So shiny.

So shiny.

For today’s DIY, we’re going to be channeling our inner Lisa Franks to create some of our very own glitter art! Lisa Frank is pretty much the reason why I (and countless others, I’m sure) am obsessed with all things glittery and rainbow-hued. I felt that this project would be a fitting homage to her genius. It’s also a great way to add a little extra sparkle to your bedroom walls, locker decor, or any other place in your life that needs to be shinier. And it’s soooo easy to do: You’ll be making dazzling designs in no time!

What you’ll need:

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  • Sticker paper: I’m using Silhouette brand because it has a sturdy base (almost like card stock) and a paper backing that’s excellent for drawing on.
  • Lots of glitter: Glitter sample packs are perfect for this project! They’re usually around $3 to $4 and include just about every color you’ll need.
  • An X-Acto knife
  • A pencil
  • A fine-tip marker
  • Q-tips or paint brush

How to do it:

Step One

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Turn your sheet of sticker paper over so the back side (the side that covers the sticker adhesive) faces you. The paper I’m using in this tutorial is brown with a white backing.

Now, sketch out whatever design you’d like in pencil. If you’re feeling a little uninspired, here are a few things that I think would look amazing in glitter: psychedelic op art patterns, galaxy/space scenes, or pop art–style self-portraits! For my design, I went with a drippy paint brush à la Lisa Frank.

Step Two

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Once you’re satisfied with your pencil sketch, outline it with a fine-tip marker and use colored pencils or pens to fill in your design, kind of like you would in a coloring book. This will help give you a better idea of where you’ll want each color of glitter to go later.

Step Three

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Use an X-Acto knife to very carefully and lightly trace around each line within your design, cutting only through the backing layer of the sticker paper, not the actual sticker paper itself. This might take a bit of practice! I’d definitely try it out on a separate scrap of sticker paper beforehand just to get a feel for it.

Step Four

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Now it’s time to add the glitter! With the assistance of your X-Acto knife, start lifting up and peeling away sections of your design to expose the adhesive underneath. Be sure to only peel away sections of the same color, one color at a time, starting with light colors and adding darker colors last. Silver was the lightest color in my design, so I started by peeling off only the grey areas of my image.

Step Five

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Sprinkle some glitter over the adhesive on each spot where you want that specific color to go.

Step Six

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Spread the glitter over the entire area with a Q-tip or paint brush. You could also just use your fingers, but Q-tips make the process less messy!

Step Seven

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Once you have all areas of your first color glittered, go ahead and tap off the excess glitter.

Step Eight

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Continue peeling away different sections of the design and adding their corresponding shades of glitter until the entire page is filled. If you get a little spillage of another color on top of glitter you’ve already spread, like I did in the above photo, don’t even worry about it! It should come right off the next time you tap away the excess glitter.

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Your shimmering masterpiece is complete! Hang it up in a place where it will get plenty of sun so it can sparkle and shine at all times. ♦