Add panache to plain accessories with colourful paper

When we want to freshen up our spaces, we go straight to design editor Ann Marie Favot. Our creative style guru, whose pretty, pared-down aesthetic makes every little finishing touch an imaginative one, never fails to inspire us with her artistic skills. Here Ann Marie takes us into her crafting room and shares her secrets for decorative projects for every room in the house.

“Using leftover scraps of wallpaper makes these simple projects not only affordable, but environmentally friendly, too,” says Ann Marie

Business card holder
Taking a nondescript business-card holder, Ann Marie measured and traced the shape onto a scrap of wallpaper. She cut out two of the traced shape and glued the wrong sides together to reinforce the paper, sandwiching a magnetic strip in between the wallpaper sheets at the top fold.

Turning the corners of the wallpaper up, Ann Marie glued another magnetic strip under the bottom fold and scored the folds of the holder to make them crisp.

* Click here for a business card template from Ann Marie.

Lined vases
Take strips of coordinating wallpaper and cut them to fit snugly inside
a variety of glass containers.

Seal the seams with clear double-sided tape for a finished look. Drinking glasses are a good choice for this arrangement, as they come in lots of small sizes and shapes that will tuck nicely out of sight inside a bigger vase.

Table cover
For a pretty transformation of a plain glass-topped table, measure a strip of wallpaper to fit, then take the glass off the table and use discreet pieces of clear tape (make sure it’s strong) to adhere the wallpaper (right side up) to the glass. You could also use small glue dots for the same effect.

Then, simply lift the glass tabletop back into place and add dishes in a similar shade. For the same effect without a glass table, you can have a piece of glass cut to fit your table and sandwich a strip of wallpaper between the table and glass.

Wall hooks
Measure a block of wood to accommodate a hook, then sand and paint the wood blocks to finish them.

Attached the wallpaper with a spray adhesive. After it's dry, screw the hooks onto the wood block and hang the blocks with 3M velcro strips or photo hooks.

Fridge magnets
Take a clear button and trace its shape onto a scrap of wallpaper. Then, cut the shape out of the wallpaper, slightly smaller than the button so that the paper fits nicely inside the circle. Attach the right side of the paper circle to the back of the button using clear adhesive and stick a magnet onto the back of the paper. For an added decoration, she use thread to ‘sew’ paper onto the button.
 

Read more in How-To and Simple Projects