DIY Wood Grain Charger Plate

DIY Wood Grain Charger Plate

HOW TO CReate a wood grain charger with inexpensive dollar store chargers and paint!

Anyone who has been following along this here blog knows I say the ‘B’ word a LOT!

No not that ‘B’ word. LOL!

I mean BUDGET!

I talk about it a LOT because, well… I’m on one.

Most people are.

And even if you aren’t on a budget, most people like to save money, right?

Right. Okay, now that we agree on that. Let me just say that although MANY of our DIY projects here on the blog are done because we want to save money, not all of them are.

In fact, some of them we do because we actually enjoy the challenge and creativity behind them.

That’s what today’s project is all about.

Last weekend  I started to plan out this year’s Thanksgiving tablescape and I found these GORGEOUS wood grain plate chargers online. They were a bit pricey for my budget, yes, but after a bit of researching,  I was able to find some for way less.

The cheaper ones were okay but I really liked the deep, rich color of the first chargers, so I decided it would be fun to see if I could replicate the spendier ones using Dollar Store chargers I purchased last year.

I had painted them an antique champagne color back then.  I’m kind of over that color scheme this year, so I figured why not just sand them down a bit and re-paint them?!

Materials you will need:

Dark Brown Spray Paint

Craft paint- Linen, Brown, Black

Small paintbrush

Medium paintbrush

Damp Cloth

Clear Coat (optional)

 

How to Make DIY Wood Grain Plate Charger:

 

1. Spray Paint the Base Coat using the Brown Spray Paint. TIP: Make sure the surface is clean and dry. It took 2 coats (drying time in between) to cover my chargers completely.

 

 

2. Using the small craft paintbrush, dry brush stripes of the linen paint (lengthwise) across the face of the charger.

3. Dampen the medium paintbrush with a bit of water and then use it to smudge the stripes of linen paint. TIP: Patting the brush onto the paint stripes works best. If you do have any smears just use the damp cloth to wipe them away.

 

4. Repeat the application and smudging as in steps 2 & 3 using the light brown paint this time.

5. Using the black paint repeat steps 2 and 3.

 

I continued this dry brushing and smudging technique using each color until I had the look I was going for. It takes a little bit of time and patience, but the final result was exactly what I had hoped for!

 

I think I was able to get the rich warm tones of the spendier charger with a softer version of the wood grain of the cheaper version. PERFECT!

Getting the look that I wanted was definitely a challenge, but I think that is what makes DIY so much fun! A project like this really has no wrong outcome.

The old saying beauty is in the eye of the beholder really is true.

TIP: Once I had the desired look I simply sprayed the chargers with two light coats of Clear Coat to protect the paint from chipping. This step is totally optional but I plan to use these chargers often throughout the season. 

I could see these wood grain chargers in a greyish tone as well for a beachy vibe. And you could surely scuff them up with sandpaper to give them a more antique rustic look.

I’m very pleased with how my DIY chargers turned out and I can’t wait to finish some other projects so I can put this year’s Thanksgiving tablescape together!!

 

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Have a FABULOUS weekend, sweet friends!