Jazzing up a Napkin Holder

I love searching for items I can use in our home to make it feel more welcoming! Several months ago I came across this wooden fish shaped napkin holder in the thrift store. Even though it's pretty as is (it's made out of beautiful Koa Wood from Hawaii with detailed engraving for the fins and eyes), I wanted to give it a little pizazz for my table decor.

Keeping the project simple, I gathered up supplies of Liquitex, Mod Podge, crumpled Tissue Paper, Sand Paper, Paint Brushes and White Spray Paint.

I started out by roughing up the finish using *extra fine sand paper so that my spray paint would adhere better. After wiping off the powdery residue, I spray painted all of the napkin holder except the bottom. Gotta be able to sit it down to dry ;-)

Once dry, I applied Liquitex using my sponge brush, one side at a time and then carefully pressed each piece of tissue paper onto the surface, leaving a little bit hanging over the edges. This was kind of tricky as it wanted to keep sticking to my fingers and pull away from the surface of the holder, but I was victorious! I let it dry for about 10 minutes then applied the Mod Podge to completely seal it. I trimmed the edges when fully dry.

I'm quite pleased that the detailed etchings of the fins and eyes are still visible. The 'new' napkin holder adds a nice splash of color.

What have you re-purposed or recycled lately? 

Please feel free to share in the comments below. I am always looking for new ideas!

~Happy Crafting~

*I used extra fine sand paper so it would not scratch the wood

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