My last craft project, the wallpaper mirrors, resulted in scattered bits of vintage wallpaper all over my craft room. Because I'm not overly fond of cleaning up, I decided to go with it and work on another project requiring old wallpaper. This is such an easy project, I know you can give it a try!
First, you need a vintage suitcase or two. There are plenty of these in the world, and if you can't find one this weekend at a garage sale then you just ain't lookin'! Many are made by the king of luggage, Samsonite, in a faux leather trimmed out in real leather. The plastic handles often have a strange stickiness to them, and we are going to remedy that by spray painting the trim and hardware.
I decided to doll up an old hat case too. This case looks beyond redemption from the outside, but the inside is really lovely. I'm going to use it in my antique mall booth to display old cabinet cards and photos:
I decided to paint the edges, handle, and hardware on the hat case metallic gold:
I painted the Samsonite case a neutral cream color. A couple coats of spray paint and the problem of the sticky plastic handle was solved. I just painted around the edges and right over the hardware. The other case in the picture below is a new cardboard case with nice looking metal hardware that I purchased on sale at JoAnn Fabrics (which I haven't finished yet):
Next comes the fun part. I spread Mod Podge directly on the suitcase with a foam brush, then applied my wallpaper and sheet music bits. I worked in about 8" x 8" sections, and used a brayer to roll over the applied papers to make them nice and smooth, then added a top coat of Mod Podge.
I decided to use sheet music and other neutral papers on my hat case, tearing the papers and applying them in a very haphazard manner, no measuring:
The Samsonite case was finished with all my little bits of wallpaper along with some sheet music in an overlapping patchwork pattern. I started with the lighter colored papers and sheet music, then added the more colorful papers last:
The flip side was finished with some of my blue wallpaper bits, for a slightly different look:
I think they turned out great, and will add a lot of vintage charm to my antique mall space:
Back in May, I posted a similar project using a green suitcase that didn't need any paint. I covered it with and pieces from my flocked wallpaper collection. The directions for using flocked paper are the same, but you would not use a topcoat of Mod Podge. I liked the way the flocked suitcase turned out too. For this suitcase, I used a cardboard template to cut each piece of paper the same size:
To freshen up the insides of these cases, throw in a dryer softener sheet. Now you can use your decorated suitcase to store special fabrics, lace and trims, knitting projects, or what ever you want to keep close at hand.
Of course, this project has many variations. Consider using scrapbook papers if you don't have vintage wallpaper. A map makes a great covering for a suitcase too, as well as wrapping paper. If you are using vintage wrapping paper, you can color copy it with a laser copier to make it last. Take a collection of cabinet cards and color copy a slew of them to use. Wouldn't that look cute in a child's room, on a shelf with some vintage toys? Oh, the possibilities......
Have Fun,
Mitzi
