One of the best snacks at the Disneyland Resort, in my opinion, is the “Dole Whip”. Not the one with the pineapple juice, just straight up pineapple soft serve. The other variations at the Topical Hideaway are equally delicious, but today’s project is for the original. I’ve seen other paintings that are like advertisements for Dole Whip and I wanted to create something for myself. We have a tropical hideaway theme going on in the backyard and this fits in perfectly!

Supplies List:	Tools List:
Wooden Pineapple Sign	Paint Brushes
Yellow, Light Green, Dark Green, Black, Light Brown, Orange, Red, Blue Acrylic Paint	Sponge Applicator
Assorted Circles and Ovals	Craft Glue
Wooden Matchsticks	Scissors
White, Yellow, Blue, Red Paint Pens	Ruler + Pencil
White Colored Pencil	Outdoor Mod Podge
	Carbon Paper

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Here’s How it Started

I started by finding center near the bottom of the wooden pineapple using my ruler. This line is for where I’m going to put the word “Adventureland”. After figuring out the measurements, I was able to size the text correctly using Adobe Illustrator. The word was about 6.25″x1.75″.

I used the font called RumbleBrave (a free for personal use font) for the smaller bits of text and Signatra (also free for personal use) for the words “Dole Whip”. I printed out a sheet with my words and cut them up.

Using my carbon paper, I traced over my printout to transferred the words onto the pineapple.

Then, I prepared my paint. I had a glittery yellow-green, a dark green, a yellow, orange, light blue, red, and black to use. I started roughly mixing the greens with black. I wanted to get strips of each color onto the paintbrush. I applied it to the pineapple in streaks.

These streaks created the underpainting or background of my piece. Layering is important here, but too much layering will cover up the carbon transfer. I had to be aware of where I placed my words so I wouldn’t have to transfer them all over again. Splashes of bright color helped create a rainforest-y, patina look.

For the leaves of the pineapple, I didn’t mix my colors as much and was more bold–I knocked down the saturation a little bit later to create more cohesion.

Using a white paint pen, I solidified my text placement and made it easier to see.

I used a white colored pencil and drew a Dole Whip as well as some leaves on the perimeter.

I mixed up a light yellow and painted my pineapple whip. White was used as a highlight. I didn’t make it too opaque because I didn’t want it to stand out more than the text.

Using a slightly different mix of green, I created my leaves to stand out a bit from the background with defined shapes and shadows. I also added a red cup for my whip.

For the “Delicious & Refreshing” line, I filled it in with a red paint pen and created a drop shadow using a white paint pen.

I made the “Dole Whip” text Yellow with a white drop shadow and added little blue dots to the left sides of the letters.

I left “Adventureland” white with a blue drop shadow, and yellow dots.

I had decided on a pattern for this 3D element using wooden matchsticks while drawing my whip. I was able to make sure the drawing wasn’t too obstructed. I roughly painted the matchsticks a light brown.

After the matchsticks were dry, I glued them in place using craft glue and cut off any overhanging pieces with a scissor.

Back to the pineapple leaves, I covered the top with a light green wash of paint. To make the wash, I diluted the light green paint I mixed with water and applied a thin layer overtop the painting.

I wanted to add more 3D elements so I created some leaves and flowers using the assorted circles and ovals I had from my Birdhouse project. I stuck with the same design so this project and the birdhouse would be more cohesive in my backyard.

I glued the pieces onto the pineapple making sure they hung off the edges so they really added dimension.

Finally, I covered my painting with two coats Outdoor Mod Podge and a layer of glossy varnish so it’s ready to go outside!

Completed!

And that’s how I made my Dole Whip sign! It’s going to live outside in our backyard tropical hideaway along with some other Adventureland themed projects I did. I took a lot of inspiration from one of my previous projects, the Tiki Room inspired Birdhouse. It turned out really well and I’m happy with the result. I hope you are inspired to create your own homage to the famous pineapple soft serve.

Thank you for joining me on this project and miraculously making it all the way to the bottom! Please follow us on Instagram and Pinterest for more projects like this one and share with your Disney DIY loving friends and family!

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