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Why Knowledge Isn’t Really Power

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My daughter likes to tell me that times have changed since I was a little girl; life seemed simpler, communities more tight knit, and school less intrusive.

  • Pencil sharpeners, car windows, and can openers were manual.
  • Mom and Dad could trust that I would come home when the street lights came on.
  • At only 8 years-old, I could ride my bike for miles and miles without my parents worrying.
  • My sister and I spent the entire summer outdoors, climbing plumb trees and picking berries.
  • Waiting for photos to be developed was almost as exciting as Christmas – Each photo flipped was like a tiny sparkler celebration of unexpected joy.
  • Slip N Slides held enough summer fun for an entire afternoon.
  • A carefully dug hole became a homestead for my imaginary family, complete with mud pies and grass salad.
  • School projects forced me into a library of Encyclopedia Brittanica.
  • Television watching was for rainy days, but even on those, I preferred rain dancing over Punky Brewster.
  • Sheets weren’t for sleeping, but for outdoor fort building.
  • Joy came wrapped in Tootsie Roll pops from the candy store.

Yes, times have changed, especially in regard to how we acquire knowledge.

Knowledge Is Power

I remember sitting in my classroom, just a young girl of 10.  I was waiting for school to end and I sat forward in my desk, staring toward the front of the room at a poster.  “Knowledge is Power” was written in bold, black letters.  I didn’t stop and think about what that meant, but in the years to come, I continued to see this written on the walls of my classrooms.

Challenging Claims

As an adult, I reflect more on what I learned as a child.  Your perspective changes as you add more experience holes onto your life belt.  You start to question things you were taught – whether they were accurate or misleading.

Do you ever challenge what you were taught?  Like knowledge being power.  Is it?

Sure, acquiring knowledge has given me the power to challenge the claim that knowledge is power, but there has to be more to it than that.

Challenging Knowledge as Power

Sometimes I recognize themes in my life.  The theme may last an entire season or just a day.  Recently, when I woke up, I saw a Facebook post I had written from a couple years prior.  It said this:

There are two types of wisdom: The first is Human Wisdom (James 3:15), which is earthly (limited to man’s reasoning), natural (part of us that desires our will and our way), and demonic (its root is found in Satan himself). The second is Godly Wisdom (James 3:17), which is pure (perfect), peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial, and sincere. Why would you not choose the second?

It got me thinking; knowledge may be powerful, but it can also be harmful if used inappropriately.  In contrast to the good ole’ days, you can find just about anything you want to know through the internet.  Gone are the days of having to search through Encyclopedia Britannica’s.  From self-help books to T.V. shows, to articles and blog posts, knowledge is plentiful!

This is where the caveat lies.  If I could add to those Knowledge is Power signs, they would read:

Knowledge is power when rooted in wisdom.” – Lettered Roots

Knowledge is not the problem today.  People are consuming information left and right.  The problem today is that knowledge is not rooted in wisdom.  When wisdom is not used in conjunction with knowledge, that’s where problems arise.

Knowledge With Wisdom

How to Use Knowledge With Wisdom

So how does one use knowledge with wisdom?  It starts with a shift in your mindset.  It requires that you stop trying to do things with your own strength and instead, rely on the one who created wisdom in the first place!

The root of wisdom is to fear the Lord, and the branches thereof are long life. Ecclesiastes 1:20

Fearing the Lord doesn’t mean cowering down in a corner, shaking like a leaf.  It means having respect and awe for Him.  It means pressing into and leaning on Him daily.

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline. – Proverbs 1:7

It’s going to take some time and effort, but if you really want to use knowledge wisely, it requires the sacrifice of spending time in God’s Word.  Just like brushing your teeth becomes a habit and necessity, you will find over time, that spending time in God’s Word becomes a habit. What began as a sacrifice will become like a cool drink of water on a humid summer day.  You will begin to crave spending time with Him.

 

 

 

 

 

Are you relying on your own strength?

Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be still wiser; teach a righteous man, and he will increase in learning.  -Proverbs 9:9

You must be willing to take correction from others and allow yourself to grow.  You have an entire book of wisdom at your fingertips.   While the rest of the world may see Godly wisdom as a weakness, I challenge you to tell me stories of when Godly wisdom failed.

Walk in wisdom today.

 

 

How to Make the Only Pie Crust You’ll Ever Need

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I don’t know about you, but I’m not a huge fan of pie.  Shocker, right?  The only way I’ll eat it, is if the crust is superb.  I’ll eat graham cracker crust or buttermilk pie’s buttery, thin, crumbly crust though.

It wasn’t until I was tasked with making my boyfriend some buttermilk pie, that I started experimenting with different pie crusts.  Then I found the trick – vodka!

Vodka creates a flaky crust worthy of a Blue Ribbon.  If you’re a fan of flaky crust, you’ll want to hang on to this recipe.

Flaky Pie Crust

Start by preparing your ingredients.  You’ll want to take your cup of unsalted butter and cut it into small cubes.  These cubes are going to be combined with the flour and salt to create a crumbly dough.

Best Pie Dough Recipe- Butter Chunks

After your butter has been cut into chunks, place your flour, salt, and half your butter chunks into a food processor and pulse.

Best Pie Dough Ever! Pulse Butter and Flour!

After you’ve pulsed half your butter chunks, incorporate the rest of your butter chunks and pulse until chunks are pea-sized.  Then, you’ll want to add your vodka and ice water to the mixture and pulse again until crust becomes crumbly.

Vodka Pie Crust

Once crust has a crumbly consistency, split dough into two chunks, roll into balls, cover with saran wrap, and place in refrigerator for 1 hour.

Vodka Pie Crust

After dough has been refrigerated for one hour, take dough out and roll into two separate dough circles.  One should be approximately 13 inches and the other one should be 10 inches.

Vodka Pie Crust- Roll Dough

Once dough is rolled, it is ready to be placed into your pie pan and filled with your favorite filling!  I love using this dough for pot pie.  Brush it with an egg and milk mixture and it creates the most beautiful, golden top.

Prepare Vodka Pie Crust

That’s it!  Pie making at it’s best!  I hope you enjoy it as much as my family and I do.


Print Recipe
 The Only Pie Crust You'll Ever Need
If you're looking for a flaky, flavorful, meld-to-your-filling pie crust, this is what you've been looking for! It's the only recipe I use!
Flaky Pie Crust
Prep Time 15 minutes
Servings
pie
Ingredients
Prep Time 15 minutes
Servings
pie
Ingredients
Flaky Pie Crust
Recipe Notes

In a food processor, combine the flour and salt.  Then, add half the butter chunks.  Pulse until butter starts to combine with flour and salt.  Then, add remaining butter chunks.  Pulse again until butter chunks are pea-sized.  Add vodka and ice water and pulse again until dough has crumbly consistency.

Remove dough from food processor, roll in a ball, and cut in half.

Roll each half into balls and wrap individually in saran wrap.

Place both dough balls in the refrigerator for 1 hour.

After refrigeration, remove dough and roll out on lightly floured surface.  If dough is too crumbly, add a small amount of water.  If dough is too wet, add a bit more flour.

Roll one ball into a 13 inch circle and the other into a 10 inch circle.

 

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The Truth About You That You Need to Hear Now

by Filed Under: Family Life, Uncategorized 17 Comments

The Truth about You that You Need to Hear

With Mother’s Day approaching quickly and spending an entire week studying the book of Ruth, my mind has been centered on virtuous women.  I even did a post recently about my mother’s hands and how much she inspires me to want to do good.

This naturally led me to Proverbs 31 and honestly, I got really discouraged for a minute.  I don’t think men realize how much of a battle it is for women when it comes to comparison.

We compare our bodies, our children, our wardrobe, we compare our homes, our food, our shoes, the love for our men, our organizational skills, our kindness, our productivity, etc.  Our minds just don’t stop and everything connects together.  A man’s mind..well..most things are independent of each other.  It’s really challenging for them to understand why women get so overwhelmed.




There is a lot of pressure for women to be Pinterest women, Pinterest moms, Pinterest wives.  And as I started reading Proverbs 31 – typical for this time of year – I started wailing on myself for not living up to all of those expectations.  I was falling short here and falling short there. I wasn’t good enough here and kinda good there.

I mean, check out this list:

The Proverbs 31 Woman Checklist

  • Her husband trusts her without reserve and never has reason to regret it.

  • Never spiteful.  She treats him generously all her life long.

  • She shops around for the best yarns and cottons, and enjoys knitting and sewing.

  • She’s like a trading ship that sails to faraway places and brings back exotic surprises.

  • She’s up before dawn, preparing breakfast for her family and organizing her day.

  • She looks over a field and buys it, then, with money she’s put aside, plants a garden.

  • First thing in the morning, she dresses for work, rolls up her sleeves, eager to get started.

  • She senses the worth of her work, is in no hurry to call it quits for the day.

  • She’s skilled in the crafts of home and hearth, diligent in homemaking.

  • She’s quick to assist anyone in need, reaches out to help the poor.

  • She doesn’t worry about her family when it snows; their winter clothes are all mended and ready to wear.

  • She makes her own clothing, and dresses in colorful linens and silks.

  • Her husband is greatly respected when he deliberates with the city fathers.

  • She designs gowns and sells them, brings the sweaters she knits to the dress shops.

  • Her clothes are well-made and elegant, and she always faces tomorrow with a smile.

  • When she speaks, she has something worthwhile to say, and she always says it kindly.

  • She keeps an eye on everyone in her household and keeps them all busy and productive.

  • Her children respect and bless her; her husband joins in with words of praise.

  • Charm can mislead and beauty soon fades.  The woman to be admired and praised is the woman who lives in the Fear-of-God.

Okay, so I don’t have a husband, I don’t know how to knit, I don’t sail and bring back exotic surprises, you can’t get me up before dawn and my 12 year-old makes her own breakfast and lunch, I don’t get dressed before I drink my coffee, I could probably be more diligent with my homemaking, I don’t assist every person in need, I don’t make my own clothing or sell it,  I don’t always face tomorrow with a smile, sometimes I’m not kind when I speak, I don’t always keep my children busy and productive, and my 12 year-old wishes I’d disappear most of the time so I’ll stop telling her what to do.

And then I stopped myself.

I promised myself that this would be a year of truth for me – a year of making a habit to speak truth to myself and ignore the whispers from others that make me feel like less of a woman.

I started thinking about Ruth and how she isn’t considered a woman of valor because she checked things off a Proverbs 31 list or a Pinterest list.

She didn’t mend clothes.  She worked in a field.

For a long time, she didn’t even have a husband.  She was a widow, making it through life on her own.  She had no husband to wake up early for and make breakfast and no children to be an example for.  She didn’t have a glamorous job – she sweat all day out in the sun, working hard with her hands, gathering wheat. She didn’t have her own land on which to plant a garden.

She is considered a woman of virtue because she was brave and wise.  It was in how she lived her life that spoke of the kind of woman she was.  In fact, her soon-to-be husband boasted about her saying, “Everybody in town knows what a courageous woman you are – a real prize!”  and it surely wasn’t because she was able to check off the Proverbs 31 list.

We put a ton of pressure on ourselves.  We feel like we don’t live up to a certain standard.  We feel like we fall short all the time.

Did you know that Proverbs 31 is intended for men to read?  You’re not even intended to be the poem’s audience!  In fact, the only instruction outlined in the poem is for men:

Give her everything she deserves!  Festoon her life with praises!”

It’s a poem.  It’s a song of celebration and praise for women.

It’s not about what you do – it’s about how you do it.

So whether you’re a stay-at-home mom, a small business owner, a farmer, a nurse, an advertising executive, an author, a grandmother, a teacher, a waitress, a gardener, or a stationary designer – YOU can be a Proverbs 31 woman.

You can be a stay-at-home mom with gusto.  You can be a grandmother with valor.  You can be a virtuous teacher.  The point is, that as long as you live a life fearing the Lord, you will be a Proverbs 31 woman and God will be what you’re not.

Stop comparing yourself.  There is only one like you and God has assigned you a very specific task that nobody else can complete.  It’s like comparing a cow with a tiger.  They’re two very different animals.  They don’t stop and think about how they should be more like a goat.  A cow acts like a cow and a tiger acts like a tiger.

If you’re trying, you’re doing well, sweet lady.

Here’s my poem for you.  I hope it brings some encouragement to you today:

You’re Mine

Written by Kelly, Lettered Roots

If I could sing a song to you, it would speak in odes of truth,

Not puffed up expectations, but the kind that yells of proof.

You’re beautiful, God tells you so in Psalm 139,

He says you’re fearfully and wonderfully made – you’re gloriously divine.

It’s not fancy clothes or jewelry that makes you and defines,

It’s what’s inside your heart and soul, not the world’s mistaken lines.

You were knit together beautifully, inside you’re brave and strong, 

God’s got special plans for you, so stop looking at all the wrong.

Whenever you feel unloved, unimportant, even insecure,

Remember the God to whom you belong, powerful liberator.

Galatians 3 claims your position as the daughter of a King,

Romans 5 says you’re worth it, to that is where you cling.

Not to the empty lies like arrows shooting to your heart,

that hit all of your sweet spots and rip your soul apart.

Be joyful like John 15, be free like in John 8,  

Pull off those chains and run in truth right to God’s clean slate.

He wipes away your tears and holds them in his hand,

He knows all of your fears, he’ll always understand.

Perfection is impossible, comparison it haunts,

Press into him for everything, that’s all that our God wants.

For if you do, those things that God promises are true,

Will yell louder than all the deceitful lies screaming out at you.

Sweet woman: you’re smart, you’re worth it, you’re absolutely fine,

Just shift your perspective and focus back on God who says, “you’re mine“.

 

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10 Reasons Why You Need to Start a Christian Mommy Blog

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10 Reasons to Start a Christian Mommy Blog

This post contains affiliate links

Why I Started a Christian Mommy Blog

At the beginning of the year, I reached a dead-end and became inspired to start my blog, Lettered Roots.  In February, I launched it and I haven’t looked back since.  I’ve grown so much during the past 4 months that it has inspired me to help others do the same.  Here’s why you should:

10 Reasons to Start Today

1.   You Gain a New Perspective

I love this quote by Shauna Niegquist in her Devotion book called Savor.  In it she says:

Writing teaches me that God is waiting to be found everywhere, in the darkest corners of our lives, the dead ends, and the bad neighborhoods we wake up in, and in the simplest, lightest, most singular and luminous moments.”

Why start a Christian-Based Mommy Blog?  It’s a tool to help you look for God in unexpected places.  The dark corners we all have, the ends we think are dead, the simplest of moments are all used to help us learn more about who God is.  God has a plan for every season of our lives and nothing we have experienced will go to waste when His hand reaches in.

2.  It Boosts Your Confidence

As a blogger, you’re putting yourself out there to complete strangers.  Your thoughts, your opinions, your ideas, your writing voice, and your face are all on display.  As you learn and grow through writing, you will learn a lot about yourself and the world around you.  It will help you become stronger, wiser, better organized, and more self-reflective.

3.  You Make New Friends

If you’re a busy mom like me, you know that we hardly have time to take a shower, let alone spend time with friends.  Blogging is a great way to meet other women, who like you, don’t have a lot of extra time.  As a Christian blogger, you will become connected with other Christians who share a similar passion.  Not only are they a part of your family in Christ, but also your blogging community in which you share a passion for spreading God’s word to others.

4.  You Become Better Organized

As I mentioned above, becoming a Christian Mommy blogger will force you to become better organized.  Blogging can become overwhelming with all the tutorials, videos, e-books, blog posts, advice, Pinterest visuals, etc.  In order to become good at it, you must become organized with your materials, your time, your thoughts, your schedule, and your goals.  If you don’t, you risk failing and who likes failing?

5.  You Inspire Others

You start a blog because you want others to hear what you have to say.  It doesn’t just impact you; it impacts others.  Blogging is a wonderful platform through which you can share your ideas and thoughts.  To a Christian, it is a valuable place to share how God has been faithful to you.  You will leave others feeling encouraged and inspired.

6.  It’s Free

How many jobs can you name that don’t have a start-up cost?  In fact, you can start a blog in a matter of minutes through WordPress.org.  For more serious bloggers, you can get started for just a few dollars a month through Siteground.  If you change your mind, they’ll even give your money back.  What do you have to lose?

7.  You Become Better at Celebrating

Blogging can be a roller coaster ride of emotions.  One day you feel like quitting and the next day you get a rush of energy and determination.  One day you feel overwhelmed with the ideas floating around and the next day you knock out your to-do list like Superman on steroids.  You learn quickly to celebrate every tiny victory- from uploading your logo successfully, to gaining your first e-mail subscriber.  In my house, family dinners have now become a time of celebration.  Positive thinking is contagious!

8.  You Make Money

If you’re brand new to blogging, you might be asking yourself, “How do you make money blogging?”.  That’s a legitimate question!  Bloggers make money through various means.  One of them is through affiliate marketing.  Another is through offering a product, such as a physical product or digital product.  Another way is through advertising.  It’s definitely not a get-rich-quick scheme.  It takes a ton of patience, persistence, and time.  Eventually though, your hard work pays off.  See how it did for these bloggers:

Michelle from Making Sense of Cents who has a fabulous e-course on affiliate marketing called Making Sense of Affiliate Marketing.  She does a great job of helping you understand exactly what it is and how to begin.  Michelle makes over $150,000/mo. on her finance-centered blog.

Abby from Just a Girl and Her Blog makes over $50,000/mo.  She has a great resource for beginning bloggers called Building a Framework – The Ultimate Blogging Handbook.

Suzi from Start a Mom Blog who has a fabulous step-by-step e-book called Blog by Number.  She really takes you by the hand and leads you down the path of successful blogging.  She shares a lot of valuable information about how she earned $0 to over $53,000 in just one year.

Lindsay and her husband Bjork run their food blog called Pinch of Yum.  If food is your forte, you’ll want to invest in their e-book called Tasty Food Photography.  In it, you’ll learn everything you need to know about how to successfully photograph food for your blog. Lindsay and Bjork make well over $100,000/mo.

Obviously, the aforementioned bloggers represent the best of the best, but it just goes to show that you can be extremely successful at it if you put in the work necessary.

9.  You Have Freedom

The freedom of blogging will allow you to act, speak, think, and make decisions that you feel are best.  You are your own boss and you have the flexibility of working where you want, determining your workload, and reaping the benefits.  Let freedom ring!

10.  You Change the World

I planted, Apollos watered, but God made it grow. Because of this, neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but the only one who is anything is God who makes it grow. The one who plants and the one who waters work together, but each one will receive their own reward for their own labor.” 1 Corinthians 3:6-8
You have the opportunity of a lifetime to plant seeds and you have no idea how God is going to take your seeds from blogging and change the world.
You have something special to offer the world that only you can give.  Opportunities have a shelf-life though and eventually this window that is open to you will close.  Are you going to be one that opens the window or will you let it become just another thing you wish you would have done?  Failure is one thing, but regret stays with you for a lifetime.
Not sure if blogging fits your purpose?  Read this post first: Discovering Your Purpose.
Want to learn more about blogging?  Start here: How to Start a Blog – Pick Your Niche, Not Your Nose.
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Banana Blueberry Rainbow Muffins

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My name is Kelly and I buy bananas for the mere reason that they ripen and nobody will eat them and I can make delicious bread or muffins. 🙂

So that’s what I did yesterday.  I made Lemon Tree Dwelling’s Banana Blueberry Muffins.

Photo courtesy of Lemon Tree Dwelling

No sense in wasting perfectly ripened bananas.

The little one helped stir and sneak bits of crumbly streusel (I might have let her).  She’s the best little helper.  Just look at her on brownie day:

Then something amazing happened after filling my muffin tin:

A rainbow appeared in my bowl and I like to think I know why.

You know those days when you feel really confident and joyful?  Those are great until a dreadful one sneaks in.  The ones where your confidence is drained and you beat yourself up?  Well, I had one of those days and when I have one of those days, I pray more.  I usually pray that God will just draw me closer to Him.  I need him to wrap me up tight and whisper words of truth into my ear so I’ll stop beating myself to smithereens.

But there have been many times in my life when I feel like God has drawn me closer to him by leaving little love gifts to remind me that He has never left.  Like the day I found a rose growing in my bush.  I didn’t have any rose bushes in my yard anywhere and it looked nothing like any rose bush my neighbors had.  I’m not sure where it came from, but I couldn’t bring myself to pick it.  To me, it was a reminder to shift my focus back on Him instead of my circumstances.

Then there was the time, after a horrible day, that I stepped on a nut only to pick it up and find a heart inside:

And another time, during the worst season of my life, when I spent more time with my head down than with it up.  He knew I needed this:

I like to think that He added a little rainbow love to these delicious Banana Blueberry Muffins too.  I think it made them extra tasty.  (Update: I think the Mr. is going to turn into a muffin. He ate at least five of them as an appetizer) What can you look for today?  Has love popped up for you in unexpected places?

Happy Baking!  Throw some rainbows in there while you’re at it, yeah?

 

Print Recipe
 Banana Blueberry Muffins
These moist muffins are perfect for breakfast, as a snack, or even dessert!
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Servings
Ingredients
Muffins
Streusel
Glaze
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Servings
Ingredients
Muffins
Streusel
Glaze
Recipe Notes

For instructions, please visit Lemon Tree Dwelling.

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How to Create Art for Less Than $20

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I’m so excited to share my art with you today!  If you missed Part I and Part II, you’ll want to read them to get your room design freebies.  Making a list of projects and prioritizing them is the next step.

Even though hanging my art will be one of the finishing touches of the room, having it done helps me to pull from its colors and textures to create the rest of the room, like choosing my curtains.

How to Create $20 Art

1.   Choose your image.

It may be a photo of your children, a close-up you took with that amazing Mpow Macro lens or inspirational word art.  Whatever your image, make sure you love it.

I chose to use my business logo.  I like the fact that my logo in itself is my own creation.  Not to mention the colors really embody all that I love.

Now the key to making this work is to make sure you have a high resolution image.

WHAT THE HECK DOES THAT MEAN?

High resolution refers to the dots per inch or pixels per inch.  So if you can imagine for a second how much more unclear a picture is when it has less dots making up the image and how much clearer an image is when it contains more dots, you can understand high resolution.

So typically, you want a picture that is about 300 dpi (dots per inch).

You can find out your image’s dpi several ways such as by right clicking and viewing its properties or uploading it to a program such as Photoshop or GIMP.

You can add or remove these dots many different ways.  I used Adobe Photoshop.  If you don’t have Photoshop, you can download GIMP, a free photo editor.

2.  Upload and Order Print

Once I changed the resolution of my image in Photoshop, I uploaded it to Staples by following these steps:

  • Going to Staples.com Shop Services
  • Selecting Posters
  • Selecting Design Now
  • Upload Now
  • Selecting Portrait or Landscape depending on your art
  • Choose your size.  I chose the 18X24 (they have a couple of different options here)
  • Choose your finish  (I chose a glossy finish because it makes things a lot easier)

3.  Purchase and prepare plywood.

After ordering my print, I went to Home Depot and bought a piece of 1/4 in. plywood.  The next day, I determined how much of the plywood I wanted to show around the poster and had this handsome guy cut it for me.  If you don’t have a handsome guy, you can get the peeps at Home Depot to do it for you.  Who knows, they might be handsome too. 🙂

Once my board was cut, I gave it a quick sanding, wiped it off, and applied the stain.  I used Minwax’s Gray stain.

After I applied the stain, I let it dry.  Once it was dry, I applied some white acrylic paint around the edges of the wood.  This will be the only part of the wood showing once you apply your picture, so I didn’t see a point in wasting paint.

You can skip this step if you want a regular stained surface.  I wanted to lighten the stain a bit and give it more of a weathered look.  Once I brushed the paint on, while still a bit wet, I sanded the paint.

I let it dry and then wiped the surface with a damp towel to get off any excess paint and/or wood dust from sanding.

4.  Apply Mod Podge.

After I prepared my surface, I applied some Mod Podge to the board.

After I applied a coat of Mod Podge to the board, I applied some to the back of the poster.  Now, you have to work quickly as this stuff dries fast, so it’s best to use some type of roller so you can apply a lot at one time.  The reason I chose to buy my poster with a glossy finish is because it’s quite the challenge to get bubbles out of the poster when you’re applying a layer of Mod Podge over the top.  By just needing to apply a layer to the bottom, it simply acts as an adhesive and then you can call it a day.

Work smarter, not harder.

*Make sure the Mod Podge covers the entire edge of your poster as well because otherwise it’s going to make things extra challenging for you when sticking your poster to your plywood.

5.  Apply poster to plywood.

Now that you have Mod Podge on the surface of the board and on the back of the poster, carefully apply your poster to your board.  You’re going to need some type of tool to smooth the poster and get all the air bubbles out;  a rolling pin, a book..a flat box with silk suspenders inside (hey, it was right there and it worked like a charm!).

You don’t have much time to work because, again, this stuff dries quickly.  So make sure everything is straight before you press down on the poster.  I recommend you smoothing from the center out to push those air bubbles out to the edges.  If you don’t, the result may be wrinkles which may be cool if you’re creating an old world map, but not so much any other time.

6.  Allow artwork to dry.

Once you’ve applied the poster to the plywood, just let it dry and voila!

Budget Breakdown

Poster- $14.99

1/4 in. Plywood – About $5.00

Total: $20.00

 

Make your own and share it!  I’d love to see how your art turns out.