Oh deer

So, Christmas is over.  Shocker huh?  Yep, it's been over for about a month.  But it's ok that I'm just now making a gift for my brother, right?!  I'm sure he won't mind.  Especially since I'm not even sure if he will like what I made.  Here's a quick picture...

Tim likes to hunt but I'm not sure if he will want to hang this in his house.  I see the deer silhouette as modern and kind of cool (just me?  It's ok if you don't agree) but he might see it as trashy.  Who knows!  If he doesn't want it, I'm sure I can find a place for it around my house :).

Want to make your own?  Who wouldn't?  You could easily make any silhouette: animals, children, flowers, food, initials... whatever you can think of!

Best of all, this was a no-cost project for me.  Shhh, don't tell Tim!  I went to a local home improvement store and grabbed 9 free laminate floor samples.  fah-ree!  I just have to space out my visits so they don't come to know me as the lady who takes all of their samples.  I also got some to make coasters.  [By the way, the coasters follow the same process.  Just repeat the pattern on each square, add felt to the bottoms, and spray with a sealer.  Voila!]  I'll try to upload some pictures of the coasters soon.  I love them!

Ok, ok, calm down.  Here's how to make your own.

Step 1: Grab some of the laminate squares.  As you can see, I have 3 of each wood tone.  Use whatever works best with your style.

Step 2: Arrange the squares in a pattern you like.  I tried a few options.  I liked the 2nd option best.  It seemed a little more modern to me.  What do you think?  Hot glue the squares onto foam core cut to fit.

 

Step 3:  I already gave this away, but you need to make a stencil.  I cheated by finding a picture online.  I just traced it onto tracing paper, cut it out, and then traced the outline onto the squares.

Step 4: Paint!  I already had paint on hand, so I just used that.  Gotta love it!

Step 5: Give as a gift or do what I did first... put it in every room of the house to see where I like it best.  Yes, I know it's not for me!

Here's the finished product.  What do you think?  Have you tried something similar?  What would you do differently?  Do you think Tim will like it?  I'll let you know!