How to Order Engineering Prints {Large Map Art}

I’ve had several emails and messages over the past several months asking for specifics about how I ordered the maps hanging in our dining room. They were actually originally one large engineering print which I cut into four separate maps. I thought I would go ahead and walk you through the entire process of exactly how to go about ordering something similar, since this is the perfect way to get large scale art on a major budget. (In fact, I’m doing this in our bedroom too, which I’ll show you soon!)

Large maps (or art in general) can be super expensive, but I found a way around that by ordering engineering prints instead of photo enlargements. An engineering print is basically a blueprint, or a giant black and white photocopy. The resolution isn’t as sharp as a normal photo enlargement would be, but I’m fine with that considering you can get one printed for as little as $1.79. This is also the method I used for this quatrefoil photo wall art, although in that case I uploaded my own photo.

How to Order Engineering Prints of Large Maps

For engineering prints of maps specifically, here’s what you do.

Step 1

Go to the Library of Congress website and either do a general search for the map you want, or click on “Maps & Geography” and select a map. I recommend this site because most of the maps are too old to have copyright protection so they’re fair game, plus there are some really cool old vintage maps to choose from. The only downfall is that maps of many locations you want may not be available. You can search for a specific city, state, county or region; just use different search terms until you find what you need. In my case, I wanted to use maps of my hometown, my husband’s hometown, the city where we met, and the city where we went on our honeymoon. I couldn’t find all of the city maps in the database so I simply printed a vintage U.S. railroad map instead and cut out the areas I wanted. (I believe this is the one I used.)

Step 2

Download the map of your choice in the highest resolution available.

Step 3

Go to Staples.com. (This is not sponsored, I just found their site easiest to order what I wanted.) Click on “Shop by Category” and then “Copy & Print.” Then, click on “Engineering Prints.”

Step 4

Choose a size and click “Design Now”. There are three size options: 18″x24″, 24″x36″, and 36″x48″. They range in price from $1.79 – $7.29. For our dining room prints, I printed one large 36″x48″ print and cut it into 4 separate prints.

Step 5

Choose Engineering Prints in B&W. (There is a color option too but it is more expensive and I haven’t tried it so I don’t know what the quality looks like. Let me know if you try it!) Either option will say “not suitable for photo images,” but that is because the resolution will be more like a big photo copy and not as high quality as a photo enlargement. I’ve printed a photo just fine.

Step 5

Upload your photo. Some of the maps from the Library of Congress website are not high enough resolution to be enlarged, and if this is the case then it will be indicated when you upload it to Staples’ site, and you’ll have to go back to the drawing board and find a higher resolution option on the LOC site to download. (This happened to me a few times.)

Step 6

Enter a “Job Name” (whatever you want your order to be called), and add to cart. Go to “checkout,” and you can have it shipped or arrange to pick it up at your local store.

That’s it! You may have to trim the edges/border when you receive it, but that’s it. I cut mine and inserted the maps into IKEA frames, and with my quatrefoil photo wall art I mounted it on foam board. You could also make your own frame or mount it inside acrylic. There are lots of possibilities!

What type of map would you have printed?

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-Erin

The post How to Order Engineering Prints {Large Map Art} appeared first on DIY on the Cheap by Erin Spain.

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Faux Brick and Plaster Wall

I created a faux brick and plaster feature wall in my craft room.  The whole idea came about because I wanted to reuse the materials I tore out of the un-realized recording studio which included a few sheets of brick paneling.  I wanted to use the material but wanted to make it look:  a.  more like real brick and b.  like a really old brick wall that had been plastered and painted repeatedly over a few decades.  I’ll do my best to explain the process with pictures but have a video as well at the end of this post.

Faux Brick and Plaster

I cut the first sheet of brick paneling and put it in place.  I had to cut out a couple outlets and a light box and those holes came out perfect on the first try.

Which is more than can be said for the second piece.  I cut the holes too high and rather than start over with a new sheet of paneling, I cut out a patchwork or bricks around the light and receptacle…and while I had the jigsaw in my hand, I cut out all the half bricks on the end of the panel.   I knew the seams would hide better this way after plastering but I got lazy on the first section and didn’t do it.  Because I had to recut the light and receptacle holes on this one I went ahead and got fully committed.  All in.  

This is the seam where the two panels meet without weaving the bricks.  It’s a very blunt edge and even if you line the bricks up perfectly, the seam is quite visible.

More so depending on your angle!  I would have taken the first panel down and weaved the bricks on this joint too but I’d used construction adhesive on the edge and just figured I’d make all the other seams perfect and spend more time hiding this one with the plaster.

To cut away the half bricks, I cut on the grout line and then broke the unwanted bricks out.  Breaking it, as apposed to cutting it, created a jagged edge which looks more realistic (in an old brick sort of way).

I applied construction adhesive around the holes and on all the protruding bricks on the seam line and then went ahead and dotted the entire back of the panel because at this point– I’m never taking this brick wall down anyway so why not make good and sure it never budges!

Next I cut a WHOLE BUNCH of single bricks and glued them in where they needed to be.It was a LOT easier to get the hole locations perfect when I was able to cut each brick one by one.  Ultimately I should have pulled that light box forward and reinstalled it on top of the brick but I ignored that thought and just made sure my light will cover the hole I did create.  I don’t generally go the “quick and dirty” route but once in a while…

U used joint compound to fill in the voids and hide my seams.  I had to take a break from the “brick work” to bulk out my window trim since the brick wall will but right up to the moulding.

Once I added the additional moulding pieces, I finished up my brick wall using the same “weaving” method.  It was a lot of stinking work.  I probably could have applied a brick tile on the whole wall in the time it took me to do the paneling but the paneling was a whole lot cheaper at  $20 a sheet.  I used about 3 sheets.

Once I finished the whole wall, I concentrated my efforts on hiding the seams and creating the plaster look.  The weaved seams basically disappeared once filled with joint compound.  

I had to build it up since the voids were so deep.  I smooshed it into the seams, let it dry and then came back and applied a little more where needed.

After the seams were dry I started troweling joint compound over the whole wall to create the “plaster look”.

I did this in stages.  I applied some plaster, let it dry and then went back in and applied some more.  This part is the artistic part where you just get the wall to look however you want.

I applied plaster, then sanded and sponged some away, then came back in and applied some more purposely creating some texture.  I messed with this wall A LOT.

Then I painted it.  Actually it’s just primer because the primer will seal the plaster but it has a really dull, chalky look and will grey over time which is perfectly perfect for the look I’m going for.

After applying priming, I let the primer dry for less than an hour and went back in with a little trowel and scrapped some of the paint back off.  Another layer of the aging process I was going for.  I scraped away just enough to expose some of the brick and plaster underneath.  It looks like the paint is flaking off.

The moisture in the primer dampened the joint compound so the timing on this part is somewhat critical.  I don’t think you’d get the same result if you waited too long.

Now I’ve exposed some of the joint compound again so I need to go back and wash the whole wall with a transparent glaze or something that will seal the wall.   I took way more time than I expected it would to create a faux brick and plaster look, but it’s my feature wall so I had to keep messing with it until it looked right.  Next I’ll focus on finishing my ceiling.  

Video of this process if you’d like to SEE it come together.  

The post Faux Brick and Plaster Wall appeared first on Sawdust Girl®.

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Crafting with Concrete: Atlanta Bloggers Meetup

This past weekend was full of project ideas and inspiration, as well as networking with a small group of fellow Atlanta bloggers as we attended a “Crafting with Concrete” workshop hosted by Jeremy French of Buddy Rhodes Concrete in Covington, GA. We learned so much about working with concrete, and the wheels were turning like crazy with project ideas — I don’t even know where to start!

First of all, we started off by learning how to build a small flowerpot using concrete with styrofoam cups as molds.

The concrete was mixed to a clay-like consistency and pressed into a styrofoam cup, and then another styrofoam cup was pressed inside of that one (on top of the concrete) to form the pot shape. It was so much easier than I would have thought!

There are so many possibilities for things you can make out of concrete, or items you can use as molds.

Check out these awesome pendant lights made out of concrete. This one was made by using a styrofoam ball that had shapes carved in it as a mold.

And this one was made using a big ball from Wal-Mart as a mold.

I loved this sculptural piece — it looks so delicate. We learned about the different fibers you can add to your concrete mixture to add strength.

This concrete chair was so cool.

These concrete dice were made using silicone ice molds.

I can’t wait to try my hand at creating with concrete. You may see some concrete projects from me soon! In the meantime, be sure to check out Buddy Rhodes Concrete for tons of information on working with concrete, as well as ideas, inspiration, and to purchase their artisan concrete and products. It was amazing to see how versatile their concrete is, and the wide range of consistencies you can adapt it to depending on the type of project you’re creating and the look you’re going for.

They also have pigments you can add to create colorful projects, and they will color match a custom shade for you.

This workshop basically showed me that concrete is not a medium to be afraid of — it’s easier to work with than you may think.

So tell me, what would you make out of concrete? And what should I try for my first concrete project?

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links.

If you’re new here, I would love it if you would consider subscribing.

You can also connect with me here:

Thanks for visiting!

-Erin

The post Crafting with Concrete: Atlanta Bloggers Meetup appeared first on DIY on the Cheap by Erin Spain.

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