The Art of Mother's Day

Mother's Day is an awkward holiday, don't you think?  How do you sum up all your feelings of "thanks for changing my diapers, feeding me, driving me to soccer practice, coming to my track meets, and being supportive of me for the past 25 years" into one single day?  What kind of gift could there possibly be to show that kind of appreciation?

When you're little, homemade cards do the trick.  Here are a few from Buzzfeed to enjoy.  They make me want to be a mom.

But at some point you grow out of that stage.  My brother, sister, and I depended on Dad to pick out a gift for Mom.  I remember one year we got her a frying pan.  She wasn't thrilled.  Sorry about that, Mom.

I have probably been less than thoughtful the past couple Mother's Days because I have no idea what I gave, besides a phone call and hopefully a card.

But this year, with lots of time and no job, I was forced to get a little creative.  These wine glass flowers are popular at the craft fairs around here, so I thought I'd give it a try.

I started out with a wine glass (I got four in a box for only $7 from Marshall's).  I purchased some Folkart enamel paint for only $1 each.  The enamel paint looks like normal acrylic, but is specifically meant for glass and ceramics.

The whole key here is just layering your paint.  I started out with leaves at the bottom of the glass.

Then the center of the flower.  I put on some green dots, waited about 5 minutes for it to dry, then went on with a yellow center.

I used painter's tape to make sure the petals I painted would all be even.

For some reason, the pink paint didn't go on very opaque-ly.  It took two coats.  I took off the the tape and touched up the ends of the petals.

The enamel paint takes 21 days to cure, or you can put them in the oven, turn it to 300 degrees, let it heat for 30 minutes, then let it cool off in the oven.  I didn't have 21 days, so I went the oven route.

And here's the final product.

Cute, right?  (Oh, I put a layer of glitter on the bottom of the glass.)  

Obviously, the 30 minutes I spent on this wine glass still don't begin do justice for all the "thank you"s I owe to my and Stephen's mothers.  But hopefully it will make some relaxing time more enjoyable... draw a bath, read a book, drink some wine... enjoy the flower.  Know that we love you and wouldn't be where we are without you. 

Happy (belated) Mother's Day!

posted by Emma