DIY Fancy Plates with Mod Podge

Despite being an avid crafter, I do not have much experience using Mod Podge.  I bought an 8 oz jar of glossy Mod Podge at Wal Mart for less than $5 bucks.  So far I have used it to make two items.  The first thing I did was fancy up a clear glass plate I had left over from an earlier craft.  

I decided to make this clear plate pretty by mod podging it with fancy paper and using it to display some smaller jewelry items.  I wouldn't recommend washing it repeatedly and definitely not dishwasher safe!  I'm using mine to display some rings and earrings during my craft show on Saturday.  

You’ll Need:

·        Mod Podge

·        Clear Plate

·        Sponge Brush

·        Pretty paper

·        Scissors

·        Pen

Step 1:

Trace your plate onto your paper.   Cut out your circle.

**I would trace your circle a little larger than your plate.  I traced my pate and had a small half inch gap between my paper and the edge of my plate**

**Note:  I used cardstock but next time I would choose regular pretty paper and not cardstock.**

Step 2:

Cut slits in your circle almost to the middle but do not cut all the way to the middle.  I cut slits in my circle to create eighths.  I did this by tracing my pate onto a plain white piece of paper.  I folded my template in half, then in half again (fourths) and then in half again (eighths).  I held this on top of my colored paper and cut my slits using the folds.

Step 3:

Cover your clear plate in a generous amount of Mod Podge.  Add your paper and center with the plate.  **As noted, I used my plate and my paper did not quite meet my edges**.  Push down to seal your paper to the plate.

Step 4:

Cover your paper with another layer of Mod Podge.  Mine is currently drying but I will be adding a second layer of Mod Podge tomorrow after work.

*As noted, I would not wash or dishwash this plate, but rather use it as a decorative item (candle holder or jewelry dish).*

I will post pictures of the final project tomorrow J

Twig Covered Candle Holders

Here is a simple and quick project to tackle in an hour. I used it as a part of a Thanksgiving center piece and table theme I did.  I created the candle holders first and continued to use them throughout the fall holiday season J  

I got inspired by these from Martha Stewart who had a tutorial on how to make a twig vase.  But I thought this idea would be lovely to make a votive and have the candle light peeking through the twigs inside the glass.  So I grabbed some twigs from the backyard (which in October in Florida took some scrounging), some glass votives (I bought mine from the Dollar Tree) and a glue gun (or E6000 glue) and got to work.

What you’ll need:

Glass votives, small glass cups, or recycled candle jars

Twigs

Garden shears or clippers

Glue (Hot, Tacky, E6000:  choose your weapon)

Raffia, Ribbon, Silk Leaves, etc for embellishment

This is super easy!

Step 1:  Gather your twigs and use garden shears trim the bottoms of the twigs.  You can trim all the twigs to exact length for a polished look or leave them in various lengths for a more rustic look.  Just make sure that the twig bottoms are not longer than the votive cup or it won’t sit evenly on the table.

Step 2:  Begin gluing your twigs the around the votive holder.  You can glue them as close together or leave as many gaps as you like.  I played around with this idea since I like the different amounts of light each put out. 

*I have used both hot glue and E6000 for this project.  I like hot glue because it dries immediately, but E6000 leaves a little wiggle room for moving misplaced twigs*

Step 3:  Place candle in holder.  You may embellish with real leaves, silk leaves, raffia, twine, ribbon, or whatever else strikes your fancy J  I have used several different embellishments to match the theme.

Sneak Peek at Centerpiece ideas!

Thank you for looking!  Check out my crafts for sale at my shop!

LDO designs