Decoupaged Foyer Table

This is my first attempt at decoupage since it was hugely popular around 1971.  I was 10, and I decoupaged an octagonal wooden (can we say heavy?!?) purse.  It was painted banana yellow, lined in royal blue velvet and painstakingly applied guimp trim.  The image was a bird and flowers.  It actually sounds a lot worse than it was (maybe...memories have a way of rose-coloring themselves sometimes...lol)

I have a small table I use for mail & keys.  As usual, I have no "before" photos, but suffice it to say it was a nondescript brown wood with a nondescript blah pull.

I lightly sanded it, and painted the top with Benjamin Moore's "Queen Anne Pink" (a pale cameo color) and the remainder of the table with Behr's "Quietude" (one of the many pale gray samples I had in my search for the perfect living room/dining room color).  I then used a dark stain (brush on, wipe off) to age it.

After painting, I decoupaged the top with images from a designer scrapbooking paper pad I bought at Michael's.  It's called "Life's Journey"  Since I use the table for mail, I thought the postcard & invoice images were appropriate.  The lining for the drawer is also from the same paper pad.  I used some of the same dark stained used to age the wood to further "age" the papers; I dampened a paper rag with the stain and wiped it lightly over the papers.(As always, I apologize for the quality (or more accurately - the lack thereof) of my photos)

My favorite part, though, is the key.  It's 3-dimensional, but flat (does that make sense?)  It's also available from Michael's in the scrapbooking section.  I used Modge Podge to apply the decoupage.

Finally, I switched out the ugly metal pull for a clear glass knob.

It turned out rather well, I think.  I'm glad I aged the piece; otherwise, it would have been too sugary and twee for my needs.