Make It Monday Easy DIY Retro Art Piece

Sometimes a girl just has to create and make art. If you know, you know what I mean. Today's Make It Monday project is the result of my need to paint and be creative and simply make SOMETHING. A bright, large, easy to make, retro inspired art piece is the perfect addition to add some color to a white wall.

You too can create an easy, retro painting in an hour or less and for only a few dollars. Keep reading to see how!

I was a born in the sixties and became a teenager in the seventies so a retro rainbow is just the thing that makes my heart go pitter-patter. I had a rainbow bedroom growing up, rainbow dittos (raise your hand if you know what I am talking about), and a t-shirt that pretty much had this same rainbow design on it. So this design was any easy YES PLEASE for me.  

 I started by finding a "canvas" to paint on. I landed on a piece of a hollow core door that I had. The other half was made into a chalkboard. You can use a piece of plywood, a large cupboard door, a thrift store canvas that you paint white or black (or any other color you like!), a piece of drop cloth stretched in an old window frame, a table top. Be creative, use what you have. I used a large wallpaper brush to apply the paint. I wanted the texture from the rough bristles and something i could load with half of the colors. I sketched with chalk the arch or rainbow I wanted.

Load the brush with the paint, blending the colors.

Start to paint your rainbow or arch, going back and forth, loading more paint as needed.

I then cleaned the brush and painted the greens and blue. When I was done and the paint was still wet. I cleaned and dried the brush and brush over the paint to add more texture and lines to the rainbow. I dried it with a hair dryer because I was impatient.

I cleaned up the edges with some sandpaper and then used Wise Owl Furniture Salve (You can purchase this lovely salve from my friend Tina HERE!) The salve protects, gives it some shine, and makes the wood grain stand out.

I love the simplicity of this project and the BIG visual impact of it. Makes me want to don my bell-bottoms and go roller skate to the YMCA.