Turn Your Amazon Order into a Vintage Tea Tray
If you love traditional floral motifs and timeless elegance, get ready to swoon over this darling tea tray! Imagine this dreamy piece leaning against your kitchen backsplash or as the foundation for an elegant glass vase filled with your favorite seasonal blooms.
In this tutorial, we use an array of lovely facing pairs of blossoms from the Fairytale Florals transfer. We love small decor DIYs like this because we get to use leftover pieces of IOD transfers from previous projects! We all have extras lying around our craft corner… perhaps you have florals left over from Rose Botanicals or elements from Brocante or Floral Anthology? Whatever you choose, grab your IOD transfers and follow along as we decorate an otherwise plain Amazon tray into a darling vintage inspired piece.
Gather your IOD products and supplies by using the store locator and finding a stockist near you.
IOD Products Needed:
Other Supplies:
- Round Tea Tray
- General Finishes Flat Out Flat Sealer
- Dark Wax
- Gold leaf paint
- Green Chalk Type Paint
*we used a chalk-type paint in this tutorial, but there are many brands and types of paint, talk to your stockist to learn which one is right for you!
Step-by-Step Guide to DIY Darling Vintage Tea Trays
STEP ONE: PAINT YOUR TRAY
Begin by coating your tea tray with a generous amount of chalk-type paint. In this project, we're using a rich green color to compliment the darling motifs in the Fairytale Floral transfer. We decided to paint two coats, with dry time in between, to get that nice green color at a good opacity.
STEP TWO: STAMP YOUR TRAY
We added some charm to the tray with our Vintage Textures stamp set. In this tutorial, we used the large texture stamp on the bottom left, as it is scaled best for this tray. Remove it from the backing and crinkle it up to make sure you have some flex before inking it up. Next, you'll ink up your chosen Vintage Textures stamp with the Stone Gray decor ink. Then, you will apply your distress around the tray.
TIP: Tap lightly with your fingers rather than pressing down firmly to add a more realistic feel of distress to your tray.
Allow time to dry.
STEP THREE: SEAL YOUR PROJECT
Next, we sealed our project with General Finishes Flat-Out-Flat sealer. Check with your stockist before you choose a top coat because they may make suggestions that work better with your paint selection.
Allow time to fully dry before the next step.
STEP FOUR: APPLY YOUR TRANSFER
Grab your transfer, decide on the details that you want to use for your project, and cut them out, making sure to keep the backing with your pieces. We choose one of the larger floral motifs for the center and a few dainty accents for the edges.
Carefully remove the transfer from its white backing. Position your transfer over the place you would like to apply. Once you are ready, press down and commit! Use the provided applicator tool to adhere. You will notice that the backing of your transfer will become transparent when they've successfully released from the backing.
STEP FIVE: BURNISH YOUR TRANSFER
Once your transfers are complete, you’ll want to burnish them with a piece of gridded backing, rubbing softly to ensure complete adhesion to your surface.
STEP SIX: ADD THE FINAL TOUCHES
For some added dimension, we applied a light coat of dark wax around the edges of the tray, blending it as it moved toward the center. The wax will serve as the seal for your transfer. Next, we decided to add some gold touches. We used a small art brush and gold leaf paint along the inner edge of the tray. With the same brush, we made small dots to accent the flowers from the transfer. Some around the edges, others in the flower centers. Just a little shimmer to brighten up the entire piece. We used an oil-based paint, so there's no need to seal your project further.
Once your project is fully dry, find the perfect spot in your home to display and be enjoyed by your friends and family. ❤️
If you're just kicking off your creative journey, have no fear — our Product 101 pages are packed with straightforward techniques to set you up for success. We're thrilled to accompany you as you explore and create. For more how-tos and creative inspo, make sure to browse through the rest of our blog.
Once you've crafted your final piece, share it with our Facebook Creative Tribe! This community is not just a showcase but also a supportive hub for when you hit those creative roadblocks. And remember, your local stockist is always ready to assist with IOD supplies and expert advice. We're excited to see what you'll bring to life!
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