By: Gill

So this was my best gift this year: You take a canvas (I used 8"x10" but pick whatever size you want) and paint it whatever color you want. Then print out the outline of the state or country your intended gift recipient is from and cut it out. When the paint is dry, lay the state outline onto the canvas (ok, I used double sided tape, but you could just lay it on if you're careful) and, using a different color of paint and short outward strokes, paint from just inside the edge of the state to about an inch outside the edge. Once you've gone all the way around, remove your stencil and paint the rest of the background. It's super easy and pretty cheap if you already have some acrylic paints around. I got tons of compliments on the ones I made for friends. Here's a tutorial with pictures and stuff: http://inkandadventure.blogspot.com/2012/08/diy-wall-art-home-state-love.html