TV Tray tables…. I know – not exciting. They’re like the minivan of dinner time for that painfully average family, sitting in their barcaloungers, eating in front of the TV. So.. let’s change that perception with a Vintage Bat Tray Table ….. thanks to this Victorian Gothic Image Transfer Project.
I picked a couple of TV Tray Tables up at, you guessed it, a thrift store. One was your basic wood one, and the other was this ugly stepchild. I will never understand the fascination with initials and monogramming! Anyone in their right mind would have run from this ugly thing… But you know me – I love a good trash to treasure project!
For this project, I choose to salvage the monogrammed beauty, and save the wood one for another project (so stay tuned for that one!). After more trials and tribulations than I had hoped for, I adore the way this Vintage Bat Tray Table finally turned out.
My initial plan was to paint the table black and then decorate the top of the table. I played around with different ideas of image transfers, decoupage, even stencils…. and finally remembered some old wallpaper books laying around from when we remodeled our bathroom. The pages in the book were big enough to cover the table, and so many of the designs were fantastic…. certainly better than I could recreate with a stencil! If you don’t happen to have wallpaper samples laying around, you can stop into any wallpaper store, and they’re usually happy to give away their discontinued books… you’d be surprised how often books are discontinued.
The sample I originally chose for this project is not the one you see photographed… like I said – trials and tribulations!! Sadly I destroyed my first 2 favorite samples with failed attempts to get this table right. So – lesson is…. pick a book that has a few samples that you like… just in case. Hopefully, all of my mistakes will save everyone else from wasting one, but you never know.
And as a side note…. it just so happens that my dear blogger friend Suzy Homemaker also created a different tutorial using wallpaper samples this month! I swear we had no idea we were both drawing inspiration from the same thing! Anyway…. once you’re done with this project… take a look at her Wallpaper Sample Gallery Picture Wall. It’s the perfect way to use up the rest of those pages from your wallpaper book!! Besides, her blog is definitely one to check out… tons of amazing ideas.. you’ll want to stay a while!!
Now back to this project…. While the wallpaper table top is certainly pretty, I had no intention of stopping there. I decided to use the wallpaper simply as a background for a Vintage Bat image. You can choose any image you like. I found mine on Google Images. I felt the vintage black and white image paired well with the Victorian inspired damask wallpaper. Using Silhouette Sticker Paper, I was able to attach the transparent Bat image to the table. I sealed the sticker and wallpaper, and voila – an artful table top.
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What you’ll need to recreate this project:
- Wooden Tray Table (if you’re not lucky enough to happen upon a thrifted table, you can purchase a similar Tray Table from Amazon
)
- Black Paint
- Paint Brush
- Stipple Brush
- Silhouette Printable Clear Sticker Paper
- Printable Image
- Wallpaper Sample
- DecoArt Triple Thick Gloss Glaze
- Spray Glue
- Wood Trim
- Mitering Saw
- E6000 Glue
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1. Sand, clean, prep your table for painting as needed.
2. Paint the table Black
3. Choose sheet of wallpaper and cut to size. I cut mine 3″ smaller than the table in order to leave a 1 1/2″ border of table top all around
4. Print your image onto the sticker paper
5. Allow ink to dry completely
6. Trim the image
7. Adhere the image to the wallpaper inset
8. You will notice that the sticker paper is quite thick, and leaves a raised edge. To create a smooth surface, brush a layer of glaze over the entire wallpaper sample, covering the sticker image. Take care to use a light layer to begin with. If the sticker image gets too wet, the ink can smudge off.
9. Allow to Dry, and repeat with thicker layers of glaze until their is a smooth surface.
10. Once the glaze is dry, using spray glue, adhere the wallpaper to the center of the table top.
11. Allow to dry
12. Using the stippling brush, and your black paint, apply a painted border around the wallpaper edge, ensuring that it blends in with the table.
13. Allow to dry
14. Measure the trim to sit directly on the edge of the wallpaper sample. The longest edge should be at least 1/4″ longer than the edge of the wallpaper.
15. Using a miter saw, cut the trim with 45 degree angles
16. Paint the trim
17. Once dry, arrange the trim to fit over the wallpaper sample edges, with mitered corners aligned.
18. One piece at a time, apply trim to the table top using E6000
19. Allow to dry overnight.
Now…. you may wonder why I chose some of the steps I did. As much as I love sharing tutorials.. I think it’s important to share my mistakes as well, so you can learn from mine….
The first failed attempt at this project was due to my image transfer method. I didn’t start out with the sticker paper… but after some trial and error, it turned out to be the most effective method, for both the integrity of the bat image, and well as the integrity of the wallpaper.
The second failed attempt was due to methods for sealing both the bat image to the wallpaper and the wallpaper to the table. For that go, my intention was to seal the entire top of the table with a thick layer of the gloss glaze, with no need for the wood trim. It made sense at the time because it would seal the sticker to the wallpaper, creating a smooth surface, AND seal the edges of the wallpaper to the table. As a bonus, the image would be safe for use. I attached the wallpaper to the table using spray glue, then attached the bat to the wallpaper. I painted the edges, and all that was left to do was glaze the entire table top. Before I attempt steps like these, I always test small samples first to ensure my project is not a bust. Unfortunately, my test was not as controlled as it needed to be. My test sample was not glued to the table, and I didn’t take into consideration what would happen to the wallpaper once it reacted to both the glue on one side and the glaze on the other. It wasn’t pretty. The entire page bubbled up.. including the edges. There was no amount of smoothing that could fix it. It was a disaster and I was defeated. To reach what I thought was the end of the project, only to end up with a mess.
After a glass, OK maybe a bottle, of wine, and some time to reconsider my steps, I realized that the test sample still looked good. That’s why, in my final project, I sealed the sticker and wallpaper first before adhering to the table. It’s also why it is so super critical to allow everything time to dry. The trim came into play to ensure the edges of the wallpaper do not pull away from the table. Truthfully, I love the way the trim looks. Turned out to be a solution that added some extra character to the table.
Hope you enjoy your new tray table! Maybe it’s a new side table to enjoy a cup of tea, maybe it’s a small serving table for some cocktails or appetizers. Whatever you use it for, my guess is, no one’s looking at it and thinking minivan!
Wondering what else you can do with the sticker paper? Check out this tutorial on creating Faux Stained Glass on a Bread Box Makeover. Looking for more image transfer ideas? Use Waterslide Decals to create these Poison Tea Cups or Mod Podge to create this Metamorphic Skull Metal Wall Art.
Oh… and admiring that awesome black tea pot in the photos, aren’t you? Lucky for you, there’s a full tutorial on that DIY Black Victorian Tea Set!
Oh Alex, I absolutely ADORE this!! I need to re-read the tutorial steps and lessons again (preferably before gin!) as I really want to learn how to recreate something similar. As for your amazing mention… thank you! How amazing that we were working on projects using wallpaper samples at the same time. We are Upcycle Sisters! Sx
We really are! I’m so glad you liked the tutorial! I really am thrilled with how it finally turned out… glad I didn’t let the first few failed attempts get the better of me! The trials of a DIY-er! 🙂
Beautiful work. Not sure I understand #12. Says apply the border. What border? Thanks.
Hi Anna! Thank you so much for the question. I apologize that step 12 wasn’t clear. I have reworded it, so hopefully it makes more sense. The border is referring to a painted boarder that I created around the edge of the wallpaper, using a stipple brush. I did this step in order to blend the wallpaper into the table. Please let me know if you have any other questions!
Thanks!!