Decorative Plaque Makeover - It's easy to give cheap plaques a makeover to make them look more high-end.

The dollar store frequently has decorative plaques for various holidays, seasons, and even for general decor, but for the most part they look like they were cheap.  However, it’s easy to give these cheap plaques a makeover to make them look more high-end.  For this example, I used a St. Patrick’s Day plaque, but now it’s ready to display year-round!

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Project estimate:

  • Picture frame, $1
  • Decorative plaque, $1
  • White glue, on hand
  • Paint, on hand or $1 and up
  • Tissue paper, on hand
  • Used dryer sheets, on hand
  • Trim (optional), on hand or $1 and up

Total: $2 and up

If your plaque has…

  • a hanger on the back, remove it.
  • glitter, remove as much as you can with steel wool or sand paper.
  • holes for a hanger, fill the holes with hot glue.

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Place the plaque on the top of the picture frame back. Measure it so that it is centered. Circle the plaque with a pencil and generously hot glue it in place. Add any trim you want around the plaque, I used a braided rope left over from another project. A dollar strand of beads would have also looked good.

Wad the tissue into tight balls and straighten them out. Tear them into 3″x 3″ pieces. Add 1 part water to 5 parts white glue and mix it together. Sparingly dab the glue mixture onto the plaque in a small area and put on a piece of tissue paper. Using the sponge brush, press the tissue into any wording or indentations so it can be seen. Continue doing this until the entire plaque and trim is covered.

Tear the dryer sheets into irregular shapes. Using the white glue mixture from Step 3, cover an area of the background and apply the dryer sheet like you did the tissue paper. Cover the entire background and let dry overnight.

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Paint the plaque and trim one colour and the background a lighter colour. Let completely dry. With a paint brush or a soft cloth, gently antique the plaque and trim.

Place the back into the frame.