How to Collage a Tabletop
Turn a flea market find or your mom's leftover into a tabletop of dreams - or at least a conversation piece.
- Difficulty:
- Easy
Instructions
-
-
1
Choose a theme (movies, modern art, miracles) and a color scheme (black and white, multicolored).
-
2
Collect and cut or tear out the images you want to include. Look for varying colors, shapes and sizes.
-
3
Cover your surface with a single layer of paper. Any paper is fine, but a solid color like a plain newsprint will be less distracting; cutting and taping is fine.
-
4
Arrange the images on the paper-covered surface (no glue yet), working from the middle out to the edges. Think of it as a jigsaw puzzle and look for contrast and complement.
-
5
Leave it alone for a bit; walk around it; see what it looks like from various angles; rearrange it if you change your mind.
-
6
Carefully lift the paper with your entire collage on it off the tabletop.
-
7
Transfer and glue the pieces, one at a time, working from the middle out and paying attention to which edges end up on top. Use a rag to smooth each piece down, making sure the edges stick and wiping off excess glue.
-
8
Allow to dry fully.
-
9
Coat with two or three layers of polyurethane varnish.
-
1
Tips & Warnings
Ask your friends to save their old magazines for you.
Allow enough time for arranging and rearranging; once you start gluing, you're committed.
Watch the wind - even a haphazard gust can play havoc with this project.
Related Searches
Comments
-
Nov 22, 2005
After returning from a month-long vacation, I was amazed at the number of brochures, postcards and travel magazines I had accumulated from the places we had visited. I wanted a way to display them but wasn't too interested in scrapbooking. I thought about it, and remembered that I had an outdoor 4x4 table that wasn't being used. I took a series of maps from the trip, along with the other memorabilia, and laid them out on the table in various angles; no matter where you sat you could experience a segment of our trip. The first time I had folks over and used our vacation collaged table we ended up playing musical chairs so all could experience the entire trip. This is a great way to share your memories without having to bring out the 6 hours of vacation video. -
Nov 22, 2005
After returning from a month-long vacation, I was amazed at the number of brochures, postcards and travel magazines I had accumulated from the places we had visited. I wanted a way to display them but wasn't too interested in scrapbooking. I thought about it, and remembered that I had an outdoor 4x4 table that wasn't being used. I took a series of maps from the trip, along with the other memorabilia, and laid them out on the table in various angles; no matter where you sat you could experience a segment of our trip. The first time I had folks over and used our vacation collaged table we ended up playing musical chairs so all could experience the entire trip. This is a great way to share your memories without having to bring out the 6 hours of vacation video.
