Make Faux Canvases for under $10

Canvases are a gorgeous way to display your favorite photos but they are a tad pricey. Even purchasing a faux canvas like the one you're about to make runs at roughly $20 a pop. You can make these for under $10 each and just a little bit of time.

Materials: 

Photos (See shopping tip)

Plywood (See shopping tip)

Mod Podge

Sponge brush

Paint (Mine was leftover spray paint but any leftover paint will work)

Nailess Sawtooth Hangers

1. First you need to paint one side of your wood and the edges. The other side will be covered with your photo.

2. Next take your mod podge and slather it on the unpainted side of your wood and the back of your picture. Then smooth the photo into the wood. 

3. Now brush the mod podge on the top of the photo. Yes, I said the top. Don't worry, it dries clear. It gives it a great textured look. When my husband saw the finished product he thought the texture was the wood showing through the photo. That is the magic of mod podge. 

I brushed it horizontally and then after it dried, I did it vertically. 

A word of warning: if you want to do this project in the carpet I front of the TV make sure you cover the carpet first. Not for the sake of the carpet but to avoid getting carpet fuzz stuck in the mod podge. I speak from experience. 

4. Now take your sawtooth hangers and hammer them into the back of the wood. I measured the center and put it them on about half an inch from the top. It's super easy. 

They also make these with nails but my board was so thin that the nails would have gone straight through. These worked great. 

Now you can hang your faux canvases on the wall and enjoy your beautiful works of art!

And if you're looking for another kind of wall art, you can use scrapbook paper instead of photos. Although scrapbook paper is a little harder to work with. It rolls once it's covered with mod podge and tends to bubble. When I made mine, I just put the mod podge on the top a little thicker and in circular strokes to makes the impurities. It makes it look a little more artsy. 

Shopping Tips: 

Photos: I ordered 12x12 photos from Costco. 

Plywood: I got the cheapest plywood at Home Depot that was the right size. Since I wanted 4, 12x12 pieces I got the board that was 2 ft by 8 ft and they made the cuts for free. The problem is that you lose like 1/8th of an inch with each cut and since 8 ft is exactly the right length my pieces ended up being a bit smaller than 12x12. I didn't have the funds to buy a second board so I just trimmed the photos. It worked for me since my photos had dead space but if that doesn't work for you, you should get a second board. 

The good news is that I ended up with extra wood so I got to make the scrapbook page boards you see above!

Did you make this? I'd love to hear about how you liked it and what worked best for you. Show me some comment love and let me know your thoughts!