There's Always Money In The Banana Stand

 Tomorrow is our fourth anniversary (our=Tony & me). This year I decided to do things “on the cheap” which meant I would be making his present. We are both Arrested Development fanatics. I decided to come up with an AD themed gift-a Bluth banana stand bank. I wasn't sure how I was going to do it, but I finally figured it out.

Step One: Get a two-liter bottle. I used a Sprite bottle because it has more of the banana stand shape. Empty out the bottle, wash the inside of the bottle thoroughly (I put some Dawn on the inside of mine and filled it with water until the water wasn't bubbly anymore), and then put your lid somewhere safe. I didn't and now I am without a lid. First world problems.

Step Two: Get your supplies together! I am not very familiar with Spray Paint, maybe that would work, I used acrylic. Cheap, run of the mill, acrylic paint. I painted a few coats of white paint and then yellow.

Step Three: Paint a border of brown/black at the bottom and a black rectangle for George Michael's window.

Step Four: You need Mr. Manager. I contemplated drawing George Michael, but then I thought, “why reinvent the wheel?” Did you know there are Arrested Development paper dolls? http://culturepopped.blogspot.com/2011/02/mr-manager-of-banana-stand.html I used Kyle Hilton's George Michael paper doll. I DID NOT DRAW GEORGE-MICHAEL. I want to make sure Hilton gets his credit. I cut out George Michael, cut out the banana stand apron, then glued it to George Michael. I idiotically chose Tacky Glue. DO NOT USE TACKY GLUE. Use Modge Podge. I CAN NOT emphasize that enough. My George Michael would have looked a lot better if I had glued him down with Modge Podge instead of Tacky Glue. Place your George Michael paper doll on top of the black rectangle and glue. Don't forget to cut off his legs.

Step Five: The banana stand has shutters. I cut up an old cereal box into two rectangles and glued them at the horizontal sides of the black rectangle. Paint them yellow. I don't know why I thought they were white (brain fart or something), they are yellow. Before you glue them onto the 2 liter you should paint them yellow. If you are feeling particularly awesome you can attach a menu.

Step Six: Create or print off the Bluth sign. I copied the sign off of a t-shirt add on-line, pasted it into a word document, printed it, went over it with Sharpies, glued it to a few index cards to make it thicker, and then glued it above George Michael's black rectangle.

Step Seven: Draw the brown-black lines that run down the banana stand.

Step Eight: Seal it with some type of sealer. This will prevent the paint from chipping. SEAL IT TO PREVENT YOUR HARD WORK FROM CHIPPING. I used a clear sealant and went over the entire banana stand: George Michael, the shutters, the sharpie, the sign, everything.

Step Nine: You are done. Now you can put money in it. Just unscrew the lid, toss in some change or a few dollars and then dump it out. There's always money in the banana stand. Aha! Quarters will not fit through the hole of the 2-liter. Cut a slit in the back of the 2-liter at the top of the bottle, then you can dump quarters into it. 

If I were doing this project again I would consider the following:

1. Maybe instead of a two-liter you might use a smaller bottle. My proportions are off. If you do use a two-liter blow up the George Michael doll a little. There are a ton of reference photos on Google, plan it out more. I was rushing to get this done, and I think it shows. Take proportions into account. My black-bottom base is a lot bigger than it should be (as an example).
2. Another proportion point-make sure the sign is as long as the window and open shutters.
3. DO NOT USE TACKY GLUE. I did, and it discolored my George Michael paper doll. Use Modge Podge.
4. Paint your shutters before attaching them to the two-liter. I painted them white to prime the cereal box and forgot to paint them yellow afterward. Now I have to go back and paint them yellow.
5. Take your time between coats. You might sand a little ( not a lot because the paint will just chip off).
6. Do not use bright yellow straight from the bottle. Add a little white.
7. Make sure you remember where you put your cap! I must have thrown mine away.