Decoupage Project for my Partner in Crime!

My best friend Monique is a major foodie. She's incredibly talented in the kitchen and to hear her talk or blog about food, you can instantly tell how passionate she is about it. She has her own website and she blogs about the food she cooks herself as well as places and restaurants she's been to. Monique likes to eat.... a lot. Because of that, she calls herself The Eatinist Bitch which is an endearing nickname, I assure you. The best part is the way she describes the food! She could make a messy sloppy joe sound like a masterpiece. So I knew I wanted to make her something food related for her birthday.

This is what 11 years of being besties looks like!

I decided to take a crack at decoupage! I have never done this before so it was an adventure. I wanted to make her a binder where she can put  recipes in. I also wanted to incorporate birds into the project since she loves birds (she even has some awesome tattoos!) I also cut out magazine clippings but the Mod Podge ripped those instantly on contact so I realized only thicker paper would do for this project.

Decoupage intimidated me a bit. I looked at some videos online and made my way to Michael's for some supplies. I thought the Mod Podge mat would be a waste of money, but seriously it was the best thing ever b/c that glue got everywhere!

My supplies.

Part 1: Gluing

With my Cricut, I used the Create a Critter and Birthday Bash for the birds. The words were cut using the Cuttin' It Up cartridge and the sides are borders from K&Company and Recollections. It looked so nice when it was simply glued, but this was just part one. I used the Sparkle Mod Podge and applied it generously. 

First Coat.

I'm not going to lie- I started to panic right here. I wasn't sure if this was going to dry like this and I was worried the cloudiness wouldn't go away. I let it dry overnight and in the morning, I applied the second coat.

Second Coat.

This is after the second coat and it was finally starting to look somewhat normal. Of course, I forgot to actually take a picture of the final product, but Monique was nice enough to snap a photo for me.

Ta-Da!!!

Although I liked the way it came out, in retrospect, I wish I would have used a more matted Mod Podge instead of the sparkle, but she liked it so that's all that matters.

Have any of you played around with Mod Podge? What kind do you like to use?