MIY Monday: Adding a Touch of Love to Your Herb Garden.

Good morning! This is an early post for me today so that if anyone is interested they can participate in my MIY Mondays!

I had a very successful weekend, including lots of knitting time, which will be talked about tomorrow, but for today I want to share with you a craft idea I had for a very close friend of mine.

As always: My MIY Mondays's Mission is share creative, innovative, fun and (hopefully) cheap ideas and projects for you home and life, as well as healthy and (hopefully) cheaper alternatives to everyday cooking, shopping and eating out. I hope you will join in my on my mission!

So my great friend Ivy (Pumpkin Spins) is about to embark on a new journey in her life, Grad School! And she is moving into a brand new city and apartment. She had mentioned she wanted to start an indoor herb garden, and after receiving an amazing wooden cutting board from her as a housewarming gift, I knew I had to give her something equally as special.  Me being an artist, I decided to try painting some ceramic pots to grow herbs in.

All that was really needed for this project were ceramic pots (depending on size, under a couple bucks at Home Depot), Acrylic varnish/sealer for the insides, and acrylic paint (I used paint specifically for ceramics, but any will do) for the outside.

After researching a bit about how to paint pots, I went at it. I started by applying the varnish to the inside so that, when the plants and dirt are added, no water can seep through and ruin my hard work. I personally applied 3 coats, but more is always better! Also Acrylic varnish is what I used, but oil would also work.

The next step is the fun one: Getting to paint! I didn't want pencil marks everywhere so I sketched these out on paper first and then decided on a final idea.

One thing I love about acrylics opposed to oils is that they dry fast, so fast that smooth blending is usually not an option.  In the case of these pots, that was perfect. Being able to layer colors and values without worrying about them mixing was so refreshing and really led well to the overall feel of the images.

Another thing I liked was that I had decided to apply black 'outlines' to parts on the images, which helped with the graphic nature of the pots, which is what I was going for. I like the whimsical, cartoonish feel that I was able to get. The type of paint I used really helped too. Found in the aisle with the other cheap craft paints, this was designed specifically for ceramics and outdoors, which made thicker and more vibrant against the orange of the pot.

After letting them dry overnight, I packed them up super well and shipped them off to my friend. A day later I received the most amazing text about how much she really, truly, LOVES these pots! There is no greater feeling than knowing that a gift is appreciated, especially a hand made one.

My aunt loved them too (she helped me pack them up) and seems to think that I should sell more at Farmer's Market? They only took about an hour each to make, what do you all think? Would it be worth it?

I hope everyone had a fabulous weekend like me! I had so much fun and so much success this weekend, I just didn't want it to end!

~Lisa

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