Vintage Ironing Board ART
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Do you remember the vintage ironing board I picked up last month? I got it at a church yard sale for $5.00. (My personal limit when I thrift)
I had no idea what I was going to do with it. When I was looking at it, the lady said “do you need an old ironing board”? I told her, that I didn’t need one, but I was going to buy it anyway. 
I found an image from Karen @ the graphics fairy. Did you know that you can print oversized images from your own printer? I didn’t, so I googled it. You don’t have to google it, I’ll tell you how to do it.
I opened the picture, and told it to print. When the print menu popped up, I went into the “options” or “settings” menu. From there I chose page layout. I chose Multi-Page– Poster Printing. You can see that I chose 2×2. I also choose to do a print preview BEFORE printing option. For my printer, that is located under the Advanced tab.
Here you can see that it will print out on 4 pieces of paper. After the 4 pieces print, you just trim them a little and tape them together. Easy Peasy! You can thank me later! I love sharing what I learn with you guys!
I taped my four pieces together, then trimmed away all the extra paper. I taped the dress from on the ironing board. I have a very colorful beach towel underneath it because I didn’t want it to scratch my DIY Kitchen Island.
I used a ball point pen to trace the lines which left an impression on the wooden ironing board. I used some black craft paint and a small paint brush to paint the lines on the ironing board.
I was so busy painting, I guess I didn’t take any “in progress” pictures.
This is the step that I may regret. I got another image from Karen @ the Graphics Fairy. I liked the image but I don’t think I did a very good job transferring it and painting it. However, in the spirit of “keeping it real” I show you everything, whether I like it or not.
I laid the ad on the board, and taped of the correct size.
Then I painted it the best matching color I had. I got very busy transferring the image with a ballpoint pen-then painting over those lines, and again, I didn’t take any pictures.
I was not thrilled with the end result. I am not a very good detailed painter.
At this point, I’m liking the dress form, but the advertisement? Not so much.
I thought it was too new looking, so I took some sandpaper to it.
I may or may not be finished with this project. The advertisement does show up better than it does in pictures. I have gotten an enlargement of the original image from the nice people at Staples. I may sand off the image that I painted and decoupage the enlarged ad on it. I’m open to suggestions.
I felt I could go two different ways with this ironing board. I could focus on the laundry room, or a sewing room. I sort of thought in my neck of the woods, a seamstress might go for it before someone would want it for their laundry room. I still need to corral the legs on the back and add some hardware on it in case someone would like to hang it on their wall for art.
gail
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I love this iron board. and the detail you put on it is amazing! so pretty. I’d love for you to link up to my feature friday link up. http://www.blissfulanddomestic.blogspot.com
Love the dress form!
Thanks for the tip on printing. I didn’t know it could be done like that.
This is just too cool! Love that dress form image! Following you from my new blog (used to be onecheapbitch.blogspot). =)
Jeanine
I read this yesterday. VERY cute idea. I have 3, yes THREE of these vintage wood ironing boards. I need to get crackin’ on them. The dress form idea is great!!!
I have nothing to add but to tell you how much I love your project. The time you have taken to transfer and paint the image has resulted in a beautiful item.
question about the decupage option, how did you get it printed to be able to deupage it? does laiser jet/toner work to be able to use glue on without it smearing like an inkjet would?
i have so many awsome things i could make and do once i learn the limitations of diferent printers (i have considered next time i get some spending money to perhaps buy a b&w laiserjet for projects if i find it can do tons of projects (like decupage, pre made paint by number typ things ext, currently i make my cards using a inkjet with faint lines for outlines but have to do it so very light since my markers will smear the ink otherwise)
And I didn’t mean to write “white triangle” I meant “white rectangle” sorry to confuse 🙂
-Stefanie
Opinion time? The dress form came out great. However, you chose a very difficult ad to copy. The lettering is complicated and the shading on the thread isn’t simple either. To keep with your idea I would start over on the ad. I’d paint a white triangle as that’s the type of background I think of with old ads. For the letters I would use your silhouette and pick a font or two you like and either put the vinyl straight on or use as a stencil. I would only decoupage the image of the thread itself. Enjoy the process, whatever you do or don’t do 🙂
-Stefanie
2ndChanceCreations.etsy.com
Looove the dress form on it, not so much the pink background for the ad. But some of the ladies really have awesome ideas to fix it. Can’t wait to see, if and how you will change it.
Hugs,
Sue
I have an antique ironing board that I use as an ironing board. It is so solid and stable, I love it.
Love the idea. I really like the dress form. And thanks for showing how you did that. I will be using that info soon. As for your project here is my two cents worth of a suggestion. I would get rid of the add you currently have. It doesn’t add or bring the two together in my opinion and I think perhaps that is why you don’t like it. What you might do is go to dafont.com and pick a really cool old font and come up with something like, “Laundry Service 5 cents” I don’t know you come up with it. Than use the same process and paint that where you have the add perhaps a diagonal and coming up to the dress form. I would than get some brown wax polyurethane or some glaze and distress it a little. Can’t wait to see what you end up doing. Good luck!
Thanks for the ‘how to’ enlarge and print 4 pages of one picture. Great idea for ironing board – getting the legs to stay in place and a hanger is a good idea too.
I think Dianne had some great ideas. And I agree with either bringing more pink in, or toning it down all together. Great work! I still haven’t tackled either of my ironing boards yet!
Hi, Gail.. I love the dress form but not really feeling the advertisement,, but I know you’ll think of something great to do it. Thanks for the how-to on printing,, I needed that.
You’ve gotten a lot of good suggestions, so I just want to say that I LOVE IT! I have a child size wood ironing board and I think I might have to paint something on it!
Thank you for the printing tutorial~that’s some great information.
I love this idea. I think the pink is what is off for me. I like the graphic wood/black dress form and would like the ad without the color. Attaching wire would be very cute, too. Another great after by Gail. I’d buy this and the percolator lamp and a million other things. I’m so glad you live far away from Seattle. I’d really be broke.
I love the dress form!!! What about some cool quote on the bottom or just some fancy swirls? Not a fan of the ad sign…
I love it! Thanks so much for explaining how to enlarge a picture from printing. I’ve done it other ways, but this is far easier! You teach me so much!
Maybe the color background color of the ad is throwing you off? I like it with the dress form, but it makes the whole thing seem kind of bottom heavy. Maybe you could find some scrap fabric in a similar color and make a little fabric flower to glue to the dress form. Kind of like a corsage. Anyhoo, I love the concept and think it was ingenious putting the dress form on the board! I can’t wait to see what you do with it!
Love this! I didn’t know about printing off a design in sections, that one is going in my memory bank! Thanks for another one of your amazing projects!
I “passed” on one of these ironing boards at a garage sale and have kicked myself ever since…what you have done is adorable!
Did you know that you could use a good ol’ Sharpie to do your “painting”. How do I know? Because I just did it on my table project. Started to use paint and a tiny brush but because it was taking so long I have ZERO patience, I decide to use a Sharpie instead…worked like a charm!
Thanks for the image enlargement tutorial, I can’t wait to give this a try as well!
first, thank you for the enlarged pictures tute. I may not need it but you know I have to try it. I could get carried away.
I agree that you’ll find more potential seamstresses than laundresses.
The pink is a bit much for me (in the photos) so depending on what it looks like in real life I might tone that down, lighten it up. I liked the suggestion of carrying it through onto the dress form, continuity.
Maybe a bit of dimention would also add something, but as for your artisitic talents – you have no compliants from here. I think “imperfections” make any art work more interesting.
Thanks for that great tip Gail… I have to remember that one for sure.
I like the decoupage idea too… I think the pink colour is throwing me off … love the dress form.
Can’t wait to see what you come up with.
Hugs, Deb
Diane had some great ideas. I like the dress form and also the idea of using some wire on the lines…very different. The ad maybe I would decoupage on. Great project!
I’m liking the idea to keep it simple, like Susan said. I also like the aged decoupage idea from Jackie.
The tute on how to transfer the larger image is a great tip. Thanks for sharing it!
Nicely done Gail, I would have liked it with just the dress form, but it is nice with the ad on the bottom also…It would look great hanging in the laundry or sewing room..
Great job & Thanks for sharing the tutorial… very helpful
I love the personal limit on thrifting! I can get so carried away 🙂
I like the older look, I think the color was bothering you. Granny may have the perfect idea…you could tape it from the underside and just look at now and then to decide if that is better.
I would decoupage the ad on it and then age it. I love the dress form and bet it will sell right away.
This is fantastic! I’m about to do something similar (with an old headboard though) and was thinking how I was going to get the image I want on there! Thank you Gail and your ironing board looks gorgeous!
Hi Gail,
First of all…. great idea! And thanks so much for the tute on how to enlarge a picture, that will come in very handy! I love the way the dress form came out, but you’re right about the sign. I think I would sand off the sign and just paint, black maybe, a simple square at the bottom, or not if it sands off without leaving a mark… and write LAUNDRY…. really simply.
I love your project!
Susan
I really think it looks cool! Great idea!
i definitely like it with the ad- i think it needs something without it. really cool idea and i love the design you chose for it!
i definitely like it with the ad- i think it needs something without it. really cool idea and i love the design you chose for it!
I would put the ad on it instead, and maybe have it look antiqued with stain or something like that. and to be honest, i might even go as far as putting some wire over all the lines to give it dimension. attach it with one of those staplers you use to put up christmas lights the ones that have the rounded top, but aren’t too large. easy for me to say because i am not doing it, i guess.