DIY paint chip tray decor

My mom picked up this old tray at a garage sale and challenged me to find a way to re-do it.  I had been holding onto it for awhile thinking for ways to breath a little new life into it.  I knew I wanted something bright and bold.  I started by giving it a few coats of a mustard yellow spray paint.  

I came across some awesome chevron paint chip art pieces on Pinterest, and had the intentions of doing something similar with my tray. After trying a few different layouts, it just wasn't the right size to get a good chevron pattern to fit.  So I did the brick pattern instead. I glued them onto the tray, let that dry and then gave the whole thing a few clear coats to seal it.  

The pop of color it adds to our coffee table is just what I was looking for.

Do it yourself coasters for around .30 each (yes, that's 30 cents!)

reception favors

These coasters are made out of a 4x4 inch tile, decorated with craft paper or fabric and sealed.  The possibilities are endless- I have done our boys’ handprints for the Grammas for Mother’s Day.  Photo ones for a girlfriend (of her and her fiancé) for her shower, and reception favors (with the bride and groom’s names, date and a Bible reference printed on a clear address label) for my sister’s upcoming wedding. 

How-To

  1. Hot glue felt, cork or fleece to the back of the tile.  This prevents it from scratching the table it will sit on.  You can also use the little circles that go under chair legs, they work really well too.

  2. Pick your paper or fabric and decoupage it to the tile- It takes more glue than you would think, so be generous

  3. If using a picture, handprint or other type of art layer it on. 

  4. Let dry and then give it a good coat or two of acrylic spray sealer (found by the spray paints)

Tie a ribbon around a set of 4 and they make a great gift!

My 3 little loves' handprints

Ideas for coaster making:

Host a coffee date with your friends and make them together (that’s what we did for the reception favors.  We managed to knock out 210 in about 3 hours and it didn’t even feel like a job because there were 6 of us catching up and 10 kids running around playing)

Let your kids do their best artwork- a useful keepsake that captures the cute way they draw people or their adorable lettering.  They love the gluing mess! (tip: a quick layer of newspaper or a paper bag on the table makes clean up a breeze) 

Find pictures of people who inspire you, encourage you and love you. What a great place to rest your morning coffee each day.

Use old maps, recycled newspaper, t-shirts, holiday cards, ... anything!

photo coasters

Have fun with it and let them reflect your own uniqueness!