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June 23, 2011

Stars and Stripes Forever - Specimen Art



4th of July is just around the corner, and I can't believe it!  It is such a fun holiday here in New England.  Our family loves going down to sit on the banks for the Charles River in Boston and watch the world famous fireworks while the Boston Pop's Music plays!
A few months ago, I saw this post at Nifty Thrifty Things about making easy little 3D paper stars.  This was also about the time that blogland seemed to be inundated with specimen art of every kind :)  So, my mind immediately went to the idea of making star specimen art for a bit of 4th of July decor. 

I started by making a stack of little red, white and blue stars, using the Nifty Thrifty Things tutorial - and they are very quick to make.

Then, I wracked my brain for a way to display them.  Luckily, I had taken apart a picture frame for another recent project, and had this mat leftover.  Score!

I took a piece of white cardstock, big enough to fit behind the mat, and hot glued rows of stars to fit inside the mat. 


I toyed with the idea of handwriting my words - but I'm a bit of a perfectionist :)  Why write it when a Silhouette can cut it out perfectly?  So, with my Silhouette, I cut the words "Stars and Stripes Forever" in vinyl and stuck those onto the mat.

Then, I taped the cardstock to the back of the mat - so the stars fit inside the mat...

Aw yeah!  I hot glued a piece of blue ribbon to hang it - and that is it!  I love it! 
Remember, that you can get just the mat (without a picture frame) at the craft store... I love using a mat without a frame for these inexpensive little projects. 


Happy Birthday America!
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12 comments:

  1. This is too cute! I love all things patriotic! Thanks for sharing!

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  2. What a cute idea to use the stars! It makes for a perfect 4th of july decoration!!
    Was it as addicting to you as it was to me? ;)
    Hugs from Germany,
    Vanessa @ {nifty thrifty things}

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  3. Wow! That's pretty amazing. I love those stars. You did such a great job on this. Thanks for sharing.

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  4. Oh wow - too cute!! I love the little paper stars!! What a great piece of Specimen Art!! Thanks so much for linking up to Think Pink Sundays! ;)

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  5. how cute is this love it come see what we shared at http://shopannies.blogspot.com

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  6. So cute! I love how it turned out!! Thanks for the tutorial!!
    www.karismaheartsavannah.blogspot.com

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  7. This is so cute! Love the idea! It came out great!
    Thanks for sharing.
    Hope to see you on my blog:)

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  8. Like all of the other posters, I think these stars are great! I can see them being used for all kinds of projects. Love them as a patriotic holiday decoration. Your framed idea is a great one! Thanks for sharing!

    Leslie

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  9. The Creative Bloggers' Party & Hop has grown for the better because of your participation. Thanks for linking up this great post! :)

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  10. This is a super cute project! Thanks for sharing.

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  11. So fun and festive. You did a fantastic job. I hope you will link this up to my Patriotic Project Parade!

    http://www.itsybitsypaperblog.com/2012/06/patriotic-project-parade-linky-party.html

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