If you have followed my blog for a while, you know I love to change furniture by adding fabric, paper or even aluminum foil to some of my furniture pieces. I decided I wanted to share my tips, tricks, and the products I use to show you how to decoupage furniture.
This post contains affiliate links. Click here to view my full disclosure policy.
I use a few different products and basically the same method for each piece of furniture. I always clean, prep, paint or stain my furniture first. The decoupage I save for the last step.
I recommend to prep the paper if you are using paper as your material for the decoupage. You would spray the paper with a light coat of matte Clear Acrylic Sealer
on both sides. You could apply a second coat if using thin paper that has a light background and dark ink. This will help to set the ink and potentially prevent the ink from smearing.
Step 1: Adhesive
I use 1 of the 3 products above, Mod Podge
, Wunda Size
or Spray Adhesive
. My product of choice is Wunda Size. After using all 3 products I prefer to use Wunda Size as my base adhesive layer. It is a very thin liquid that you apply and it sets up within 10 minutes. I find that it tends to have fewer air bubbles than Mod Podge. Mod Podge has mobility once you place the paper or fabric on it and it does take longer to dry.
I only use a spray adhesive for thin paper and the brand does not matter. Apply the adhesive using a sponge brush or a chip brush. If using Wunda Size let it sit for about 10 minutes or until it is tacky to the touch. Now you are ready to apply your material of choice.
Step 2: Material
I like to cut the fabric slightly larger than the space so I can make sure it is straight and lined up. I trim the extra pieces off once the adhesive has dried. When using paper for layering or overlapping, I like to use the spray adhesive so the paper will stick to the base layer. Spray the layering piece before laying on top of the base layer. Carefully start at one end and slowly lay down the material and smooth out as you go to help eliminate air bubbles. Quickly smooth out your material to remove air bubbles. You can also use a straight pin to place a small hole to help remove the trapped air.
Step 3: Sealer
I use the above products to seal the material Mod Podge Acrylic Spray
, Minwax Polycrylic Spray
or any Amy Howard Water Based Sealer
. My preferred method is now sealing my material with a water-based sealer.
Here is a quick video to show you how to decoupage with napkins
I do like to use Mod Podge for fabric, it seems to create a smoother surface on the fabric since it is thick. I will typically apply a second or third coat of sealer based on the furniture. If it is a drawer inlay, 2 coats are fine, for tabletops or chairs, I will seal using 3 coats. If I am using a paper that has a light background with dark ink, I will spray a coat of polyacrylic and then apply a brush on a coat of varnish. The spray adhesive will seal without dragging a wet brush over the material. Again, use a straight pin to help remove any air pockets.
I wanted to make this as easy as possible for anyone to decoupage furniture. As sometimes it takes trial and error when working with a new fabric or a different type of paper. Let your imagination go wild and I am sure it can be added to your next furniture piece. Here are some of the pieces that I have decoupaged, stopover to see the before on these pieces!
Make sure you check out my FREE video on how to properly prep furniture. Don’t waste your time painting if you are not going to prep properly. It is like building a house on a poor foundation.
Come over to see how to properly prep furniture with my FREE workshop!
Join the DD Community!
Join the Designed Decor Community and receive weekly free tips on DIY home projects, painted furniture, decorating, and much more.
Hi! Love your style! I am new to refinishing furniture and therefore confused about one of your steps. It’s the step where you seal. You say you prefer to use varnish, are the products you listed varnish? If not, what varnish do you use?
I sometimes use the word varnish when I mean a water-based sealer, sorry for the confusion.
Thanks so much for this tutorial! I am new to decoupage and only new about Mid Podge. This is great information!
You are welcome, Melanie! I love the Wundasize so much better than the other stuff.
Love this! Looks beautiful. I have a question about the fabric on the drawers. Did you wrap the fabric over the ends of the drawers or just cover the fronts? No one mentions that part.
I just covered the fronts. Just make sure you have the adhesive all along the edges so you get a good seal, sometimes you may need to add some in places along the edge after the fabric dries. I also made sure to seal the edges and sides of the drawers really well with a few coats of the poly.
Dede,. Thank you so much for having your expertise available to this community. I’m looking forward to learning more from you. Pinterest is a daily stop for me and I have to tell you, I am already so impressed and believe you’re at the top for content and detail of instruction. A great big thank you! Please don’t ever leavE!Hudson.yvonne
Yvonne, Thank you so much for those kind words! I love DIY’ing and teaching others to do the same.
This is great Dede!! I just got the Wunda size so I am going to give it a try- thanks for the tip!
Wow! Thanks for this. Decoupage has always intimidated me a little! Pinning.
Great tips and product suggestions!You’ve convinced me to try Wunda Size. And, of course, your pieces area always perfect! I still can’t get over the aluminum foil desk. 🙂