Découpage Letters

Holiday Crafts

Posted by Ryland Peters & Small

About

These plain papier mâché letters are découpages with red-and-white gingham and polka-dot paper. The letters are then finished off with decorative bands of contrasting ric rac braid and tiny buttons to create these festive NOEL letters. They look striking lined up on a mantel piece or table.

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You Will Need (11 things)

  • Old Plate
  • Papier mâché Letters (to spell Noel)
  • White or undercoat Paint
  • Paintbrush
  • Scissors
  • Gingham and polka-dot design Decoupage Paper
  • Decoupage Medium
  • Découpage Varnish
  • White Ric Rac braid (enough to wrap around the sides of each letter)
  • Hot Glue Gun (or all-purpose glue)
  • Small red Buttons

Steps (5 steps, 60 minutes)

  1. 1

    Working on an old plate, paint the
    letters with the white paint or undercoat,
    and leave to dry. This will prevent the
    brown papier mâché background from
    showing through. Paint all four of the
    letters and leave to dry thoroughly.

  2. 2

    Use the scissors to cut the gingham
    and polka-dot paper into a collection of
    squares and rectangles, measuring
    between 3⁄4–11⁄4in (2–3cm).

  3. 3

    Stick a paper square or rectangle
    onto the letter by applying a thin layer
    of découpage glue to the letter and
    pressing the paper firmly into place.
    Continue to layer the paper around
    the letter, overlapping the pieces so
    that none of the background color
    shows through. Carefully fold the paper
    pieces over the curved edges of the
    letter shape. Leave to dry. Repeat for
    the rest of the letters.

  4. 4

    Apply a thin coat of découpage
    varnish all over the letters, and leave
    them to dry thoroughly. If you wish, you
    can apply a further coat to make the
    letters more hard-wearing.

  5. 5

    Cut a length of white ric rac braid
    to fit around the sides of each of the
    letters, and glue into position. You may
    find it easier to use a hot glue gun to do
    this. You can also decorate the sides of
    the letters with small red buttons.