Y’all know me with handmade pottery….I can’t resist.  Like it calls my name.  First and last.  With a little giggle and a coo and a shoulder shrug that says “let’s not play games…..because Katie, you will lose every time.”  And then I’m pretty sure it does the bend-and-snap.  That’s right. Those cocky little handmade ceramics get me every single time.

So when I was invited to participate in a really fun Anthropologie knock off party, I felt like this was a perfect opportunity to try my hand at making my own creations inspired by their dish ware.  Ever since seeing this post over on A Beautiful Mess, I’ve been itching to try to paint some white plates.

And these Wildflower Study plates are literally like pieces of art….

Jen Garrido is the artist for these and let’s be up front and honest….this can not be duplicated.  Her artwork is STUNNING.  And ridiculous in all the right ways.

But for me, this was more about trying a new art medium and seeing how much fun it could be.  So that being said…I decided that I would do this project the cheapest I could (since it’s more than just one plate to make a set…things could add up quick!) and I found similar edged plates at World Market.  Here is the link.

The paint I chose is a multi pack.  CLICK HERE for the direct link.  I figured that if I hated this project completely and was too embarrassed to talk about it, at least I would have color choices to try something else.

I set up my station during naps and got to it.

First…the Anthro plate looks like watercolor…and these paints are definitely not watercolors.  So that made things a little sketchy.  After the paint was dry (the directions said to wait 2 days but I was like nah, we are good), you pop the painted plate into the oven at 325 degrees for 30 minutes.

But in the end, the wildflower theme was still present.  And I was happy with the way it turned out.

Since these are fast drying acrylics, I think that designs like this one are harder to do.  If I had to go back to try again, I would probably try a design similar to this, or this.  Overall…the painting part is really fun.

And the art of painting your own plates is one that is very relaxing.  So if nothing else, it’s like therapy for your soul that serves up snacks later 🙂

And now for the best part….this fun doesn’t need to end!  There are four other bloggers that played along!  We all picked items from Anthropologie to knockoff and now you can hop around and see those and tell them that I sent you!

HANGING LETTER HOLDER by THAT’S MY LETTER

DIY CHEESE BOARD by THE HOUSE OF WOOD

DINNER PLATE by BOWER POWER BLOG

MACRAME DISH TOWEL by THE CHRONICLES OF HOME

PAINTED TEA TOWEL by PLACE OF MY TASTE