I love coming up with fun, unique ways to spice up a table setting. I've hand sewn runners, place mats, napkins, made table numbers, even embellished silverware. Geometrics are all over the place, especially in home decor, so I wanted to create a DIY project that incorporated them. I chose a fresh, spring/summer color palette of peach, coral, and lime for my inspiration.
Here's the supplies you'll need to make your chargers:
- Plywood. I got mine at Lowes. I had them cut a piece of their 23.75x23.75 pine plywood into four pieces, so you're left with four 12 inch squares
- A quart of paint. I chose a coral color.
- Contrasting color paint. I used a small bottle of white acrylic paint.
- Paint brush, and detail brush.
- Sanding blocks. One heavier grit, one finer grit.
- Clear acrylic spray.
Lay your plywood out on a piece of scrap paper, or butcher paper.
Paint the top, and sides of each square. You can paint the bottom, or optionally, you could leave it unpainted, and paint it a different color for a whole other look.
You may need to do more than one coat depending on your paint color/type, but after your chargers have dried, sand all the edges to knock of any roughness, and give your chargers a nice, slightly worn look.
Take your contrasting color paint, and detail brush, and begin to paint your geometric designs.
I used a different pattern on each charger to see which one I liked best, but you could of course use the same pattern on all of them.
The last step is to spray all your chargers with the clear acrylic. This will seal them a little so they will be easier to clean off if they get food, or spills on them. However they are not food safe, so don't use them as food trays.
I decided to do a little inspiration shoot with mine and style them up for a coral and lime dinner party.
I used succulents, along with cafe au lait dahlias, garden roses, scabiosa blooms, and other beautiful flowers in peaches, and greens.
Flowers, I mean, I can't get enough of blooms this beautiful.
I hope you love this DIY, and use it to spice up your dinner table this spring/summer. It's completely customizable, and the best part is you can re-paint the chargers over and over when you get bored! If you do this project please share with #handmakerofthings or @emmyray on Instagram, I love to see what other people create!
xo ~ Emily
