How to Decoupage a Disney "Cars" Light Switch Cover
The Disney movie "Cars" brought viewers into the world of lovable characters such as Lightning McQueen and Mater. For the young "Cars" lover in your family, decorate a bedroom to make Lightning McQueen proud. Complete the creation of a Disney’s "Cars"-themed room for your child by using decoupage to adhere images of the movie’s characters to the light switch cover. Decoupage is a craft project that involves applying paper images to surfaces with glue and sealing with several coats of clear polyurethane lacquer.
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Things You'll Need
- Metal light switch cover
- Clean rag
- "Cars"-themed images
- Color copier
- Wax paper
- Embroidery scissors
- Water
- Decoupage glue or white glue
- 2 paper cups
- 2 small paintbrushes
- Polyurethane
- Utility knife (optional)
- Sharpened pencil (optional)
Instructions
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1
Prepare the metal light switch cover by wiping the surface clean with a rag.
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2
Use a color copier to make several copies of Lightning McQueen, Mater and other “Cars”-themed art work. Cover the work table with wax paper. Cut out the shapes and images with small embroidery scissors. Angle the scissors slightly away from the image as you cut it out, which helps the image stay flat and blend with the light switch cover background.
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3
Fill a paper cup with room temperature water. Fill an additional paper cup with decoupage glue or basic white glue. Dip a small paintbrush in the water and then in the glue. Apply a thin coat of glue to all of the images. Allow the glue-stiffened images to dry completely.
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4
Place the dry images on the light switch cover. Feel free to arrange the images so that they overlap one another, which adds depth to the decoupaged design.
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5
Cover the images and the metal light switch cover with another layer of glue. Dip the paintbrush in the water followed by the glue. Cover all of the images and the metal light switch to seal the images directly to the cover. Allow the glue to dry before moving to Step 6.
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6
Use the second paintbrush to paint several coats of clear polyurethane. Allow the lacquered cover to dry between each coat. Adding several coats of polyurethane creates an illusion, as if the “Cars” characters were floating upon the light switch cover.
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7
Turn the dry, decoupaged light switch over. Use a utility knife to cut out the rectangle where the toggle switch meets the light switch cover. This step is only necessary if the images overlap the opening. Turn the light switch cover over, making it right-side up. Use a sharpened pencil to poke out the screw holes on the cover before screwing the finished cover to the wall.
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Tips & Warnings
Copying the images prior to beginning a decoupage project allows the crafter to preserve their original artwork. It also allows them to have more than one image to work with in case of mistakes.
If you used an ink-jet copier to copy images, allow them to dry completely before applying the glue. Otherwise, the glue-and-water mixture may cause the ink to smear. Wash the glue-soaked paintbrush after completing Step 3 so you can use it again in Step 5.
References
- Photo Credit light switch image by Christopher Hall from Fotolia.com
