My three favourite books about Decoupage

As you know I love decoupage and I can’t resist buying every book I see on the topic.   Here is my current top three favourite books, what they cover and where to find them.

Manning on Decoupage by Hiram Manning

A classic book about decoupage

This charming book is now out of print but copies can be found for as cheap as 75p on http://www.abebooks.co.uk .
I  love it so much.   It was written back in 1969 by the man credited with reviving the craft of decoupage in the States – Hiram Manning.     It is a must read for anyone interested in traditional decoupage or interested in the history of decoupage.
It is written in a delightful style and even the most experienced decoupage artist will  pick up a tip or two .  You may be even tempted to try out some of the more traditional techniques.

New Decoupage by Durwin Rice

This book has a bit of everything.

Slightly more up to date (published in 2008)  ,  New Decoupage , transforming your home with paper, glue and scissors ,  is written by Durwin Rice.    It combines the best of the other two books,  explaining the history of decoupage, traditional techniques before going on to explain how to do some great projects.  Again sadly it is out of print but you can seek out a copy in your library or on abebooks.co.uk or ebay.

20 To Make :  Modern Decoupage by Louise Crosbie

At the time of writing this is still in print and available on Amazon.  It’s a tiny book but packed full of  gorgeous projects and perfect to get inspiration and for when you are starting out.    I pass this book around at my classes to help kick start people’s imagination!  It’s around €5  so a bargain too.

 

 

So there it is my top three books on Decoupage.  I hope you seek them out and let me know what you think.  If  you have any favourites , I ‘d love to hear about them as I  am always looking to expand my library.   Just email me at liz@decoupage.ie ,  leave a message on my page http://www.facebook.com/decoupageIRL  or comment below.

Much Love

Liz

 

 

Daily Art Velvet Effect Paste – Magic in a jar!

What’s not to love about Velvet Effect Paste?  It is one of the best sellers on www.decoupage.ie and no wonder.

It comes in a gorgeous range of colours.

It can  create  different  effects   depending on how you apply it.

And my personal favourite …….you can use it to add amazing raised stencils to your work.    Have a look at this  video made by the wonderful Anna Strzelecka that will show you exactly how   Video : Using Daily Art Velvet Effect Paste to create a raised image. .

All products including the Velvet Effect Paste,  palette knifes,  wooden blanks and  stencils can be found on http://www.decoupage.ie

Any questions?   Just add a comment or email me at liz@decoupage.ie.  You can also get more information on this and other products on the Daily Art website www.dailyart.eu

Happy Decoupaging!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Halloween Madness – Decoupaged Pumpkins.

I couldn’t resist these little pumpkins in my local supermarket.  At only 69c each ……..perfect for decoupage!!!!

Here’s how I did it……

First clean the outside of the pumpkin and paint white.  I used Daily Art Vintage Paint.

 I then got my Daily Art Decoupage Glue, Flat Brush ,  napkin out.

Then I glued each piece on .  gluing over not under the napkin – this is a bit of an awkward photo  as was holding the brush and camera at the same time but  hopefully you get the idea 🙂

Here is a picture half way through.    I used the checkered bits of the napkin to fill in the gaps with the bigger pieces of napkin.    I did the top half, let it dry and then flipped over to do the bottom.

The blue one was even easier.  I  made sure to paint the pumpkin well and then just tore out the motifs from a napkin and glued straight on.

The pumpkins should keep well for a week or two outside so might do a layer of varnish  to protect and then the jobs a good un!

All products (apart from the pumpkin)  available to buy at www.decoupage.ie my online shop for all things decoupage.     Feel free to share your creations on our facebook group  Decoupage Ireland

 

Happy Halloween to you all!

Nailed it ! Decoupaged Tin Can Tealight Holder

Welcome to another tutorial. I saw the idea to pierce a tin can with a nail and thought it would be fun to do with Decoupage. Like most ideas I try from Pinterest it was a partial success but hopefully it will inspire you to try it yourself!

1. Fill a tin can with water and put in the freezer until rock hard .

2. Draw a template and stick to the can – I used masking tape as stuck to the slightly wet surface.

3. Using the hammer and the nail, put holes along the edige of the shape . Try and stay even. NB Do not take a phonecall at this stage as the ice melt s very quickly! I did and then had to put the whole thing in a freezer bag, re filled and froze and then had to chip through a block of ice to get to the can- grrrr! But I will blame that for my slighly dodgy hammering.

4. Dry the tin and paint with metal paint or primer and normal paint. You should end up with something a little bit better than this 🙂

5. Now you are ready to decuopage . You need a flat brush, decoupage glue (available from http://www.decoupage.ie ) and a nice napkin ( also available from Decoupage.ie!) . If you don’t have specialist glue , use watered down pva glue. Mod Podge is not advised for napkins as is too thick.

6.Use the top layer of the napkin and gently tear around the motif . Smooth against the tin and gently and firmly using lots of glue , paint down the image.

7.When dry, you varnish with a water based varnish, I used Daily art matt varnish.

8. Dah Da- OK not a great photo but hopefuly you get the idea. If you omit the holes , you can use for a whole variety of purposes 🙂

This tutorial was prepared by Liz from http://www.decoupage.ie. Decoupage.ie is the Irish Retailer of Daily Art products and a one stop shop for all things related to decoupage. Liz also runs classes in her home town of Bray and together with Anna , the founder of decoupage.ie, is available to run classes around the country. Get in touch for more information (liz@decoupage.ie).

At last …… Daily Art Country crackle tutorial

Daily Art Country Crackle is a one step crackle you use before decoupaging the item.

Paint your item with the colour you want to show underneath. I went for red.

Paint on a layer of crackle glaze . Keep a note of what direction you paint it on. I went horizontal with the crackle glaze. Let it dry completely (normally half an hour will do it)

Paint the top coat in the opposite direction as the crackle.

Watch the cracks magically appear!

Decoupage over the cracks as normal.

I hope you enjoyed that tutorial , just ask if you have any questions.   All products are available from my online shop http://www.decoupage.ie

 

 

 

 

 

Structure Paste – Step by Step tutorial

Every week  we will show how to use one of the products we sell on http://www.decoupage.ie.    This week is the turn of Structure Paste.  Structure Paste is a fantastic way of adding dimension to your work.  It can be used free hand or is very effective when used with a stencil.    It can be painted with acrylics when dry  or left as it is .  Have a look at the tutorial below and then have a go yourself and let me know what you think!

1. Assemble your materials

2. Use a palette knife or similar to take out a good amount of the paste.

3. With the stencil secure, smear the paste onto the stencil.

4. Make sure you cover the whole stencil.

5. Smooth off the excess paste.

6. Gently peel off your stencil.

7. the raised design (relief stencil ) is revealed.

We hope you enjoy this tutorial demonstated by Anna.   Any questions just ask either in the comments below or on the facebook page.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mad about Decoupage!

I love Decoupage.   I love Orange is the new Black too but that would be a whole , other blog post.

Decoupage for me is a way to express my creative side .   I  can’t draw a straight line and often get frustrated how what I see in my head looks on the page.   So discovering decoupage was a revelation, one I would love to share with you!

To me , decoupage is using any paper to decorate a surface, to  transform something tired or ugly into something beautiful .   The important thing is the finish – the image shouldn’t look ‘stuck on ‘  , there should be no halo of glue.  The highest compliment you can get is to be asked if it was hand painted .    I have used computer print outs,  napkins, tissue paper,  wrapping paper,  wallpaper and vintage maps .  All can give great effect if used on the right project, in the right way.

I hope to use this blog to share my love of decoupage, in all it’s forms.  To bring you examples of work I admire and to share tips and techniques for you to use in your work.

I also want to spotlight different products from my page http://www.decoupage.ie to show you how they should be used and give examples of the effects you can achieve.

I’d loved to know  what you would like me to cover first .  I’d also love to see your work .    So get in touch either here or by emailing liz@decoupage.ie.

Prepare to be addicted!

Liz

Finally Open for Business!

http://www.decoupage.ie is open for business!

Hi my name is Liz Lewis and I’m the new owner of Decoupage.ie .

It’s been a long haul but thanks to the kind help of Anna ,  it is finally open for business.  I’ve had great fun over the last few months sourcing products that I know you will love!

I’m hoping this blog will be a place to share tips and techniques between us, to show you how to use a lot of these products .  I also would love to see your work and publish it here.

Have a look around the website www.decoupage.ie  and if you have any questions or ideas for tutorials /blog posts get in touch with me either in the comments below, on our facebook page  https://www.facebook.com/decoupageIRL  or by email liz@decoupage.ie

Thanks so much for all the support so far.    I’m looking forward to converting the whole of Ireland to be Mad about Decoupage too!