DIY Sharpie Wallpaper Tutorial (This is Life Changing!)

I am so IN LOVE with today’s project I want to lick my wall.  Remember last week when we chatted about overcoming a major project/idea fail?  This post is what I like to call redemption.  Or DIY Custom Wallpaper…without the paper, or the cost, or the mess for that matter.

For those that are new here is a quick recap.  In my living room I was itching for Southwest/Tribal inspiration.  The original plan didnt work out the way I wanted so I left the walls white.   There is nothing better to brighten a room than white walls.  I had fallen in love with the white, I didnt want to give it up.  Now I have the best of both worlds (sing that in your best Miley Cyrus voice for full effect…)

 

So great right?!!  Here is the best part.  The entire project cost $8.00!  I mean that is like 2 happy meals!!   If you are overwhelmed by stenciling,  wallpaper is too expensive  or want thinner lines that you can get with taping off stripes this project is PERFECT!

Here is what you need:

Yep, that’s it.  A Sharpie paint pen and a straight edge.  Make sure that you are getting a PAINT pen and not just a regular sharpie, and make sure that they are water based.   Did you know that you can paint oil paint over latex but you cant paint latex over oil?  We are using a water based pen for that very reason,  in the future if you want to paint over it you will be able to without re-priming your walls. 

You can find water based paint pens at any craft store (I got mine at Michaels on sale for $2.50)  I used 3 for my wall.

I was inspired by this amazing wall I saw on Apartment Therapy:

I love how this wallpaper looks hand drawn and I love the huge scale of it.  So I took what I loved and gave it my own twist with triangles.

Start by drawing your horizontal lines.  Dont forget to use a level folks.  My lines are 18” apart.  When you are doing a project like this start at the ceiling and work your way down, that way you will end up with a full design at the top and the broken design at the bottom.

Now comes the fun part, the actual design.   First you need to decide how large you want the base of your triangle to be.  I wanted mine taller than wider so I decided on a 12” base.   Find where your starting end is (against a wall or door frame) and alternate marking the full width of your base and 1/2 the width of your base on your horizontal lines.

There are 2 reasons you are doing this.  It is setting the pattern and the spacing (so that the point of the triangle is in the center of the base).

Once you have your starting marks just measure the width of your base from then on (12”)  Lets say you want your triangles to be 8” at the base, you would mark (going down your horizontal lines) at 4”, 8”, 4”, 8”.  And then mark every 8” from those starting points.  Got it?

Now channel your inner 1st grader and using your straight edge connect the dots!

 

Here are a few tips for working with metallic paint pens. 

1.  You have to shake them constantly, what ever it is that makes it metallic looking seems to settle on the bottom.

2.  If it seems like the pen is drying out depress it onto a piece of paper and that will fill the felt tip again.

3.  The paint dries very quickly, but make sure that the line is dry before you cover it with your straight edge because if its not it can smear.

4.  If you flub a line you will have to repaint it and then go again,  you cant wipe the paint pen off without getting a big yellowish smear.

The best part is that you can do a million combinations of patterns and colors .  What about a charcoal wall (like the one I did in the $150 room makeover) with white lines?  Amazing. 

To do the entire wall in my living room I spend 3 hours drawing, which is WAY less time than it takes to stencil, wallpaper, tape, or paint.  This project is perfect if you just need a little spruce up in your house!

Some of the other tutorials I spy in this picture are Love String Art, How To Make A Light From A Bowl, and the always incredible Thrift Store Crewel Art.  If you are wanting more hand drawn inspiration check out Wendy’s traditional wall and Elsie’s off the beaten path wall posts.

So what do you think?  Is this a project you could handle?