10 Easy Craft Projects for Decorative Mouldings

Making a piece of interior decor for yourself is extremely satisfying. You can customise it to your exact aesthetic, so you know it will fit with the look you are going for.

And finishing a project isn’t the only satisfying part. You get to see your project and relive that satisfaction every day!

Making things as gifts is even more rewarding. I’ll be writing a blog soon about why I love making gifts for my fiends and family.

I’ve put together a selection of easy craft projects that you can do using your favourite Chic Mouldings, a bit of glue and paint. It’s a great way to use up small amounts of leftover paint you have sitting around.

Mix it up! Don’t forget that you can also use decoupage, stencils and transfers alongside your mouldings and paint.

Just a note – I’m not sponsored by anyone, so any product links are simply examples I’ve found to give you some guidance. Buy at your own discretion.

1 – Picture Frame

Old frames can usually be found for as little as 50p from second hand and charity shops, Make sure you get a frame with a wide enough surface for your mouldings.

Corner mouldings are great for this kind of project. If they over or underlap the corner of the frame a bit, that’s fine – make layering a feature!

This frame has been painted with a really simple technique. I’ve used a dark chalk paint undercoat, then simply dry brushed white paint over all the raised areas to bring them out. Easy peasy! And it looks great.

If you want an aged effect, you can use a dark wash (a wash is a very thinned down paint). Paint over the whole thing, then wipe back all the parts where you don’t want the wash to stay. It will end up settling into all the crevices and really bring out that detail.

You can even combine both techniques. Dark wash first, dry-brushed highlight second. And don’t forget to seal it all with your favourite clear coat.

In the photo, I have used Feather Corners and some leaf trim.

2 – Light Switch Surround

Add your own mouldings to a plain light switch surround to create something unique, or custom paint a decorative light switch surround. Either way, a fingerplate (as they are also called) makes an unusual and lovely gift.

They are easy to install (see instructions on this page) and you can customise them however you like!

This is a rose cluster light switch surround that has been sprayed with rose gold metallic paint. I have then aged it using a fairly thick dark wash of acrylic paint, heavily applied then wiped right back from all the high points.

I also supply plain surrounds which can be customised using mouldings, stencils, decoupage, crystals or glitter – whatever you like.

3 – Decorative Books

Second hand books are pretty much free these days. For this project, I picked up a couple of old hardback books from a charity shop for pennies.

I’ve use a different floral trim to each book’s spine, and added a crown to the front

First, I applied the mouldings using epoxy glue, then painted each book a different shade of blue. I then highlighted all the details using gold gilding wax (in this case antique gold rub-n-buff).

It’s all bound together with coarsely woven ribbon. A bead holding the knot together adds the finishing touch. It makes a lovely vintage feel ornament and is a great way to give those old books a new life..

4 – Hand Painted Wall Plaque

This is a super simple project that just involves painting a moulding and using that as décor as it is – no glue needed!

Some of my large moulding are available with wall hangers, and even come pre-painted if you don’t want to get your hands dirty.

This beautiful Fleur-de-lys has been given a coat of duck-egg blue chalk paint. I’ve used washes of chalk paint in dark blue for the inside of the leaves and purple for the outside.

I then wiped it back, applied a layer of Polyvine dark wax varnish and wiped that back too.

For more about painting mouldings, check out this blog.

5 – Tissue Box Cover

I absolutely loved this project. It came out so well and people often ask where I got it from.

I used quite a few mouldings on this. In fact, I really went to town as each side has one medieval animal and four small Georgian corners.. I also added two swags around the opening on top.

To keep the budget a bit more realistic for a craft project, only the front of the box need be decorated.

I used a grey chalk paint with a dark wax, and I used my favourite silver gilding wax to lightly highlight the high points and really make them pop.

6 – Keepsake Box

You can get these unpainted at craft shops or on ebay. Search for “unpainted wooden keepsake box” and lots of option pop up.

I decoupaged the box using a marbled paper and Mod Podge. TIP – make sure to spray the paper with water first so that it swells before you apply it. This really helps reduce wrinkles at it shrinks a little when it dries.

Make sure you smooth the paper down very well to eliminate any air behind the paper.

I then added a plain half-round trim and a moulding to add some detail to the front. All are painted gold with Golden Paints “Iridescent Bronze”.

I used a little clearcoat tinted with burnt umber pigment to darken around the mouldings, and wiped off the excess. It’s amazing how much depth and character such a quick, simple technique adds.

The whole box was then sealed with a satin clearcoat.

7 – Storage Jar / Utensil Holder

Painting on glass isn’t always easy. Make sure you are using a base that sticks to glass. You can get specialist products, or you could papier mache the glass using PVA glue as the binder t. This will create a “skin” around the glass that can be fully sealed and is paintable.

I’ve used some leaf trim around the top and bottom of this glass, and added some scrolls for details. It’s all painted a metallic dark blue, then I’ve lightly applied silver gilding wax (I like rub-n-buff) using the pad of my latex-gloved forefinger over the high points to really make those details pop out.

This is one of those super easy craft projects that the kids will love to help with. Repurposing old jars is great as you get to be eco-conscious too.

8 – Notebook

This was a simple grey notebook with a yellow elastic and ribbon. A frame moulding is a great way to incorporate a photo into a project. This is my dog, Jelly! I’m always happy to see her face, so putting her on my notebook was a no-brainer.

As well as the frame, added some beaded trim to add a bit more detail. I painted the mouldings aged gold before applying them to the book. You can even buy most of the mouldings pre-painted, so it just gets easier. No running out to buy a whole can of paint for one tiny project!

Make sure you use a hardback book as it will support the mouldings well.

9 – Plant Pot

You’ll probably need to bend your mouldings for this one. It’s really easy, and here’s a link for instructions. Some trims only come as flexible, and with those, you can skip the bending step.

Make sure you seal you plant pot well first, using a glaze or varnish. You don’t want water seeping in behind the paint as the paint will soon get air under it and flake off.

I suggest using an exterior construction adhesive or silicon adhesive for exterior plant pots.

This plant pot is a simple terracotta pot. I’ve used a long trim to hide some lines on the plant pot that I didn’t like, then added the little carp in for some extra detail.

The pot is painted a rich gold, and the fish and trim are silver. I have then aged everything using the same very dark wash. Apply and wipe back, Once dry, I sealed with an exterior varnish.

10 – Key Rack

I’m prone to putting small objects down in odd places, then, of course, I can’t find them. Especially keys!

I overcame this nuisance by using a key rack. It even worked! Hence, I love a good key rack.

You can get all sorts of key racks second hand, or as wooden blanks ready to paint. Try googling “wooden key cabinet“.

This key rack was second hand from ebay, and it was a great colour already, so all I had to do was add the aged mouldings. So simple!

I think the little brass key labels are a great addition too.

So there you go! I’ll come up with some more ideas soon. Finding ideas for easy craft projects for people to try is lots of fun. I hope you feel as inspired as I do. And if you have any questions, don’t be shy – drop me a line. I’m always happy to help.

Becky x