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What we’re Gifting our Neighbors

December 7, 2011

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We already have received a few little gifts from our neighbors and they are cute!  Just the other day there was a knock at the door, and a neighbor boy handed us a roll of wrapping paper with a sweet note attached from his family.  Wrapping paper!  How practical.  How timely.  I love it.  Chris and I have been brainstorming what to gift our neighbors for the past few days and I finally came up with something that I hope they like.  I wanted to give them a little piece of “art” (I use that term loosely) without it being intimidating. 
The first thing I did was format a page on my computer to 3″x5″ (the size of the opening of my mat..wait for it…) and typed their house number.  I made it super, super light and printed it out on thick cardstock:

I bought a gold, metallic marker at Walmart (2 for $.94) and outlined each number with the pen.  I chose to use a marker instead of the gold paint and a brush I had on hand because I knew I could have more control with the marker.  Choosing gold was a no-brainer:

And then filled it in using a swirling motion to create more of a hammered metal effect.  I tried coloring it in with lines on my practice sheet and it screamed “marker!” The circular motion is a lot more refined:

Then I cut it down to size and framed it.

The silvery frame and mat were found at Walmart for $2.96.  The wrong frame could really make this project go from chic to cheap fast, so look around until you find a nice frame that would really complement your project without breaking the bank.

1 down. 10 to go.  Well, 11 to go…I want one for us, too!

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What do you think?

  1. What a cute gift! It’s so sweet that you and your neighbors exchange gifts!

  2. meaganbriggs3 says:

    Oooooo I like this idea!

  3. Won’t you be my neighbor?? ;)

  4. meaganbriggs3 says:

    This is beautiful. I love those metallic pens too! I can’t wait to be a “neighbor” in an actual neighborhood!!!

  5. Oh boy. I want one for our house. Too bad we move so frequently and our house number is constantly changing… Love this!

  6. Jane Metcalf says:

    you’re incredible! this is a genius idea. gosh.

  7. I think this project with an anniversary date instead of a house number could also work. Just a thought. ;)

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