The Simplest DIY Color Block Art

Editor’s Note: I am so excited to welcome Megan, from Two Live Colorfully, today!  I am always impressed with the way she uses color and graphics in her home and on her blog.  I asked her to contribute to a series we dubbed “Graphics in the House”.  These projects will give you fun and graphic ways to update your decor…and sometimes in a wonderfully frugal way, like today’s project.

Hello oh-so-lovely Teal & Lime Readers!  I just couldn’t be more thrilled to be a part of the new Teal & Lime contributor team. Ever since my husband, Josh, and I moved into our first apartment, I’ve been obsessed with all manners of decorating and DIY-ing. But, when you’re two broke college kids trying to manage school and the bills, spending lots of money on home decor isn’t practical. So, I learned early on how to create fun, customized art and decor for practically nothing, and that principle has just stuck with me.

One of my favorite ways to mix up decor and keep my space fresh is with simple DIY art that can be swapped out over time or during the holidays. Projects like this take up almost no extra space to store and are super inexpensive.

Today, I want to show you how to make this simple DIY color block art. It is crazy easy, 100% customizable, and when you pop this bad boy in a nice frame, it looks totally swanky!

And, bonus: You most likely have all the supplies needed on hand already!

Supplies:

• 5-6 sheets of scrapbook paper
• 1 sheet of card stock cut to fit the opening in your frame (mine is an 8″x10″)
• Scissors
• Double-sided tape

Getting Crisp Lines

When most people see color blocking in art, home decor, or even fashion, the attribute that appeals to them the most is the crispness of the lines between the colors. To get that look effortlessly, use the uncut, factory edge of your scrapbook paper when layering. That way you get perfect, straight lines. Even when I use my paper-cutter, I can’t get edges as straight as they originally were. You’ll see below that I used a piece of gold metallic paper for the accent that was cut into before, so feel free to use your own extra scraps as long as the one or two edges that will be exposed in the finished piece are untouched.

Maintaining Balance with Color and Arrangement

Now, all you have to do is start layering! To keep the piece balanced, I chose to go with three more neutral colors (cream, light blue, and pale pink), two bold colors (navy and lime), and one accent (metallic gold). Of course, you can use any colors you like, but keep in mind that too many bold hues could be overpowering. Let about two-thirds of the entire piece (give or take a little) be anchored with those more neutral shades to keep the art, as a whole, visually balanced.

Start by laying your more neutral “base” color on top of the frame-sized card stock first. Secure with double-sided tape before adding the next layer to avoid any shifting. I like to keep the “lines” between colors long, so you’ll see that I layered most sheets at an angle and tried not to break those lines very often.

Every two sheets or so, I cut the excess paper away from my original 8×10 sheet of card stock to see where the finished borders would be. Doing this will help you visualize the project as a whole and not just a bunch of random sheets of paper splayed out across your table.

Keep layering and securing until your satisfied with the layout. Then, simply do a final trim around the 8″x10″ card stock and secure any loose corners or edges with tape to make sure everything stays together. Pop in a frame and you are done!

The Power of Negative Space to Make Your Art Pop

And, here’s a quick tip to make your DIY art look like a million bucks: use a mat board in your frame! The bigger the better in my opinion. I just love the crisp, white negative space around this project.  It really makes every color, even the cream, pop out at you! It makes the whole project bigger and brighter!

See, easy-peasy! This project would also be gorgeous with varying shades of one color.  Or, you can make several and hang them together as a collection!

If you want to know more about me or see the fun, DIY projects I’m working on, I would be so happy to see you over at Two Live Colorfully. See you next time!