The Little Mermaid hit theaters when I was in college. My bestie Ariel and I watched this masterpiece in the theater multiple times and owned the soundtrack. We were all about mermaids and, these many years later, we still are. I’d love to say I made this cute picture frame for an eight-year-old’s dream bedroom, but I didn’t. I, a middle-aged woman, created it for another middle-aged woman’s birthday. May Ariel and I never grow old and may we always be mermaids!

Materials:

Walmart: wooden frame, mermaid buttons

Stuff I had on hand: acrylic paint, stencil ruler, hot glue gun, poultry shears or wire cutters

Directions:

  • Choose three mermaidy colors and paint each one on a third of the frame. Don’t forget the edges!
  • Create scales, using a metallic paint and a scalloped-edge ruler. (If you do not have a ruler, you can download a template from here and print on cardstock.)
  • Paint a baseline.
  • Then, shift the ruler to paint the next line.
  • Shift the ruler to the original orientation and add another line.
  • Repeat until frame is complete.
  • Cut the plastic loops from the back of the buttons using shears or wire cutters.
  • Hot glue buttons to frame.

Finished Product

Add a photograph and place the frame next to all your gadgets, gizmos, and thingamabobs.