My Very First Post!

This is my very first post in my new blog! How exciting! To be honest I have a few butterflies in my stomach, but the blog must go on! (right?)

For my first Crafty Princess Project (that sounds good doesn't it?) I decided to make a custom light switch plate with a quote from Albus Dumbledore. (Yes, I am a Potterhead.)  To be fair I got this idea from here. I LOVE Pinterest and get many ideas from there. As you can see (if you clicked the link) the link on Pinterest is broken as to where this idea originally came from. Therefore, I put my thinking cap on and tried to figure it out. This is what I came up with.

First of all, the location. Where would I put such a quote in my house. Answer, my newly (almost finished) rebuilt bathroom. So during The Little Princess's nap I took the plate of the wall and began thinking. I knew I wanted something simpler that what I saw on Pintrest.  First, the color. I wanted it to be white since that is the color of the trim in my afore mentioned bathroom. Next, the font. I did not want it in my handwriting (pretty though it is). I opened up word, typed it out and began playing with fonts and sizes. When I found the one I liked I printed it out and trimmed it down.



Oooh, pretty

 Next, I tried different pens and permanent markers (on the back of the plate) to see which would work the best. The answer - none of them. The regular sized Sharpie did not smudge, but was too thick. The fine point Sharpie and my scrapbooking pens were the right size, but smudged. (To the web!) After some research I decided to try to use sandpaper to remove the finish then use the fine point pens. (Again, I tried it on the back first.) It no longer smudged, but the ink ran into all the little marks the sandpaper made. (Think, think, think...lightbulb!) Paint! I wanted the plate to remain white, but I could just repaint the plate white, use the Sharpie to write the words and presto smudge problem solved!

So, I lightly sanded the plate using a fine grit sandpaper.

Next, I used a dry brush to paint on a thin layer of white paint. (Being impatient and wanting to get it all done before The Little Princess woke up) I dug out my hair dryer and used the low setting to help the paint dry faster. Then, put on a second coat. (Again used the hair dryer to speed things along.)

Next, I needed to figure out how to transfer the font. The previous web search talked a lot about using graphite paper. I don't have graphite paper. (Think, think, think... lightbulb!) Graphite, as in what pencils are made out of? I can make my own graphite paper!


Not so pretty scribbles



Pretty font

I flipped my pretty font over and scribbled all over
the back with a pencil. (Genius!) 



Next, using my trusty scissors I cut each line of the word out and carefully taped them onto the plate.

Then, I carefully traced each word with the same pencil I used before for the ugly scribbling.

After (carefully) peeling the tape and paper off of the plate, this is what I had.

Now I used my fabulous fine point Sharpie  and again traced the words.

Pretty, right? I then used an eraser to get the goo left behind from the tape off of the plate. Finally, I sprayed it with two coats of sealer (again using the afore mentioned hair dryer to speed things along) so that finger prints (that always clutter switch plates) can be washed off. Then, it was simply a matter of reinstalling the plate onto the wall.

And from another angle.

Now, to see how long it takes the Hubby to figure out I did this today! ;-)

(Edit: It took him two days! teehee)