DIY Canvas Art Inspired by American Home™ by Yankee Candle®

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #LoveAmericanHome #CollectiveBias

“Smell is a potent wizard that transports you across thousands of miles and all the years you have lived.”
― Helen Keller

That quote pretty much sums up the emotion that the fragrance of a warm pumpkin pie baking in the oven, a sweet, crisp fresh apple or freshly washed clothes hanging from the laundry line gives you, doesn’t it?  You’re taken back to your childhood, to Grandma’s house, to your best friend’s kitchen or to summer afternoons in the backyard.Pumpkin Pie Candle - American Home Yankee Candle There’s something comforting about the fragrance of home.  It makes you feel safe, confident, secure.  I remember when I moved out on my own the first time I was torn between being excited and anxious.  This weekend my daughter will be setting up home with some roommates for the first time herself.

Apartment living doesn’t afford the luxury of being able to paint or change things the way you’d like, but small touches can make a sterile place feel more like home.  Splashes of color can be put on the wall with art pieces and rooms can feel cozy with fragrances that evoke memories and warmth.With that in mind, I wanted my daughter to be able to make their apartment feel like home right from day one.  Walmart is a convenient place for us to stop at, so we went to buy a few things for move in day.  We were delighted to find these new American Home™ by Yankee Candle® jars in the Home and Candle section of Walmart. American Home by Yankee Candle After checking out every fragrance 🙂  She finally settled on getting 2 of the 12oz Medium 2-Wick Tumbler Candles, one in Ginger Pumpkin Pie and the other in Fresh Apple and a 12oz Medium Apothecary Jar Candle in Classic Denim.  Each of these American Home™ by Yankee Candle® selections are just $10.93.American Home Yankee CandleAs we were making our way through the rest of the store aisles she found some art work that she wanted to purchase to hang on the living room walls.  Unfortunately it was out of her budget.  But mom had an idea!  I was pretty sure that we could recreate that art work ourselves, using the American Home™ by Yankee Candle® fragrances as inspiration.

I was really excited about this because it’s been a long time since Amber and I have done ‘arts & crafts’ together 🙂  We picked up some canvases, painter’s tape, paint and other supplies to make some drab walls feel more like home.

When we arrived home, she got right to work!  It’s fairly simple to make your own art on a pre-made canvas.

If you want a specific pattern on the canvas, just use painters tape to block off what you would like to stay white.  In our case we were wanting a background that looked like shingle tiles.  So we cut pieces of painter’s tape in strips and then we had some chevron tape that we taped onto the canvas.  The art work we were trying to recreate also had a house shape on it, so my daughter free-hand drew that on the canvas and then taped it all up with the painter’s tape.DIY art canvas using Frog TapeThen I took some periwinkle spray paint that was inspired by the American Home™ by Yankee Candle® Classic Denim fragrance and spray painted that whole canvas.  I let the initial coat dry and then did it a few more times.20320322698_e19f597e72_zWhen it was dry we removed the tape.  Then I put a layer of Modge Podge on the house shape.Inspired again by the candles, we used some vinyl and my Silhouette machine to cut out our text phrase to put on the house and to make some hearts for the chimney.DIY Canvas ArtNo worries if you don’t have a die cutting machine.  The words can be painted on, you can use stamps, stencils or even alphabet stickers to achieve the same effect.

This DIY art canvas so encapsulates the idea behind American Home™ by Yankee Candle®.  A product line built on quality from a trusted name, with lasting, full fragrance from top to bottom that you love to have in your home.  Of course it’s always important to follow the instructions on the product for safe use.  You’ll find them on the bottom of the candle, please follow them VERY carefully.  While Amber was off doing some other things in her room, I decided to make one more canvas as a surprise for her.  Again I used my Silhouette machine and vinyl for this one, but it’s easily replicated with paint and stencils or stickers as well.

I first put a layer of Modge Podge over the top of the entire canvas so that the vinyl would adhere better.  If you are using stickers you will probably want to do the same thing.  You can skip that step if you are going to use stencils and paint.

I wanted to keep with the color palate of the candle fragrances she chose.  I cut out different words in the phrase in those colors and then placed them on the canvas, rubbing firmly to make sure they were well adhered.  It was pretty simple to do but it will make a big statement when we put it on their wall on move in day!I know those girls are going to make a lot of memories this year.  When they’re my age and they crunch down on a sweet, red apple, take their jeans off the clothesline or sit down to dessert for Thanksgiving dinner, I bet those fragrances will bring them back to their sophomore year in college when they had their first apartment. The year they made their apartment…home, which they built with love & shenanigans and knew that’s where their friends were.I’ve shared how  the new American Home by Yankee Candle® brand at Walmart inspired us to make a drab apartment home, now tell me which room in your home could use an American Home by Yankee Candle® fragrance makeover the most!

8 thoughts on “DIY Canvas Art Inspired by American Home™ by Yankee Candle®

    1. Thank you! And isn’t it great that now you can just get them at Walmart with this American Home™ collection? No more having to go to the mall!

  1. Ginger pumpkin sounds AWESOME…pumpkin is one of my favorite scents, and I agree with Hellen Keller about what a wonderful scent can do to us.

  2. What a warm and welcoming piece of artwork! The Ginger Pumpkin Pie sounds like a yummy smell! 🙂

  3. This is a nice way to showcase your candles. I love candles especially during the holidays and special occasions!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.