Hey friends! I wanted to introduce you to a couple new faces today! Mallory and Savannah are here to share their first DIY project with you. We met them last year and really love their style. We’re so happy to have them here to share a couple projects with you each month!
Acrylic decor is everywhere right now, and since the new year is right around the corner, we thought it was only appropriate to share a really fun calendar tutorial. We were inspired by a lucite calendar we saw online that ran well over $1000, and excuse me, but that is not going to happen. This DIY version works like a dry erase board and can be made in about 2 hours from start to finish. Sounds like a win to me!
Supplies:
–36″ x 30″ acrylic sheet
–2-3/4″ brass-plated connecting bolt (4 pack)
-(4) 1/2″ washers
-(4) 1/2″ copper couplings
-gold spray paint
-black vinyl
-transfer paper and vinyl cutter (optional)
-drill and drill bits (1/4″ drill bit, 1/8″ drill bit, hex-drive bit)
Step One: Spray paint your mounting hardware. Allow to dry while you work on the rest of the project.
Step Two: Using a drill bit, set your drill in reverse* and place a piece of wood behind the acrylic for support. Drill holes in your acrylic sheet about 1″ in from the sides. This will be used for mounting the calendar to the wall.
*Drilling in reverse helps prevent cracking. You do not need speed for this step; drilling in reverse while applying pressure will create the hole. This step is way easier than it sounds, so don’t be afraid to go for it!
Step Three: Cut and apply the vinyl calendar. If you have access to a vinyl cutter, you can create your own calendar using the software that works with your cutter. For our project, we used the Silhouette Cameo with Silhouette Studio software. Download the Silhouette Studio files here:
Calendar top piece
Middle Piece (cut two)
Bottom piece
Note: If you do not have a vinyl cutter, you can easily create the boxes with black vinyl and a pair of scissors. If you choose to do it this way, simply cut 3.5″ strips (about 1/8″ wide) of vinyl to create the boxes for each date. You could also use scrapbook letters (like these) to do the days of the week across the top.
Step Four: Mount your new calendar! It’s time to hang it up. Using a drill bit slightly smaller than your bolt (we used 1/8″ bit since the bolt is 1/4″), pre-drill a hole in the wall. You can use a wall anchor if you’d like, but we didn’t need one.
Feed your bolt through the hole that you drilled into the acrylic sheet, then thread the coupling and washer on the bolt.
Using a hex-drive bit, slowly screw your bolt into the wall. Repeat on the other corners.
Now it’s time to schedule, organize and doodle! Dry erase markers come in so many colors, which makes it really fun! We love how it turned out, and it’s pretty easy to make. This would make a fantastic gift too!
We absolutely love how it turned out and get a ton of use out of it. We actually made two so we each have one our own houses in our offices. We think the plexiglass looks so clean and chic when you pair it with the gold hardware. Isn’t it fun? Can you think of somewhere in your home you could put one? Bet you can! 😉 –Mallory & Savannah
Credits // Author and Photography: Mallory Nikolaus and Savannah Kokaliares. Photos edited with Celeste from The Fresh Collection.
Hey friends! I wanted to introduce you to a couple new faces today! Mallory and Savannah are here to share their first DIY project with you. We met them last year and really love their style. We’re so happy to have them here to share a couple projects with you each month!
Acrylic decor is everywhere right now, and since the new year is right around the corner, we thought it was only appropriate to share a really fun calendar tutorial. We were inspired by a lucite calendar we saw online that ran well over $1000, and excuse me, but that is not going to happen. This DIY version works like a dry erase board and can be made in about 2 hours from start to finish. Sounds like a win to me!
Supplies:
–36″ x 30″ acrylic sheet
–2-3/4″ brass-plated connecting bolt (4 pack)
-(4) 1/2″ washers
-(4) 1/2″ copper couplings
-gold spray paint
-black vinyl
-transfer paper and vinyl cutter (optional)
-drill and drill bits (1/4″ drill bit, 1/8″ drill bit, hex-drive bit)
Step One: Spray paint your mounting hardware. Allow to dry while you work on the rest of the project.Step Two: Using a drill bit, set your drill in reverse* and place a piece of wood behind the acrylic for support. Drill holes in your acrylic sheet about 1″ in from the sides. This will be used for mounting the calendar to the wall.
*Drilling in reverse helps prevent cracking. You do not need speed for this step; drilling in reverse while applying pressure will create the hole. This step is way easier than it sounds, so don’t be afraid to go for it!
Step Three: Cut and apply the vinyl calendar. If you have access to a vinyl cutter, you can create your own calendar using the software that works with your cutter. For our project, we used the Silhouette Cameo with Silhouette Studio software. Download the Silhouette Studio files here:
Calendar top piece
Middle Piece (cut two)
Bottom piece
Note: If you do not have a vinyl cutter, you can easily create the boxes with black vinyl and a pair of scissors. If you choose to do it this way, simply cut 3.5″ strips (about 1/8″ wide) of vinyl to create the boxes for each date. You could also use scrapbook letters (like these) to do the days of the week across the top.
Step Four: Mount your new calendar! It’s time to hang it up. Using a drill bit slightly smaller than your bolt (we used 1/8″ bit since the bolt is 1/4″), pre-drill a hole in the wall. You can use a wall anchor if you’d like, but we didn’t need one.
Feed your bolt through the hole that you drilled into the acrylic sheet, then thread the coupling and washer on the bolt.
Using a hex-drive bit, slowly screw your bolt into the wall. Repeat on the other corners.
Now it’s time to schedule, organize and doodle! Dry erase markers come in so many colors, which makes it really fun! We love how it turned out, and it’s pretty easy to make. This would make a fantastic gift too!
We absolutely love how it turned out and get a ton of use out of it. We actually made two so we each have one our own houses in our offices. We think the plexiglass looks so clean and chic when you pair it with the gold hardware. Isn’t it fun? Can you think of somewhere in your home you could put one? Bet you can! 😉 –Mallory & Savannah
Credits // Author and Photography: Mallory Nikolaus and Savannah Kokaliares. Photos edited with Celeste from The Fresh Collection.
