Thursday, February 23, 2012

I Seriously Thought It Was MODGE Podge


OK, I first have to comment on my title.  The entire first draft of this post I was calling it MODGE Podge.  Oops!  It is MOD Podge.  See, I really am a rookie!  But now on to the meat & potatoes...

Did you check out my spring-ish updates to my entry way table?  I’m loving it!  And it helps me to continue my complete denial that I probably have at least another month of winter ahead of me. 

My favorite part is the tray and it was really my jumping off point for all the other items, which is why I am excited about sharing how I made it!  I started with an unfinished wood tray from Michael’s which was only $4.99…what a steal.   I wanted to create a wallpaper type look so I selected a piece of paper that brought in rich but bright colors.  The paper was not quit big enough to cover the entire tray so I also picked up a piece of charcoal gray to fill in the gaps.  And the final piece to the puzzle, Mod Podge.

Now I have to confess that I am a Mod Podge rookie (see note above).  I don’t know how I survived childhood without ever Mod Podging but somehow I did.  So I was a little scared!  But I got a little help from ModPodgeRocks.com.  Yes!  There is a blog all about Mod Podge.  LOVE IT!  And Amy has 3 great videos all about Mod Podging which are totally worth watching. 
Mod Podge Rocks!
But first let me back up…I had to paint the trays.  A simple job.  All it took was a little spray paint which I already had in my garage.  Always remember spray paint works best with multiple thin coats.  It is so tempting to just pile on the paint all at once, but trust me it can lead to disaster.  So slow down, do thin coats and let the paint dry in between each coat.  It is worth the patience! 

So once my three coats of spray paint were completely dry I got my Mod Podge on.  I will give you the basics but seriously, watch the videos!  You use a paint brush (bristle or sponge) to apply a medium coat to the base surface, the tray in this case.  Then do the same to the back of the paper or fabric.  Move quickly as it will dry up on you.  Then line everything up and stick it down.  Use your hand or a roller to push out the extra Mod Podge and to get out the bubbles.  I did this first with the gray paper and then with the colored. 

As ModPodgeRocks warned me, bubbles are a problem.  And I had those problems.


But Amy convinced me to just let it dry before panicking, even though panic was tempting.   Once it is completely dry paint over top of the surface with another 2-3 medium coats – letting it dry for about 20 minutes between each coat.  And guess what, the bubbles do work themselves out!  Now it isn’t perfect but it is pretty darn good and the small bubbles that remain can only be seen if you get up really close.  And I plan to chase anyone away before they figure that out. 

So my Mod Podging maiden voyage is complete and although I doubt I will be creating ModPodgeRocks2, I did have fun and may try it out again.  According to Amy you can really use Mod Podge for a zillion different projects.  Have you Mod Podged?  If so I would love to see what you created!

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