Tray of travels

Hands-on time: A weekend project.
Skill: Moderate.
Cost estimate: Less than $20.

Materials and Tools

• Plain wooden frame (53 cm x 28 cm) with two sandwiched glass panes (I used a double-pane frame by Nexxt)
• Newspapers
• Fine-grit sandpaper and tack cloth
• Acrylic paints by Delta Ceramcoat (I used white)
• Renaissance Foil Adhesive by Delta
• Renaissance Foil in silver (Easy Gold leafing system) by Delta
• One 3cm or 4cm paintbrush, and one clean, soft-bristle paintbrush
• Fine steel wool and a soft clean cloth
• Triple-thick clear glaze varnish by Krylon
• Travel mementos (postcards, maps, coins, stamps, baggage tags, etc.)
• Assorted decorative or scrapbooking paper
• Terrifically Tacky Tape, 6 mm wide
• An awl (or sharp nail)
• Two chrome-plated decorative handles (7cm to 10cm long) with short screws, and a screwdriver
• Clear silicone glue

This is the perfect "beyond the scrapbook" project to showcase your travel souvenirs, from photos to luggage tags. A plain picture frame is gilded with an easy foiling system to give it an Old World look, transforming it into a stylish serving tray. How chic is that?

Remove the double-glass panes from the frame and set aside. Lightly sand the frame then wipe with a tack cloth. Apply a coat of paint in your choice of colour and let dry. (I painted my frame white.)

Paint the surface and sides of the frame with a coat of foil adhesive. It will appear milky, but dries clear. Apply a second coat; allow to dry for about one hour.

Apply the silver foil, shiny side up, over the adhesive surface. Place, press and rub the foil on to the surface using your fingers. Peel off the foil sheet, working on one area at a time and leaving some of the white areas exposed. To smooth the leaf into place and remove excess gilding, go over the frame's surface with a clean brush.

Gently buff the frame with steel wool, going in one direction, to reduce some of the shine and to expose some of the white paint on the frame. Once completed, wipe the frame with a soft brush or cloth.

To protect the gilding while giving it a high-gloss finish, apply two coats of triple-thick clear glaze. Apply one coat at a time, in a well-ventilated area. Let dry between coats. (One coat of triple-thick clear glaze is like applying five coats of gloss varnish).

Mount the decorative handles on the short sides of the frame, dimpling the screw locations with an awl to prevent the wood from splitting as you drive the short screws.

Spread a light bead of clear silicone adhesive along the inside edge of the frame to secure one (clean) pane into place. Let it set for 12 hours.

Gather your travel mementos and assorted colours of scrapbooking paper cut in different shapes. I lined the bottom of the glass pane with six evenly spaced paper strips, securing each with small pieces of clear double-faced tape. Arrange your travel keepsakes, overlapping some of the items, as desired. Use double-faced tape to secure some of the items in place.

Position the frame (with the outer glass) over your arrangement, making sure that everything is nicely sandwiched between the two panes. Readjust the items as needed. Grasp the frame and glass panels, then, carefully flip the frame over. Secure the bottom glass pane to the frame with the frame clips.

Variation

• Add pressed flowers to your arrangement for a spring or summer theme.