This is the first item for the Nine14 Design shops that I have made that are not based on something that was created for a friend or family member. This project was born from a mixture of inspirations from the season and the supplies I have in the office right now.
For those that do not know, Albert Camus was a key philosopher in the 20th century and extraordinary writer. Often his works and ideas are linked to existentialism. This is partially incorrect, considering Camus' ideas and personal philosophies were deeply rooted in absurdism. I went with the existentialism, and left a lot of the edges rough and did not try to worry about perfection.
This piece is 3X5 inches with a decoratively cut border. Unlike the other plaques I have been working on, I did not start by sanding the edges. There were some naturally rough edges because of the wood grain, and I left that way. It adds new texture and personality. 
The whole thing was started by painting the border dark "chocolately" brown. As you can see in the picture, I taped off the front and then added several layers of the brown. After waiting a few hours and making a few mistakes, I painted the face plum purple.
Originally, I had been planning on keeping the face natural wood, and painting the quote on. My handwriting can be iffy at times. Although the trace of the quote came out fine, when it came time to paint the words, it just looked jumbled. This is when I switched to decoupage.
The letters and quote were attached using craft glue and then decoupage medium was used on top. There are a total of five layers of decoupage medium over the top. This gave the face of the plaque quite the sheen. The fluidity of the medium lifted some of the plum paint and showed off the raw wood underneath. I loved that look so much, I didn't correct it.
The plain brown border seemed somewhat bland compared to the face of the plaque. I took a sealing medium, added it to the same dark brown I had used at first, and added a metallic gold acrylic paint. The mixture produced a "melted milk chocolate" look.
The whole thing was finished with lavender suede lacing, and four silk flowers. The "workings" were covered with a green cotton fabric.
This item is ready to be shipped! No personalization or customization needed for this one. To purchase this plaque, please visit my artfire.com listing or etsy listing.
Originally, I had been planning on keeping the face natural wood, and painting the quote on. My handwriting can be iffy at times. Although the trace of the quote came out fine, when it came time to paint the words, it just looked jumbled. This is when I switched to decoupage.
The letters and quote were attached using craft glue and then decoupage medium was used on top. There are a total of five layers of decoupage medium over the top. This gave the face of the plaque quite the sheen. The fluidity of the medium lifted some of the plum paint and showed off the raw wood underneath. I loved that look so much, I didn't correct it.
The plain brown border seemed somewhat bland compared to the face of the plaque. I took a sealing medium, added it to the same dark brown I had used at first, and added a metallic gold acrylic paint. The mixture produced a "melted milk chocolate" look.
The whole thing was finished with lavender suede lacing, and four silk flowers. The "workings" were covered with a green cotton fabric.
This item is ready to be shipped! No personalization or customization needed for this one. To purchase this plaque, please visit my artfire.com listing or etsy listing.
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