DIY Ceramic Valentine's Art

 

This year I wanted to do something sweet, but not as candy-focused for our Valentine's. Hard work for an admitted sweet tooth! 

I decided to come up with some personalized creations for all our friends and family using mostly stuff we had laying around. What is one thing I have laying around in mass quantities??? dishes, dishes and more dishes. Not that we host staggering numbers of parties, I blame the hoard-sized collection on cool thrift store finds, garage sales and loading up at my Dad's restaurants. There is no shortage of plates in this house. But if you don't have a ton to spare I highly recommend hitting the thrift store for a handful of pieces!

I found ceramic pens at a local De Serres art store (same one online at Amazon here) for $6 each to beautify all my plates.

 

And got to work. I didn't want things to look too perfect or polished, brush strokes and little imperfections just add to the fun and charm. 

 

a little dish to catch odds and ends on a bedside table or hall table was my first creation.

 

So many of my friends and family are music nuts so I thought it would be fun to incorporate lyrics into a lot of my creations.

A little mug duet.

 

For more of an eclectic, Anthro inspired look I took the pens to a few antique plates. 

For the awesome, single ladies in my life!

 

My Valentine to Sean, a nod to some R.Kelly, Ignition Remix, which is a running inside joke in our lives. 

Once all my creations were dry I just followed the instructions on the pens, letting them set for a day or two then baking them for a half hour. 

It is a fun, easy way to customize the perfect Valentine and an awesomely fun way to spend an afternoon.