Do you have a dad?
I have a dad.
And boy, is he the HARDEST person in the WORLD to shop for. Birthdays, Christmas, Father's Day -- it's SO hard to come up with something unique to give him. I usually end up getting the latest MoTab CD or a framed picture of him and me. But there is only so much room for photos! So I decided to get a little creative and make him something special.
Music is such a huge, important, special part of my life. Not only is a part of my life, but it's a part of my dad and me's life. Countless nights growing up I would play the piano and he would fall asleep in my grandma's rocking chair next to the piano (or was it me keeping him up with late night piano songs?? I forget!). One of our favorite Hymns is I Believe in Christ. I wanted to somehow frame this song and give it to him as his gift. I found a way to "antique" paper and, using some vinyl and an inexpensive Walmart frame, made this:
Want to antique your own paper? It is super easy! Here's how:
Materials
Paper you want to antique
1/3 cup of hot, black coffee
(I'm not a coffee drinker, so I don't have this on hand. I suggest just buying one cup of to go coffee -- voila!)
One cookie sheet
Basting brush (easy to use on hand in the kitchen, or a sponge brush will work, too)
Paper Towels
Oven
Instructions
Preheat oven to 200 degrees.
Crumple up the piece of paper into a ball. Semi-smooth it out and place on cookie sheet.
Pour coffee over paper. Use brush to cover evenly. Leave some heavier spots for a more unique look.
Let sit for a few minutes. Then, use paper towels to blot up all excess liquid.
"Bake" paper in oven for about 5 minutes. Be sure to keep a close eye on it, so you don't start the paper on fire!
Remove from oven and VOILA! Paper that looks like Ben Franklin himself wrote it.
Have fun aging!
