Custom Dining Room Decor

For the first time in 7 years, we have a dining room! I was determined to decorate accordingly. I scoured Pinterest for ideas and here is what I came up with:

 

CUSTOM DINING ROOM DECOR:

Inspiration: I wanted my decor to incorporate words related to dining that would add a bit of elegance as well as the invitation to relax and be in the moment. I found a lovely painting at TJ Maxx and two easel picture frames at Ross. I hung them between two wall sconces I had from my old living room decor, and the whole idea came together with a little DIY art using oil pastels (10+ years old and still in the plastic) that I found during the move. Perfect!

Materials: oil pastels, white cardstock (I used scrapbook paper), ruler, scissors, eraser, pencil

Time required: about 1 hour

How to: decide what size paper you need by measuring your picture frames. Cut your paper to size, then use your pencil to sketch out your word. I drew a diagonal line across the middle as a guide. Erase your pencil marks, then take your oil pastels and write your word. I used the main three colors from the painting: black, green and white. I wrote my words in black first, went over them again in green and then in white. Next, I used my fingertip to blur and smudge the colors together, adding a bit more green or white where it looked like it was needed. Finally, I took the green pastel and added some color to the background, smudging it with my finger (you could do this before writing the words too), giving the design a bit more depth. 

Hardest part: I initially wrote "enjoy" with all capital cursive letters, and it looked like "engoy" ha ha! Had to redo it with a lower case "j." Also, my knuckle got really sore from smudging.

What I love: It was so easy and inexpensive and I think it turned out great! I'm happy I found a place for my wall sconces too. It's always gratifying when a project turns out looking better than you thought it would.