Paint Me Like One Of Your French Girls!

Editor’s note: Since writing this article, 18th.ME has ceased to operate. This post remains as part of their legacy. However, you can read our story about a similar .MEr here.

You know how in the olden days, before cameras and back when people had time to pose for hours for a painter, walls used to be decorated with painted portraits of ancestry and household members?

In the ultimate hipster move,  a company called 18th.Me is trying to recreate that, and save you the time. Forget about family photos and your polaroids pasted on the walls, you can now decorate the space above your mantelpiece with an actual painting – of you.

It’s a pretty good ice breaker, as far as conversations about home decor go, the team says:

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, and that’s exactly how many your friends will be saying when they see you as the Mona Lisa. Hang it in your hallway, balance it in your bathroom, or even lay it down in the lounge, and let those conversations loose

It is also a pretty good housewarming gift – it certainly beats a salad bowl, and you’ll be continuing a portraying tradition that goes further back than the 18th century – the oldest known portrait in the world comes from Czech Republic and it is about 26,000 years old (also, carved on a piece of ivory).

So How Does it work (Do I have to pose?)

Well, yes and no. The first step is to pick the classic painting you’d like to appear in. Look through their collection to find the perfect painting. A well-executed portrait is expected to show the inner essence of the subject or a flattering representation, not just a literal likeness, so make sure you pick the painting that suits you best… or the one you like best, it’s your mantelpiece, after all.

18th.Me will the do a follow-up via mail to determine what you look like – then it’s time to send them your picture. Don’t be shy. Dust off your camera, strike a pose that matches the one in the painting and don’t forget to say ‘Cheese’. The closer you can get to looking like the pose in the picture itself, the better the end result will be.

That’s when the 18th.me team takes over:

Seen the videos of Elephants painting on YouTube? Whilst we think it would be awesome to have a plethora of painting pachyderms, we prefer to use real humans to paint your picture. (They’re not as smelly, and take up less room).

A team of artists will get right to making you an 18th century portrait with your 21 century face Once painted we mail the picture to your door, ready for you to enjoy.