The week we closed on our current house, we found out we were pregnant with Nolan. It was quite the time of change. When we moved, a set of shelves we had in the living room in our old house just wouldn’t work in our new living area so we decided to paint them blue (once we found out what we were having) and put them in the new baby’s room. The shelves are particleboard shelves from Target that we painted with eco-friendly paint. Not quite a recipe for a paint job that will stand the test of time. Over the past few years, the paint has chipped and scratched quite a bit. Its also served hard time as the place where bottles and drinks were set. You can see from the pictures from below the wear and tear from books and toys sliding in and out and us being the coasterless bunch that we are (we live on the edge).

I’d had enough. AJ is out of town this weekend and that’s when I typically go into Crafty Mom mode. I drug the kids to Michael’s and bought:

1. Mod Podge Matte for Paper
2. Martha Stewart Circle Cutter
3. Cutting Board
4. Recollections Essentials Cardstock Paper in primary colors cut in 12” circles

I already had a small foam brush at home from a former project so didn’t need to get that.

PS: Michael’s has an app you can download that gives you access to a 50% off coupon for that day. I used mine on the Martha Stewart item.

We got home and I looked for directions online on how to do it. Probably something I should have done before I went to the store. The main thing that was stressed was to make sure you have a roller (ooops) and ensure there’s time for drying between all the steps to minimize wrinkles and bubbles. So I used the plastic roller we use when we play with Play Doh. It worked great. Crisis averted.

Here’s how I did it:

• I cleaned the entire shelving unit with warm water that had a few spritzes of bleach cleaner in it. I needed to make sure all paint chips and dust were washed away before starting. Then I gave it about 30 minutes to dry.

•  I put Mod Podge down on each shelf and then put Mod Podge on the bottom side of each 12” circle and worked through one shelf at a time. I used the Play Doh roller once I placed each circle to ensure that all the bubbles were worked out. Some glue came out the edges each time I did this, so I just wiped it away with a dry cloth. I let this dry for 20 minutes.

•  Once all shelves were done with the 12” paper, I spot-checked to make sure that all the nicks and scratches were covered. Those that weren’t were covered with a smaller 4” circle that I cut using the extra paper and the Circle Cutter.

•  Avery, who was jumping on my bed at the time so had a great vantage point, suggested I put the extra circles on the top shelf. I have to say I love how it turned out. High five to her.

•  At that point, Nolan woke up so it turned into snack time. But about an hour later I went back upstairs and put a sealant coat of Mod Podge over all the paper inlays so they don’t peel later on. I’m letting it dry overnight, but was able to put his toys back on the shelf for a bit just to show you the finished product.

So there you have it. It’s been an eyesore for so long and has been on my to-do list for several months. Nice to cross that off the list.

But I still have all this Mod Podge…. Hmmm. What’s next??

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