Dollar Baking Tray With Handles

 

We all love updating dollar store items! And the cookie pan is a popular item to use in craft projects! And it's definitely fun turning plain old cheap stuff into decorative, useful household items! Just take a look and see how I updated this cookie pan! It's so easy to turn a cookie baking pan into a decorative tray with handles! Perfect for this month's Upcycled Project Blog Hop Challenge!

Materials:

Cookie Pan

White chalk paint

Paint brush

Paper Napkins (2)

Scissors

Matte Mod Podge

Ziplock Bags

18 gauge tarnish resistant wire

E6000 glue/hot glue 

Instructions:

Begin by removing the label on the pan. Then wash and clean off any residual glue, dirt and grime. Let dry. 

Once thoroughly dry, paint the pan using white chalk paint. You will need at least two coats.

Next, remove all of the white paper backings of the printed portion of the napkin. I always dampen my forefinger with a light dab of mod podge and tap together my thumb until sticky and then touch the corner edge to take apart the paper layers.

Next, size up napkin placement on tray and decide what you need to cover and what needs to be cut off. The design of the napkin had the same pattern on each end, but the height of the napkin was too large for the tray. And the width fitted perfectly and not adjustments were needed. 

So I cut the napkin off to allow enough space to add the same border.

This is how the napkin looked after cutting.

To decoupage the napkin, I applied mod podge on the tray in sections - to keep the wrinkles at a minimum. The napkin was not of a good quality - quite thin and was wrinkled beforehand.

Once the decoupage was applied, I smoothed out the napkin using a ziplock plastic bag that I cut the top and bottom off to open full.

Once the napkin was smooth out, I let the decoupaged napkin portion dry.

Then I used the other end half of the napkin to match the plaid lines 

And applied that piece the same way (in sections) and smoothing out using ziplock plastic and let dry.

Since you could see the straight lines of the added piece, I decided to cut out decorative trim pieces from another piece of napkin and decoupage them on .  .  .

for a seamless look!

To make the tray handles - for each handle, I cut three 24" lengths of 18 gauge wire and folded each piece in half, wrapping the wires with one of the wire loops.

And began braiding the wire until reaching the end. Sorry, I somehow didn't take pictures of the completed braid.

But here is the completed braided handle - hand shaped and glued on first with hot glue and then E6000 for a permanent hold.

I'm loving how this turned out!

It's the 2nd Monday of the month and time for another Monthly Challenge Blog Hop! I've joined a group of creative bloggers to bring you this monthly challenge blog hop!   The theme for March is to create an upcycled, repurpose, remake, reuse project!

Meet the participants:

Across the Blvd

Sew Crafty Crochet

Purple Hues and Me

Domestic Deadline

Stone Cottage Adventures

Comfort Spring

Sum of Their Stories

Vicky Myers Creations

Be sure to click below to see more great upcycled projects!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Pumpkin Design Candle Holder

 It's that time again for our monthly Thrift Store Upcycle Challenge, hosted by Angela @ Simply Beautiful by Angela! Here, a group of creative bloggers come together to share their lovely transformations of a thrift store item.

Our Thrift Store Upcycle group of bloggers is looking to expand -- and we need your help! Why not consider joining in our thrift store upcycle challenge on the last Thursday of each month? Make some friends while having fun and share your love of DIY with the world. It’s a win-win! Sound like something you’d be interested in? Just leave a comment at the end of this post with your contact info and a link to your blog. Someone will get back to you right away. We can’t wait to meet you!

The Rules:

• Upcycle an item(s) from a thrift store, resale store, or garage sale into a new piece of decor.
• There's no monthly theme.
• There's no budget to stick to.

Meet the Hosts

Angela | Simply Beautiful By Angela

Beverly | Across the Blvd

Gail | Purple Hues and Me

Allyson | Southern Sunflowers

Marci | Stone Cottage Adventures

Kathleen | Our Hopeful Home

You can find lots and lots of  tchotchkes or knick knacks  in thrift stores.   They're fun to use in decorative settings for just about any season. And I always try to pick up a few each time I'm there. Halloween items are quite popular and plentiful - some quite unique. Take this metal candle holder. It has a rusty finish, but can you see the outline of pumpkins around it? How cool is that - and for a sweet price of 50 cents, too!

To get rid of the residue from rusty metal, wash to remove any dirt and grime. Then spray on a paint + primer like Rustoleum Painter's Touch Ultra Cover. It's an indoor-outdoor spray paint that bonds to wood, metal, plastic and more! 

Once the primer paint was dry, I painted the pumpkin lines with a bright orange multi-purpose acrylic paint. Please excuse the uneven lines. I'm a terrible painter!

What a fun way to update a rusty thrift store piece.

Let's make a decorative decoupage candle to use with the newly updated thrift store candle holder:

Begin by measuring the napkin around the candle and cut out a a piece big enough to wrap the candle. Try wrapping the napkin around the candle to see how the pattern fits. Then cut off any excess napkin paper. 
Next separate the top printed layer from the plain layers. I got this napkin from Target last year. It has only one plain layer to remove.

Because the candle is curved, it's best to apply the napkin in sections to prevent unnecessary wrinkles. Do this by applying a thin layer of Mod Podge using a soft bristle brush over a small portion of the sides of the candle. Place the edge of the paper napkin over the MP, making sure to keep the napkin straight and even. Gently smooth down with hand. 

 Continue applying Mod Podge around the candle and smoothing out sections of the napkin on top .  .  .

 until the candle is completely covered with the napkin.

 Use a plastic baggy or plastic wrap to smooth out any wrinkles on top and let dry.

 Then coat with a layer of Mod Podge to seal and let dry completely.

It's all about the pumpkins!

Candles like this one with decoupaged napkins are decorative and should not be burned. In addition, while Mod Podge is not flammable, items like paper napkins used with this glue may be. However, there is a trick if you want to "burn" your decorated candle.  You can burn thick decoupage candles - by burning until a small well is formed. You'll notice that thick candles burn inside without heating the outer surface too much. But please don't leave them unattended in any event.

And now for more thrifty goodness!

Check out what my fellow upcyclers created below!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Updating a Brass Swan Dish

It's that time again for our monthly Thrift Store Upcycle Challenge, hosted by Angela @ Simply Beautiful by Angela! Here, a group of creative bloggers come together to share their lovely transformations of a thrift store item. 

The Rules:

• Upcycle an item(s) from a thrift store, resale store, or garage sale into a new piece of decor.
• There's no monthly theme.
• There's no budget to stick to.

Meet the Hosts

Angela | Simply Beautiful By Angela - Gail | Purple Hues and Me   

Emily | Domestic Deadline - Beverly | Across the Blvd  

Lynne | My Family Thyme - Kathleen | Our Hopeful Home 

 Jenny | Cookies Coffee and Crafts - Allyson | Southern Sunflowers 

Chas | Chas' Crazy Creations

Our Thrift Store Upcycle group of bloggers is looking to expand -- and we need your help! Why not consider joining in our thrift store upcycle challenge on the last Thursday of each month? Make some friends while having fun and share your love of DIY with the world. It’s a win-win! Sound like something you’d be interested in? Just leave a comment at the end of this post with your contact info and a link to your blog. Someone will get back to you right away. We can’t wait to meet you!

Who doesn't love thrift store upcycle projects - whether it's actually creating one or admiring how an item from a thrift store was transformed!

We all feel great when a thrift store find ends up looking amazing! But what on earth did I have in mind when I picked up this sad looking brass swan dish - with a dirty patina finish - at my local Goodwill for a few dollars, well before the pandemic struck?

 What could I do? I didn't dare paint over the brass! It's such a small piece and the whole essence of the swan would disappear! So why not just clean it up? And that's exactly what I did, using a brass cleaner!  It now looks great, don't you think? Restored to its' former glory! But something is missing for this update! Style - Uniqueness? 

You've heard of the power of paint, right? Well, what about the power of decoupage? With decoupage, if it doesn't look right, you can just wash it off! Lol! What a fun way to jazz up pieces!

So I looked around in my stash of paper napkins to find a design that would enhance the "feathers" or "wings!" of the swan and its' brass finish! Not seeing anything I liked, I decided to make my own napkin design with a pattern I found online.

To do this, tape a plain white napkin to a sheet of printer paper using painter's tape.

Be sure to tape all of the side edges so the napkin won't jam in the printer. Ask me how I know this!

Place in the printer and hit print   .  .  .

to get a lovely paper napkin design! Just like that!

To decoupage, cut off the tape and remove the plain layers from the printed layer.

Then tear the napkin a little larger than the brass area. Apply a coat of Mod Podge to the brass using a paintbrush.  

Smooth the paper napkin on the wet decoupage medium, using a plastic baggy to remove any wrinkles or air bubbles, and let dry. Once the Mod Podge dries, apply at least one more coat on the napkin design to seal the piece. And let it dry completely.

Then cut off the excess paper napkin around the edges .  .  .

using a file to remove residual napkin paper and giving all the edges a nice clean finish.

How's this for style and uniqueness!

Adding an aura of extra prettiness!

Perfect as a decorative accent dish with a touch of glamour!

And now for more thrifty goodness!
Check out what my fellow upcyclers created below!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter