I absolutely love this project. It looks easy enough for even me to do!
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Laura! Yes – it’s so simple and turns out great:)
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Trisha Musgrave says:
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I love DIY art projects! I think this would be perfect to ad a little bit of color and life to our walls!
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1. Eileen says:
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  Yes, me too!! That’s the great part about he project – you can pick your colors:) New life to old walls is always fun!
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Donna Kozar says:
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They look very cute.
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Donna:)
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Elizabeth Brooks says:
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I love this idea, so cute
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks so much, Elizabeth:)
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Nichole McK says:
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These look like soooo much fun to create with my kids!
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1. Eileen says:
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  Yes, my son helped paint the stripes and he loved it!! Until he dunked the paintbrushes right into a tall container of paint:)
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Brooke Rose says:
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Love these!!! Sooooo cute!
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Brooke:)
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Naomir says:
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This inspires me to try and make a canvas myself.
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1. Eileen says:
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  That’s great, Naomir! It’s very simple:)
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Mary. Benack says:
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I just finished a playroom for my grandchildren these would. Add a finishing touch to it. Thanks. Great giveaway
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Mary! These would be perfect in a playroom:)
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melissa craig says:
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these are really cool designs and the kids can help create and design their own art work! awesome
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Melissa! yes definitely and the stickers can be swapped out over time as interests change:)
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Dolores Miranda says:
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Oh all of these are super cute!!
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Dolores:)
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GINA ROCK says:
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I love these designs! My daughter would love something in her room!
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Gina! My Wonderful Walls has awesome designs:)
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kelly woods says:
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Thanks for the chance!!! These are really cute!!!
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Kelly:) good luck!
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Kim Naumann says:
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What a fun way to decorate the walls!
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Kim:)
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Hollie Jahnke says:
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This would be fun to do in my daughter’s room.
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1. Eileen says:
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  I’m sure she’d love it:)
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Kathy D says:
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Wow would love to make somthing with a crown for my Granddaughter fun fun
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1. Eileen says:
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  That sounds great, Kathy! My Wonderful Walls had some awesome designs!
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Desire Swarm says:
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Awesome tips Thank you
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Desire:)
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Dynal Roberson says:
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I love DIy projects, especially cute ones like this!
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Dynal:) me too!
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Anita Jude says:
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love this and its super cute and my grandson would love this
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Anita:) they turn out really cute!
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Virginia H says:
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Very creative! My twins would love something like this but more girly lol.
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1. Eileen says:
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  Haha yes:) My Wonderful Walls has some awesome girly designs:)
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laura bernard says:
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I love these!!
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks so much, Laura!
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Melissa C says:
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These are fantastic I plant to intergrate these ideas for my next craft project with my kids!
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Melissa! Hope they love it!!
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Christy Caldwell says:
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Oh I love this DIY! So many cute ideas. My youngest would love doing this with mom.
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Samantha Martin says:
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My son would like the train picture.. I made him a sign when he was first born that said your first breath took mine away.
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1. Eileen says:
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  Aww that sounds beautiful! The train was fun to make and split across the canvases:)
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Kathleen Rupp says:
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These are so cute and an adorable idea!
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Marci @ Stone Cottage Adventures says:
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These are absolutely adorable! Thank you for sharing all this cuteness at Tuesdays with a Twist! I hope you have time to join us again this week! -Marci @ Stone Cottage Adventures
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Marci 🙂 They were fun to make!
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Kelly M. says:
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This is so creative!
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Kelly 🙂
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Kathleen - Bloggers Lifestyle says:
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What an awesome project. Your little one will treasure those boards for a long time. Just beautiful.
Kathleen
Blogger’s Pit Stop
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1. Eileen says:
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  Thanks Kathleen!:) have a wonderful week!
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