Mod Podge

Fabric and Mod Podge Mania- Upcycled Kids Wooden School Desk

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What to do? Yesterday, the hubby had to go off to work so it was just me and the daughter dear all day. I decided to take a trip up to the new Joann Fabric  mega store that just opened up down the street from my house (I now have a craft store practically within walking distance, this could be dangerous!)  Usually, as you all know, I am a “thrifty” shopper, but today I had a few crafting supplies I had to pick up and I figured why not give it a look?  They had a great coupon I found online,  30% off total purchase (except for sale items of course) Which was icing on the cake –if I decided to buy anything.  I walked into the store and it was HUGE!  The place was filled with aisles, upon aisles of fabric.  I am used to Goodwill prices, so I was shocked at how expensive fabric can be! One fabric in particular  was $49.99 per yard… yikes!  Thank goodness they had good sales and aisles filled with fabric at $4.99 a yard phew!

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I found this great school themed material. I had purchased a wooden school desk at an outdoor flea market some time ago, and had no idea how or with what material I was going to restyle it.  Now it was no question the winner was… fabric! I picked up a yard for about $5.89 on sale.  Once me and the giggle-goo got home, nap time was approaching so, I put the little one to bed and gathered my materials I would need to get started.

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First thing was to make sure the piece was clean and free of dust.  Then I used a black marker to trace the desk top and seat onto the fabric.  Once this was done, I carefully cut the cloth with a pair of scissors. I then generously applied the Mod Podge Matte finish on the desk top and on the seat using a larger paint brush to smooth it out.  Then I applied it to the fabric, using my hands to smooth out any air bubbles.  Messy you say?  Absolutely, but I feel with fabric it gives me more control, than using the Mod Podge tools.  Besides, I have never been afraid to get my hands dirty!  Once it was smoothed out, I then applied a layer of Mod Podge over top of the fabric. While that was dying, I painted the piece.  I used Red, Black, and Blue all colors featured in the fabric. The wood was ready to paint and not in need of priming, but it was very dry and soaked the paint in initially.  It took about 3 coats overall to get the desired result. I brought the piece back upstairs and allowed it to dry for several hours under a stand up fan.

Fast forward to later in the evening.,with the daughter asleep for the night and the hubby finally home, I worked on finishing the piece. I decided to cut out some swatches from the material and Mod Podge these onto the sides to add a little more life to that area.  I then covered the entire desk with 2 coats of Mod Podge.  I usually add more coats to the areas that will get more use and where the cloth was applied.  I used 4 coats on the seat and the desk top areas.  Pictured below is the wooden desk before and after:

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The hubby loved how it turned out and I can’t wait for the little one to use it!  She loves sitting at her little table and chair so I think she will enjoy this just as much and it will grow with her.  I also love the neutrality of the desk a boy or girl could use it!

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Stay calm and happy crafting my friends : 0 )

DIY Recycled Wooden Photo Plaque

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We have all seen them at the thrift stores and swap meets, and outdoor flea markets.  They are wooden plaques with various images painted or printed on them.  Sure, you can purchase wooden plaques at your local craft store brand new, but this one cost only .99 cents and I rescued it from a possible trip to the landfill.  Purchasing “pre -owned, only added one additional step to the project. I had to use a white, latex primer first before I could paint the plaque black with acrylic paint.   As far as projects go, it doesn’t get any easier than this!   This is a great beginner project if you are using Mod Podge for the first time.

First, I formatted and cropped the black and white photo into an oval shape and printed it out on photo paper.   I can’t afford photo shop, but there are plenty of free great photo editing software on the web.  I use  Paint.net .  This is my one of my favorite photo’s.   I took this when my daughter was only two days old.  Amazing how those days go by so quickly!  Even more reason to immortalize these special  moments  in time.  I left some time for the ink to dry on the paper and cut out the image carefully with a pair of scissors leaving a white border around it.  This I thought  would make the photo stand out from the black plaque.  I then glued the photograph down to the plaque using Mod Podge Matte finish.  Once dry, I covered the photo plaque with two coats of Mod Podge allowing the plaque to dry between coats.  The nice thing about recycled plaques are often times than not, they come ready to hang on the wall!  I was more than happy to add this Photo Plaque to our photo wall leading upstairs.

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Pictured above Before and After

Materials:

Wooden Plaque/New or Recycled

Mod Podge Matte Finish

Printed Photo to decoupage

Scissors, Paint brush

Black Acrylic Paint

White Latex Primer

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Breaking Bread: Decoupage Bread Box Restyle

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Decoupage Bread Box

When I was growing up, the one thing I remember we always had in our house was a bread box. So, naturally, when I moved out and acquired a home of my own, I immediatly bought this breadbox. Yes, this ACTUAL bread box! That would make this breadbox over 18 years-old! As far as bread boxes go it was typical, a wooden box and that was it.  No color, no style.  For years I thought of doing away with a bread box all together.  It took up a lot of counter space and it was nothing special, but where would I put the bread? When I started experimenting with Mod Podge and decoupage, This bread box was on my to do list.  Many projects have come and gone and it was finally time to decoupage the box!

This project was not as easy as it looks.  First, I measured the scrapbook paper I wanted to decoupage to the door,  I only had one piece in this style and in order to make it work, I had to trim, line up the design,  and fit it together in a few spots.  After the bread box  was cleaned, and primed, I glued the paper down with Mod Podge, and let dry.  I then painted most of the Bread box blue with acrylic paint and let it dry.  Next challenge was the number of coats of paint!  Cleaning it only helped so much after many years in the kitchen there was still a bit of grease on it.  I applied as many coats as it needed about 4 in all.Once the entire piece was dry, I applied the Mod Podge Matte to seal it.  I find the more layers of Mod Podge the better.  Yet another challenge was the door and not leaving enough room between the paper and the opening.  I had to carefully trim this with an X Acto knife.  Despite all this, I am glad this project is finally finished and the bread has a restyled box to call home

Decoupage Bread Box Mod Podge

A Lively Computer Tablet: Decoupage Makeover

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Decoupage Tablet

I remember a time before computers.  Sure, actual computers have been around since as early as the mid 1930’s, but most computers were not accessible to the general public until the later 1990’s when I was already out of High School and beginning college. It wasn’t until the internet came in to play that everything changed, and computers began to get smaller and smaller.  I also remember a time when the closest thing to a computer in school was a book or a type writer.  I looked forward to getting new books every year, just so I could cover them with a brown paper bag!  I loved to draw designs on these paper jackets, pay tribute to my favorite music groups, and draw just about anything my teenage mind could come up with.  This was the inspiration behind this project.  Why not  “cover” the modern book, my little MID brand tablet.  I loved the result I achieved with decoupage smart phone makeover  So, I decided to give it a try.  I prepped the tablet cleaning it and removing any dust.   I then traced the tablet onto the scrapbook paper.  I picked a nice brightly-colored scrapbook design.   Keep in mind the design possibilities are endless! Joann Fabric had a great sale, five sheets of selected papers for only $1.00!   Once traced, I cut the it out, carefully cutting away the speaker area with an X-Acto knife.  I also paid close attention to  any other areas I did not want to cover with the paper.

Next, I applied Mod Podge to the back of the tablet, carefully avoiding any areas that might not tolerate glue, like the speaker for example.  I carefully glued the scrapbook paper to the back of the tablet, mind fully and with a smaller paintbrush.  This kept the glue from getting into any of the important areas.  If you are worried, you can also put a small piece of scotch tape over those areas to protect them, carefully peeling it off later.  Once dry, I covered the outside with multiple coats of Mod Podge Matte finish allowing to dry thoroughly between coats.

Materials used:

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I love the new look!  Who says an ugly tablet doesn’t deserve a decoupage makeover?

Live on the UPCYCLE!

Mail Call: Upcycled, Decoupage Mail and Key Holder

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I found this little wooden mail and key holder for two bucks at an outdoor swap meet.   I decided to use it by our front door so we could have a centralized place for our keys, cell phones and any other small items we take with us to work each day.  Initially, I was unsure of the design I would choose.  Then I remembered,  I still had some of the recycled gift bag I had used for my living room switch plate and outlet covers.  It became evident , the key/mail holder would be hanging  in close proximity to the switch plate and I thought it would look better if they matched.

Decoupage Switch Plate, Outlet

I measured and cut the gift bag to fit the mail slots. I then applied Mod Podge to glue the gift bag tracings to the slots.  While drying, I painted the rest of the piece black with acrylic paint.  Once the paint was completely dry I applied about three coats of Mod Podge over the entire piece to seal it. This was a very simple project with dramatic resulst!  It really stands out nicely against the Sandstone background and keeps electronics and other important items out of little toddler hands.

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Materials:

Mail/Key Holder

Mod Podge Matte finish

Gift bag/Scrapbook  paper

Black Acrylic Paint

Pen/Scissors/Paint Brushes

Decoupage key holder

The Pillow Case Makeover: Upcycled, Pink and Brown Hand Painted Decoupage Chair

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I am always attracted furniture bargains.  On this day, as I often do, I took a quick look around the local Goodwill on my lunch break. It just so happened that all red tagged items were 50% off.  In the corner, toward the back of the store,  I noticed a wooden chair with a ladder back, red sticker taped on the front.  It was a little diamond in the rough.  I was surprised the original price was only $4.99, and with the discount this chair would only cost $2.50!  I had been wanting to try a full-sized chair project for a while, and this chair seemed like the perfect candidate.

It just so happened my sister had noticed some of my furniture projects the last time she was over the house. She asked me to make her something, but was not sure what she wanted.  When she saw this chair among the other furniture candidates, she thought perhaps I could design it based on her bedroom which is pink and brown.  It was then I came across a pink and brown flowered pillow case while looking through used textile bin and I thought it would be perfect for this project.  I texted her a picture of it to see if she liked it, and she did. I then began to plan…

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Fast forward to today…I went to JoAnn fabrics and bought some Apple Barrel Acrylic paint.  I matched the pink and brown pretty well against the pillow case.   The pink appears slightly darker in person than in the photos and matched it nicely.  My daughter managed to open one of the bottles of pink paint with the plastic still intact!  Thank goodness the store had wipes handy!  It was some sort of miracle she only managed to get it on her hands and avoided her clothes entirely!

When we got home, I put the princess down for a nap, and got to work.  I traced the chair seat onto the fabric with a black marker.  I carefully cut the tracing with a sharp pair of scissors.  I then applied Mod Podge, using a medium-sized paint brush to the seat.  I spread the fabric out over the seat stretching and smoothing out any creases with my hands.  Once dry, I applied another coat of Mod Podge over the top of the fabric.  While this dried, I used a white latex primer to paint the chair so that I could apply the acrylic paint onto a good base.    I then carefully hand painted the chair and used several coats until I achieved my desired result.

I sat the chair in front of a fan to dry and waited.  Once the paint was dry, I could apply the Mod Podge.  I  allowed it to dry between coats.  This chair needed about three coats over the entire piece to seal it.  I am hoping my sister likes the result!  I had seen the color dipped legs online, on other crafted chairs and I  love this design! I decided to incorporate it into this chair.  Now she has a stylish place to sit and read or put on a favorite pair of shoes, and it perfectly matches her bedroom decor!

$2.50 chair Before and after:

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Upcycled chair

Materials:

Wooden Chair

Pillow Case for decoupage

Mod Podge Matte Finish

Scissors/Fine Tipped Marker

Pink and Brown Acrylic Paint

Paint brushes various sizes

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Crazy For Half Tables: Table Restyle using Mod Podge

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I love half tables!  I was so excited when I found this one at a thrift store while shopping one weekend with the family.  It was the first item in my cart.  I was also ecstatic over the reasonable price- only $5.99! I knew exactly where I would put this table in our house, at the base of our stairs.  Space is limited in this area and this half table would be a perfect space saver.

I searched through my available scrapbook paper and went through several styles before I settled on this one.  I turned the table upside down onto the backside of two sheets of paper and traced the table top onto the paper.  I cut the tracing and used Mod Podge Matte Finish to glue the paper to the table top. I used my rubber Mod Podge tool and my hand to gently smooth out any air bubbles.  While the table top dried, I painted the rest of the table black with acrylic paint. One of the things I like about this table is, it had some etched details on the legs and top.  I accentuated this by painting the floral etching white.  Once all the paint dried I used about 4 coatings of Mod Podge to seal the piece.  I skipped priming the piece because the table felt rough almost like it had been lightly sanded before I bought it. The paint covered well with about two coats. I was happy with the design and the neutral black and white design goes well with our living room walls which are painted with Behr paint and primer in one sandstone color.

before and after

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Materials:

Two pieces of scrapbook paper design of choice

Black Acrylic paint

Mod Podge Matte Finish

Rubber Mod Podge

Scissors, Paint Brushes, Black Marker

Table top close up

Another Large Wooden Tray Restyle

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I picked up this tray for just a couple of dollars at Goodwill and had no initial plans for it.  I admit I love rescuing old trays even if I have no idea what to do with them.  It sat in our spare room for quite sometime primed, but unfinished.  I then picked up some Victorian inspired black with white fabric during a second Goodwill trip.  I liked it because it had trees on it with children playing.  It reminded me of some of the decor we had in my house growing up in the late 70’s early 80’s. I decided to use the fabric on the tray. I thought it would be a great way to display the fabric and keep the scene intact. I painted the tray with white acrylic paint and then applied the Mod Podge.  Since the fabric was dark, I couldn’t trace it, so I applied the fabric I had to the tray, and when the Mod Podge dried and the fabric hardened I used a box cutter knife to remove the excess fabric. Once dry I used about two more coats of Mod Podge over the entire piece.  If you are just starting out working with Mod Podge, trays are definitely the way to go!  They are a great starter project and the possibilities for styling are endless.

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Materials:

Mod Podge

Tray

Fabric

Box Cutter style knife

White acrylic paint and primer

Nuts and Bolts: Re-Purposed Plastic Container Earring Box

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We have all seen them in hardware stores, or down the home improvement aisle. Those nifty assorted nail, nut and bolt sets housed in those plastic containers. I had purchased one some time ago and after using most of the nails, I was left with the plastic box.  I held onto it thinking I would eventually use it for something. After some thought,  I had the perfect use for it, an earring holder.  Sure, I have a jewelry box, but the nice thing about this plastic box were all the individual compartments.  There is nothing worse than digging through a jewelry box drawer trying to find a matching pair of earrings.  Using this box would eliminate that problem.  It worked great, but lacked an aesthetic appeal, so I decided to do a simple restyle.  I traced the top of the box onto the scrapbook paper, then used Mod Podge Matte finish to glue the paper to the top of the lid. Once dry I used two coats of Mod Podge to seal the lid and the paper.  This was a very simple project, and works great!

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The Gift Bag Makeover: Wooden Box Re-purposed and Restyled with decoupage

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Utensil Holder Repurpose with Decoupage

Some time ago my husband purchased a box of silverware from JC Penney for me as a birthday gift.  We had just started hosting Christmas at our house and we realized we did not have enough place settings  for everyone when it came to eating utensils.  I was so happy to get these!  I finally had a matching set.  I love getting new things for the house.  They came is a wooden box with a felt/cardboard insert inside for storage,  I knew I would simply just store the spoons, forks and knives in my kitchen drawer for everyday use so I didn’t really need the box.  I didn’t want to throw it away so I did the thing I always do, put it up in the attic.  It then resurfaced on one of my “attic shopping trips”  I thought I could repurpose it to store things in.  Sewing supplies, stationery, arts and crafts, you name it.  You can never have enough storage boxes.  It was fairly easy to rip out the inside once this was done, I lined the inside with scrap-book paper and Mod Podge.  Any areas that were unpainted inside once I ripped out the utensil holder I painted black.  I then moved on to the outside.  I had this wonderful gift bag.  I held onto it for quite sometime I thought it would be perfect for this project.  I cut it measured it, and applied Mod Podge to the surface gluing down the gift bag.  I then sealed with three layers of Mod Podge Matte finish. Now I just have to decide what I will put in it!

Gift Bag

Wooden Box

Black Paint/Brushes

Scrapbook paper

Scissors

Mod Podge