I don’t know about you, but my life and schedule has felt extra full lately. Maybe it’s because I’m 7 months pregnant, working full time, preparing for baby, completing side projects… phew! I’m tired just thinking about it! Anyway, there have definitely been more appointments and events than usual, so I’ve been wanting to make a calendar for my office to keep track of all the activities. And why make a plain calendar when you can make one with holographic glitter and gold accents?? That’s exactly what I thought too…
Supplies:
–18×24″ sheet of acrylic (x2)
-hologram paper (like this or this)
-1/2″ long brass machine screws (x4) and corresponding hex nuts (x4) (Your local hardware store should have them.)
-1″ long brass s-hooks (x2)
–gold card stock paper and white card stock paper
–glue dots
–X-Acto knife, metal ruler, and cutting mat
-washi or thin painter’s tape
–1″ circle punch
–drill and drill bit set
-thin brass chain (optional)
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You’ll want to start by removing the protective film from one side of your acrylic sheet. Using washi or painter’s tape, tape off a 12×22″ area at the bottom of your calendar. Cut your hologram paper into 35 rectangles that are 2.25″ wide and a little less than 3″ wide. Space them into 5 rows of 7 and use glue dots to secure them in place. When spacing out things like this, I like to get the top and bottom rows spaced evenly and lined up with the tape marks, then fill in the first and last vertical rows, and then do the middle squares. It helps keep them all spaced out nicely.
Punch out 35 paper circles with your paper punch and use glue dots to affix them into the top left corner of each rectangle (this will be where you can write the date for each day).
Use your gold paper to cut out large letters for the first day of each week. You can also use large gold stickers if you like. I traced some chipboard letters I already had in my scrapbook pile, but you can also pick a font and size you like in Word or Photoshop, reverse the letters, and then print them on the back side of your gold card stock (when you cut them out they will be facing the right way!).
Use glue dots to adhere the letters in place.
Now that your squares and days of the week are attached, peel off one side of protective plastic from your second piece of acrylic and place it exposed-side down on top of your calendar. Use clamps or painter’s tape to hold the two pieces together while you drill. Use your drill and drill bit that matches the width of your 1/2″ long machine screws (mine were 1/4″ wide so I used a 1/4″ bit) to drill 4 holes about 1″ in from each corner (you can just mark each spot with a marker).
To drill into acrylic, you just need to drill with the drill in reverse and apply a moderate amount of pressure to the plastic as you drill. Speed up if you don’t feel it’s going anywhere, but try not to go faster than you need, as too much speed can melt your plastic a bit (although the head of the machine screw will help cover up hole imperfections). I like to drill with a scrap piece of wood underneath the hole so the drill has something to hit once it’s gone through the plastic. When you have all 4 holes drilled, you can add your hardware to keep it all together.
Peel back the remaining protective sheets from each corner of your calendar and use a machine screw and hex nut to secure each corner together. If the screw needs a little help going all the way through the hole, you can actually use a screwdriver to screw it in as far as it needs to go (it will self thread into the plastic). On the top two screws, add an s-hook between the back of the acrylic sheet and the hex nut so you have something to hang your calendar from. If you want to add a gold chain, you can also cut a section and hang it from these two hooks as well.
Hammer in two nails to hang your calendar from, and you’re ready to write in all your important dates!
I simply love how this project came out! The glitter effect is even prettier in person, as I’m sure you can imagine, and I think it adds a little something special from just having a plain color or white behind each day. And in case you’re wondering, I know this calendar doesn’t have a month space across the top. I kept playing with proportions to fit the month area and just felt like it looked so much cleaner without that area added, and it makes the big gold day letters the star of the top space. You can totally shrink the size of the squares and the day letters though if you want to add a space for the month—go for it! I always feel like it’s a double win when I can make something that’s helping me keep my life organized and looks pretty too, so this was a big success in my book. xo. Laura
Credits // Author and Photography: Laura Gummerman. Photos edited with the NEW A Beautiful Mess actions.
25 Comments
This may be the greatest post ever!!!! I have got to make this!
This looks so great, just like store-bought!
Charmaine Ng | Architecture & Lifestyle Blog
http://charmainenyw.com
I love this.
http://goldclutter.blogspot.com
What a cool idea, I love the design, although I’m not a big fan of glitter. I guess I would do it in gold instead!
https://www.makeandmess.com/
that’s super cute 🙂
Anything with glitter, I’m all over! It would also look cute with rose gold 🙂
xo, Sofia
http://www.thecozie.co
This is so pretty, Laura! I love it! Thanks for this post. Hope to make this soon 🙂
That’s the most beautiful calender I’ve seen in a while. I love the glitter, it adds such a fun and glam detail to it.
That is so cute for an office. It’s glittery but not over the top glitter, which is great!
http://aneducationindomestication.com
This is so fun! I want to make one for my office!
Paige
http://thehappyflammily.com
This is a wonderful idea, so creative yet simple! I’d love to try this at home 🙂 xx
http://mylovelierdays.com
So cute, I have to try this with my 13 year old daughter she will love it!
This is so beautiful and inspiring. I love it! 🙂
http://www.iamthyroidtoday@gmail.com
This is such a pretty project http://www.likehanna.com
Love the gold letters against the acrylic and all the glitter! So pretty. <3
http://www.wonderlandsam.com
I totally need to try this out!! It looks incredible (: Thanks for sharing!
Kisses | Live. Laugh. Love. & Make Up
This is one of those projects where you think it’s incredibly hard, but really it’s just the planning and the time that it takes to do it!
http://thedianaedition.com
This is so gorgeous! People would pay good money for this, it looks so professionally made. I am definitely not handy with any kind of tools, but my boyfriend is, I might ask him to make something like this some time in the future ?
http://www.thesmalladventurer.blogspot.com.au/
What do you think about some wall stickers for decoration, like some we can find at https://www.stickersforhome.com for example ?
Very cool! Thank you for sharing this! I will pass this on for sure.
Thank you thank you thank you for this post! I cannot wait to try this!
This is the cutest thing ever! I’ve been working on giving my office a face lift and this would just be perfect. Adding it to the to-do list!
With Love, From Me to You
Mallory
http://www.withlove-frommetoyou.com
Been working on my blogging schedule lately so i definitely need something like this! 🙂
Do you use a dry erase marker for writing on it?
Yep! 🙂