Have you ever wanted to do a furniture makeover, but weren’t sure where to start? Well look no further. This type of project is absolutely perfect for your first attempt! I’ve painted a few pieces before (you can check one of my favourites out here). However, I don’t think any of them have been as easy or as much fun as this one. I mean how often do you get to do a furniture makeover with a serviette?? Let me explain.
This is what I bought last year for £5. On Marketplace of course! A bit bland and boring, right?
I knew I wanted to add some colour and different textures to it. As always, I started with giving it a good clean, filling in any cracks and rubbing it down.
With the boring bit over, I started painting it with paint suitable for wood. (And very quickly decided I didn’t like the white!) I changed the legs to a pale grey and the colour of the top to a pale duck egg blue to match some of the colours in our hall and landing.
I didn’t take any photos of that stage but you’ll see the end result in a bit 🙂
Gold!!!
I’ve been wanting to try gold leaf for a while now. In fact these gold leaf sheets were a Christmas present from my children. Christmas 2019 that is!! Yup, it’s taken me over a year to get round to giving this a go.
I mod podged (is that a word??) the bottom 10 cm of the legs and carefully placed the gold leaf on top. Now, “leaving things alone” is definitely one of my weak points (Yes … despite waiting for over a year to get round to using the gold leaf ..) Anyway, I couldn’t resist dry brushing the gold leaf away when the glue was still wet. Which meant there were chippy patches. However, as it turned out I kinda like the “chipped” look! (Let’s face it, I may as well have gone for a gold spray otherwise.) I completed the same process all the way round.
It won’t be everyone’s cup of tea but I love how the legs have turned out. I sealed them with Mod Podge for added protection once they were dried.
serviette fun
But, the MOST fun I had with finishing the top. A serviette and some Mod Podge were my weapon of choice. Seriously … I got these gorgeous serviettes last summer and they have the perfect colours (the photo doesn’t do it justice – they’re a duck egg blue). Peel away the top layer of the serviette so you are left with a thin patterned layer of the serviette. Like this:
I added a layer of Mod Podge to the top of the stool and carefully played the layer on top. Be careful how you do this because once it touches the Mod Podge it’s difficult to pull it back. I start on one side and carefully “lower” the serviette onto the surface.
smooth out the bubbles
Next I placed some cling film on top of the serviette. This gives a barrier between your finger, a brush or a credit card and the serviette to prevent ripping when you’re smoothing out the wrinkles. When the serviette is wet it will be super fragile and the plastic just makes it MUCH easier.
Smooth out as many of the bubbles as possible, peel off the cling film and leave to dry. Don’t worry about some of the creases – it adds to the character. You can even sand them down for a more of a “worn” look once it’s all dried.
Once it’s completely dried, take a sanding block and carefully go around the edges to peel off the serviette from the side.
Seal with another layer of Mod Podge (or two) and you’re done!!
And here’s how it looks on our landing. I’m not sure if I’ll keep it here but that’s where’s it’s going to live for now. I move things around all the time so who knows where it’ll end up!
Here’s a closer look at those “chippy legs” 🙂
See what I mean about the colour of the serviette? Isn’t that gorgeous?
Let me know what projects you do with Serviette and Mod Podge?
Oh, and could you Pin this for me please?
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