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Tips, Tricks, and Advice for Decoupage

decoupage tray with wine glasses

The Spruce / Rita Shehan

Decoupage is a craft technique of affixing paper decorations to a hard surface with glue. By looking at a finished project, you would think this craft technique would be complicated, but it isn't. Decoupage started in France in the 17th century as the poor man's alternative to painted furniture. It is actually quite simple. If you can cut and paste, you already know most of the techniques involved.

To get started with decoupage, you cut out pictures and glue them onto an object. The next step is to cover the object and pictures with a few coats of glue or decoupage medium to protect it. You probably have everything you need to make your project lying around your home right now. Gather your supplies and start crafting.

Decoupage Medium

Decoupage medium is an all-in-one sealer, glue, and finish used for creating decoupaged works of art. Use it on wood, fabric and other porous surfaces. It dries clear and holds your glued-on paper cuts tight.

illustration of how to decoupage
The Spruce

Supplies You Need

As with any craft project you make, you should always read the instructions first. Make a list of supplies that you need to purchase, although you may already have quite a few of the supplies already in your home.

  • Decide what object you wish to decorate with decoupage. You can add pictures to almost anything: furniture, photo albums, shelving, frames, boxes, vases, mirrors, hardcover books, trays, suitcases, dishes, candles, cans, bottles, egg cartons, rocks, and much more.
  • Find a picture source. The options are endless: cut out pictures, motifs, or shapes from wrapping paper, wallpaper, fabric, napkins, greeting cards, postcards, photographs, travel brochures, handbills, programs, garden seed packages, pages from old books, foil-covered paper, paper doilies, ribbon, posters, dried flowers, tissue paper, and more. You can also buy paper and pictures made especially for decoupage. You can photocopy clip art, photos, stories, poems, and other items printed from your computer, with special considerations for pictures printed using an inkjet printer.
  • Decide on what decoupage medium to use. You can buy a product made especially for decoupaging, such as Mod Podge or Collage Pauge. You should have at least one of those in your craft cupboard, but in a pinch, slightly diluted white glue will do.
decoupage supplies
The Spruce / Rita Shehan

The items above are the essential supplies you need, but there are a few other items you might find handy to use in your decoupage journey:

  • Bone folder: You can use this to help smooth out wrinkles and remove excess glue. You can also buy a tool made especially for this, called a brayer.
  • Foam brush: Use this to spread the decoupage medium or glue onto the item you will decoupage. If you don't have a foam brush, you can use an ordinary paintbrush or even a cotton swab.
  • Scissors: Use to cut out the pictures and other items you will be decoupaging. To help with cutting decorative paper with a lot of small details, you might want to use scissors with smalls blades or a utility knife.
  • Tweezers: Tweezers are sometimes a great help when it comes to positioning small pictures.
  • Damp rag: Keep one nearby to wipe up excess glue and to help with other clean up. Make sure the rag is damp and not soaking wet when using it to remove excess decoupage medium from your glued papers. A damp rag also helps to keep your hands clean while working with glue.

Getting Started With Your Project

Once you've gathered all of your supplies, you can start on your project by following along with these easy directions.

Make sure the item you're decoupaging is clean, removing any dust or dirt. It must also be dry. If you're going to paint your item first, the paint must be totally dry before you start decoupaging (no tackiness). This example used spray paint with an added-in primer to paint a wooden tray. Make sure the paint you use is appropriate for the object you intend to decoupage.

painted wooden tray
The Spruce / Rita Shehan

Cut out the pictures you are going to use. It helps to use an X-Acto knife to cut out the paper pieces that have quite a bit of intricate detail.

cut pictures for decoupage tray
The Spruce / Rita Shehan

Before you add glue, arrange the pictures onto the item you are decoupaging until you like the way they look. The pictures can be in any placement you like and can also overlap.

placement of cut decoupage images
The Spruce / Rita Shehan

Working in a small section at a time, remove the pictures and apply a generous layer of decoupage medium onto the item you are decoupaging. Make sure you completely cover any area the picture will touch. If you prefer, you can spread the medium onto the back of the picture.

applying decoupage medium
The Spruce / Rita Shehan

Stick the picture on the decoupage medium. Use your finger to gently push down the picture (for a large picture, start from the center and work your way out) and push out any wrinkles and excess medium. You can also use a bone folder or brayer to do this.

finger pressing down decoupage image
The Spruce / Rita Shehan

Continue with the last two steps until all of your pictures are glued on.

Let the decoupage medium dry. If you are using pictures on thicker paper, such as photos or greeting cards, they can take longer to dry.

Watch for bubbles as your pictures dry. If one forms, use a pin or utility knife to pop it and then use your fingers to smooth it down.

decoupage rose on tray
The Spruce / Rita Shehan

Once the medium is dry, coat your item thoroughly with another layer of the decoupage medium. Let this dry.

modpodge spread on tray
The Spruce / Rita Shehan

Continue to add coats of the medium until you get the desired results. You will want to keep adding layers until the edges of the pictures are all smooth.

modpodge spread on tray
The Spruce / Rita Shehan

Let your project dry completely before it's ready to use, display, or be given away as a gift.

tray with wine glasses
The Spruce / Rita Shehan

Inkjet-Printed Materials

If you use inkjet-printed material on your projects, let the ink dry, then spray it with hairspray. It sets the ink and then you can use the print. Make sure both are completely dry before applying your medium.

Tips

  • Make photocopies of photographs and other original papers to use in decoupage so you can save the original. You can also take a photo of them with your phone and then print it.
  • Tear your pictures instead of cutting them. Torn edges lay a little flatter and blend a bit better.
  • Take a photo to remember the placement of your paper pieces. It's easy to forget once you remove them and start decoupaging.
  • When decoupaging on plastic, experiment before you commit. For rougher surfaces, the pictures should adhere but will take a little longer to dry. If the surface is very smooth, consider roughing it up with a little sandpaper.