Finish off and decorate a simple wooden box and make it into a treasure box as a gift for Mother's Day.
I bought an inexpensive, unfinished wooden box from a dollar store. It required a bit of sanding to smooth down some rough edges but once it was painted it looked as classy as any box from a store. I didn't stop there. The fun part was searching my house for decorations to turn the lid into something unique and special for Mom.
YOU WILL NEED:
- Wooden box with a lid
- Fabric for the bottom
- Cardboard
- Wood stain
- Paint brush
- Scissors
- Ruler
- Pen
- Glue stick
- White glue
- Silk flowers in an assortment of colours and sizes
- Rubber gloves
- Newspaper
Instructions:
- Spread newspaper on the work surface. Put on the rubber gloves.
- Stain all the surfaces of the bottom and lid of the box. Wood stain is messy to work with so you may need to ask an adult to help.
- When the paint is dry, measure the fabric to fit into the bottom of the box and glue it down with a glue stick.
- Measure the height of the inside bottom of the box and measure the length. Cut a strip that will fit in the box. Do a similar strip for the width.
- In the centre of the longer strip, make a slit that goes about halfway down. Do the same with the shorter strip. See photo 2.
- Slip the slits into each other to make a "tee" shape and place them in the box to divide it into four sections.
- Cut the petals off the silk flowers and pile them on the lid. Leave a border around the edge to make room to lift off the lid. Glue into place.
Once the box has been stained, it can be decorated in many different ways. Cover the top of the lid with buttons, sequins or even a hand painted design. Check the photos for some extra ideas.
[Photographs by Linda Dunbar. Reproduction prohibited]
