custom pillow

Whenever I want something fresh for a space I’ll first look at what I already have. As you know, I have a ton of accessories and even though I’m experimenting with putting them away this month, I pulled a few out for this sponsored giveaway post from Procter & Gamble and The Home Depot. They are holding a #BountyChallenge and their lovely limitation was simply to use Bounty paper towels to clean up a mess.

updated pillow

I have about six white pillows in my house and I love them, but, I’ve realized that I rarely flip them around and the back side seems like a missed opportunity. So I pulled out my acrylic paints, a paint brush, bounty paper towels, a trash bag, and my new favorite paint–that Martha Steward Metallic Glaze from The Home Depot–I’ve had my eyes on it for months. The glaze was just what I was hoping for–opaque enough to be a paint all on it’s own and the perfect shade of gold.

white pillow

dots

dipping

metallic gold paint

My method isn’t very pretty, it’s fast, imperfect and fun. I quickly searched around the house for anything with a small round bottom (insert funny hiney joke here) and dipped it right into my paint, wiped it off on the paper towels and then stamped it onto my pillow cover that still had the pillow inside. I live on the edge. Also, there was a thunderstorm quickly moving my way and I was working outside.

all wrong

I found a measuring scoop with a bigger bottom (insert insulting hiney joke here, that would offend me) and used it to make bigger dots.

paint

Instead of dragging out a huge drop cloth and then getting huge globs of paint that will crack and flake off in the future, I just put down a trash bag and covered my working area with Bounty paper towels. I used the paper towels as part of my mixing area and when I was done I just wadded up the paper towels and threw them away. I didn’t have to fold up a big drop cloth in a special origami type way so that it didn’t stick together with paint or get wet paint on me or my shelves.

dottyness

My favorite part is the drips, naturally.

stripes

I used the same process of no rules for my little pillow. I took the pillow insert out of this one since I wanted a better chance of making straightish lines. I stuffed a garbage bag into the pillow so no paint would soak through. I only had a few coral-y pink colors so I squirted some paint right out on the paper towels and mixed a few different hues to have some extra shades of coral. And then I just painted imperfect lines.

stripes

I’ve been wanting the perfect shade of coral pillows for awhile and even though I knew I could paint some, I have a tendency to imagine things into a bigger project than they are. So for months I put  off creating something because it seemed like too much work to round up the supplies and to do it right. Once I had a challenge (thanks P&G and Home Depot) along with a lovely limitation and a time limit of a fast approaching thunderstorm, I was able to create something that added the imperfection and color I was looking for. I’m not planning on washing my pillows so I didn’t even add in my fabric medium–even though I had it. I just wanted them done and pretty.

diy pillow patterns

 

Here’s a little kick in the hiney for you to do that project that you’ve been putting off. One winner will receive a $250 gift card from Home Depot and two rolls of Bounty paper towels to clean up the mess. Thunderstorm not included.

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Leave a comment about what project you need to attack to enter to win a $250 gift card from The Home Depot and two rolls of Bounty paper towels so you can take the #BountyChallenge. Giveaway ends July 4th, I’ll announce the winner Saturday the 6th.