DIY Decoupaged Night Stand

I’ve always been a student of slow decorating— more out of necessity and budgetary restrictions than anything. But these days I am starting to see that decorating slowly is a really fun proces. I’m the type of person who is a perpetual decorator– I’m always adding to things and nothing is ever 100% finished. Whether I am adding things to our tiny New York apartment, adding to my closet, or creating a monstrous doodle on my notebook, I’m never done embellishing. And I’ve got the stash of paints, Mod Podge, and fabric scraps underneath the couch to prove it. 😉

For as long as I can remember, my dad has been trying to get rid of this little wooden nightstand. Apparently his uncle or cousin or someone got a new tool and was just messing around with some wood and they made this little nightstand. Now my dad, who is the son antique shop owners with a furniture stripping business, does not like this nightstand. (My dad is a full-fledged furniture snob… and this nightstand is made of pine.) So when I asked if I could take it to New York with me, my dad was very happy. 🙂

Since no one really cared about this piece of furniture, I figured it was okay to experiment with it. I received a note from Midori, asking if I wanted to use their products for any projects, and once I saw their selection of gift wrap, I knew exactly what I wanted to do with that old nightstand. 🙂

The little night stand, pre Mod Podge. 🙂 Also, the pineapple gift wrap I chose. I had a serious inner dilemma choosing between the pineapples and these crocodiles, but I decided that the pineapples might be (slightly) more practical. I still might go and buy those little crocodiles myself, though, because the Midori papers are incredibly thick and luxurious. Those whimsical crocodiles need to be permanently adhered to something. (Right?) 😉

For the project, you need a piece of furniture, (obviously) some Mod Podge, (where would I be without that stuff) gift wrap, and a brush to spread the Mod Podge. Plan which way you want the design of your gift wrap to go and then spread a layer of Mod Podge onto your furniture. Place the paper where you want it to go, adding more Mod Podge along the way. It’s really easy, but perhaps a little time-consuming.

After your base layer of Mod Podge has dried, just add a few top layers to seal the paper onto the furniture. If you use enough Mod Podge, that paper won’t go anywhere. Just be sure to do it in smaller layers so that you don’t get buckling paper or drips.

In the end it’s a very cheap way to update a piece of furniture and make it look more expensive than it is. 🙂

Definitely going for a whimsical themed bedroom, huh? 😉

Disclosure: A huge thanks to Midori who gave me these awesome papers so that I can make another project with Mod Podge. 😉 As always, I would never promote something I would not buy myself… And now I need to brainstorm a project to buy and use those crocodile papers! 😉