To begin, I purchased all of the supplies needed for this project at national store chains

(Hobby Lobby, Michael’s Crafts, Sam’s Club & Party City),

so if you like this idea, it should be relatively easy to gather what you need.

I absolutely love holiday art, but it’s often hard to find what I like (in stores) so,

once again, I created it myself AND its super simple to do!

First, I created a large, bunny pattern for this new art project.

I taped together two white poster boards, drew a large bunny on them and then, cut it out.

I leaned the finished product against one of my kitchen counters to give you an idea of how big it is (34″ tall x 21″ wide):

At Hobby Lobby, I purchased a HUGE  40″ tall x 30″ wide white canvas (originally$29.99)

for only $17.99 after using one of their 40% off coupons.

I looped several pieces of (easy-to-remove) painter’s tape and lined the edge of the bunny pattern (on the backside)

to hold it in place on the canvas for the next step.

{Looping the tape makes it sticky on both sides.  I tried both short & long pieces & they both took the same amount of time.}

    

I flipped the pattern over and temporarily adhered it to the center of the canvas, positioning it 3″ from the bottom.

I left this 3″ gap because the bottom of the finished bunny will be resting on a bed of faux grass (details below).

         

Outside, in a well-ventilated area and using a protective face mask & gloves,

I painted over the entire canvas with a pretty blue sky color: KRYLON’s Island Splash (in a matte finish)

    

I didn’t worry too much about creating a perfect paint job because

I knew a little white showing would just look like clouds on a beautiful Spring day!

And here’s how the silhouette looked after I peeled off the (easy to remove) bunny pattern.

Now that my art is ready, it’s time to head back inside to place it on my mantel and finish decorating it for Spring & Easter.

But first…. would you like to meet my art assistant?

She’s a very HoPpY, black puppy bunny ~ 18-month old Lilly Grace! ha ha

Along the top of my mantel, I began by adding 2 heights of faux green grass (2″ & 4″ tall).

{Most craft stores carry various styles & heights in squares of faux green grass}

    

I cut the 4″ squares of faux grass into rectangular strips to create a taller, back row on the mantel

which left just enough space for the full-size (10″) squares of the 2″ tall faux grass in front of it.

Doing this creates depth.

Using dots of hot glue from my low-temperature glue gun, I added a few extra touches to my new holiday art:

a length of folded ribbon (from Sam’s Club) and a bow to the bunny’s neck,

a 2nd coordinated ribbon around the edge of the mantel, and

a BIG yellow daisy made the perfect bunny tail.

Then, I leaned the art against the wall, behind the grass.

Next, I added one of my favorite Easter “finds” this year – bright yard eggs (Party City’s 5-piece set, only $8.99) –

by tucking them into the faux squares of green grass.

This egg set is sold as an outdoor decoration

(wouldn’t they be a great inexpensive replacement for those HUGE plastic yard eggs if you’re having trouble finding them),

but you know that I love to change things up!

{HELPFUL “DECORATING” HINT: create the “unexpected” by using decorations in unique ways & places}

By the way, if the eggs won’t stand on their own, when you tuck them into the grass,

lean them against a smaller, hidden object or

with dots of hot glue from a low-temperature glue gun, down in the faux grass.

The finishing touch was a lucky find… a perfectly coordinated S-P-R-I-N-G banner (Michael’s Crafts).

Check out the cheery, finished look…

I hope this design inspires you to try your hand at creating some holiday art of your own

and to use a decoration in an “unexpected” way!

ENJOY THE CREATIVITY!

P.S. #1 – Leave your COMMENT to be entered into our PEEP-themed CONTEST!  I’ll post the prize photo tomorrow and it ends on Friday, April 4th, 2014 at midnight EST.

P.S. #2 –   My bunny pattern is too large to download, so it would have to be printed.  If you’d like to have me add my bunny pattern to my SHOP, please email me. 🙂