Now Starring...

This past Christmas I was trying to come up with something fun for my husband and I to make for our Grandbabies. We were watching our funds but still wanted to figure out something that would provide them with years of fun. I thought about how much they love to put on shows for us (or anyone who is willing to watch). They love to sing and dance, what child doesn't? I thought about how they would love a stage to perform on. First off I needed to get both of our daughter's permission to add such a large addition to their homes. Yes, as much as I was looking forward to making these, there was no way that I was going to find room in our house for one. They both loved the idea and found the perfect spots for them. I drew a sketch on paper for my husband to figure out the materials needed to build the frame. Luckily he had some leftover lumber from one of the current homes that we're building. The most expensive part of the project was the indoor/outdoor carpet that we bought from Home Depot.
I had planned to take pictures of the whole process but my Christmas projects got out of hand this year and these stages were actually being finished up on Christmas Eve! If you're interested in building one, they're pretty self explanatory. Please send me a question if I didn't explain something well enough.
After my handyman (husband) built the base, he covered it with the carpet and used the staple gun to attach it. Meanwhile, I painted all of the wood black, except for the top board for the sign. The 2 x 4's to hold the sign were attached right to the base, over the carpet. We made sure to use a level to get them straight and used large wood screws to hold them in place. Then it was time to create the sign. I painted the whole board white. I took painters tape and taped an area all around the board to paint black. I used a level to make sure that I kept the line straight. After the paint dried, I positioned my stencils for the letters. After tracing them with a black sharpie marker, I painted the inside of them. I wanted their names to "pop" so I used red for those. Then I took a circle stencil, some yellow craft paint and a sponge brush and went around the black edge to create the "lights". After hanging the sign, we screwed a closet pole cut to size directly behind it. This is how I hung the curtains. I tied the curtains back but they can be left straight if they want to close them.

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Max is helping his Grampy put his together!

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I think it's even cuter when they're performing on it, don't you?