Average But Inspired

Inspiring creativity at home.

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DIY Reindeer Specimen Art and My Christmas Mantel

If you are sick of Christmas posts around here, I am so sorry.  But I cannot help myself.  This time of year is just SO fun and I have too many projects to share – like this tutorial for the adorable DIY Reindeer Specimen Art that graces my Christmas mantel this year.  Average But Inspired's holiday mantel is filled with thrift store finds and DIY art. Get the tutorial for the fun reindeer specimen art right here!

Plus, I am so excited to be sharing it as part of the Home for Christmas Blog Hop, which is being sponsored by Hometalk.com and CountryLiving.com, and which features some of the most creative bloggers around!  You’ll find links to their posts at the bottom of this post, and I hope you’ll visit some that inspire you!12239913_10153000922871887_8397836905807372844_n

So this year, I knew I wanted to have a kitschy and whimsical look for my holiday mantel.  Life has been too serious the past year, so my house needed some fun.  I started with a plain stretched linen canvas and the rest just fell into place.

First, I used my Silhouette machine to cut nine reindeer head silhouettes on different pieces of Christmas pattern cardstock.  If you don’t have a Silhouette machine, Google “reindeer silhouette,” print an image you like, and trace it onto your cardstock to cut.Average But Inspired's holiday mantel is filled with thrift store finds and DIY art. Get the tutorial for the fun reindeer specimen art right here!
Next, I put a thin layer of Mod Podge onto the backs of each of the reindeer. Average But Inspired's holiday mantel is filled with thrift store finds and DIY art. Get the tutorial for the fun reindeer specimen art right here!
I pressed them onto the canvas and tried to keep them equidistant from one another. It wasn’t perfect but it was close enough! Average But Inspired's holiday mantel is filled with thrift store finds and DIY art. Get the tutorial for the fun reindeer specimen art right here!
Once they were all in place and had dried, I added a thin layer of Mod Podge to the top of each reindeer to seal them into place. Average But Inspired's holiday mantel is filled with thrift store finds and DIY art. Get the tutorial for the fun reindeer specimen art right here!
After that, I glued a red pom pom onto the last reindeer’s face, because obviously Rudolph needs a red nose!  Then I used a green Sharpie to write each of the reindeers’ names, just in case anyone was confused about who was who.  (And yes, I had to Google the song lyrics so I would be sure to spell their names correctly.  Who knew it was “Donner” and not “Donder?”)Average But Inspired's holiday mantel is filled with thrift store finds and DIY art. Get the tutorial for the fun reindeer specimen art right here!

And I love my little reindeer art!  Average But Inspired's holiday mantel is filled with thrift store finds and DIY art. Get the tutorial for the fun reindeer specimen art right here!
It adds such a fun look to my Christmas mantel that’s filled with other DIY art and thrift shop finds. Average But Inspired's holiday mantel is filled with thrift store finds and DIY art. Get the tutorial for the fun reindeer specimen art right here!

Average But Inspired's holiday mantel is filled with thrift store finds and DIY art. Get the tutorial for the fun reindeer specimen art right here!

Average But Inspired's holiday mantel is filled with thrift store finds and DIY art. Get the tutorial for the fun reindeer specimen art right here!
I’m happy every time I look at it.  (My husband – not so much.  He says it’s too cluttered.  But what does he know?)

I’m also happy looking at these other amazing Christmas-inspired posts. I know you will be, too, so go check them out!

-Bre

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Comments

    • Thank you SO much, Roxanne! Yes – you definitely need one. Make sure Santa puts it in his bag for you! 🙂

  8. I love this reindeer canvas art!! It looks fantastic on the mantel, next to the believe sign! And I agree with Roxanne, you can never have too many Christmas posts. 😉 Nice job!!

    Reply

    • Thanks, Kimm! 🙂 I had to make those reindeer special. They needed some pizzaz. 😉 Happy holidays!

    • Thanks, girl! I REALLY wanted to add label holders around the names, but I did not have time to get them before the post went up. That may have to be an after-the-post addition. 😉

  16. This is adorable, Bre! I saw it in pics on another post of yours and didn’t know it was DIY. I remember thinking how cute it was and wondering where you got it. I think your mantel is gorgeous too and definitely not cluttered!

    Reply

    • Aw, thanks, friend! As for the clutter, basically anything I own is clutter. I think my husband would like to live in a jail cell where there is no decor of any kind. 😉

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