It’s going to get real original over here today yo. I’m not the first and I definitely won’t be the last to type about marble contact paper. There are a myriad of pinned projects using just the stuff and mine will be just another to add to the collection. There are a huge basketful of bloggers and DIYers who have written/talked about using the stuff and so I’ll just add my voice to the queue. BUT, I betcha that of all the marbled contact paper projects you find out there, mine will roll in as the cheapest. Not bragging…that’s just the fact. You know how I do. ;)
Internet, meet marble contact paper project…again.
So I’ve had this tray for, oh, since before the twins were born.
Yes, that long. I found it at a thrift store for a couple of bucks and loved the shape and detail of the gold edge but had always planned on painting it. Probably painting over the gold, definitely painting over ‘the hunt’. Maybe I’d stencil something or maybe I’d just give it a high-gloss, laquered look. I didn’t really think too much on it before I slid it under our bed until I got around to sprucing it up. In hopped the outta-sight-outta-mind thing and twins and more kids and, well, you get it.
Fast forward to a recent Walmart shopping excursion and the move. Both uncovered the two sides to this love story that are now living forever after – the tray, rediscovered under the relocating bed and the marble contact paper, discovered in a clearance section.
Ahem, I now pronounce them ma…..rble and tray.
Wait, wait, wait, back up. Everybody always wants to know the courtship details so here we go…
First the prep for the big day. Aka, gather the supplies:
Then everything has to be fitted. Aka, cut out a piece of contact paper that is slightly larger than the bottom of the tray you’re looking to glam up. Note: If you’re tray is a rectangle, you can measure all sides and cut a piece that fits exactly OR you can make a template like I did when I lined these drawers. The round edges of my tray make precise cutting and template making a little more difficult.
Next, the wedding night. Amazing and you can tell life is going to be real good but still, things are slightly awkward. (You know what I mean huh? Huh?) Aka, starting at one edge, start peeling and sticking the contact paper to the bottom of the tray, smoothing with the sock you placed over your hand as you go. The sock will allow your hand to glide across the paper, making it easier to smooth out any air bubbles that might not want to hold their peace.
Slowly and steadily, keep peeling, making sure to smooth everything out to keep any bubbles at bay. Also, make sure you carefully work the contact paper into the very edge of the tray so that every last millimeter of the bottom of the tray is covered. When you’re working the paper into the edges of the tray, make sure the contact paper hanging over the edges isn’t sticking to the upper edge or you could tear the paper as you’re stuffing it into the edge…hope that makes sense.
Things are looking fantastic in the relationship now but there are always things to be worked on and bad habits to get rid of for the good of the other like…excess paper, right?
Yeah, grab an xacto knife, stick it into the crevice around the edge, and cut away.
Slow and steady wins the race here though. Too fast and you could lose sight of that crevice and go careening onto smooth marble without knowing what hit ya. Or you might not notice that you didn’t get the paper all the way into a part of the edge, like I did, and leave a jagged cut right through that part. Not too noticeable but something I could’ve avoided. (You can see that little jagged edge in the second to last picture of this post.) :(
And there you have it. Smooth sailing into decades of Anniversaries.
Oh, and there might be kids. I wrapped a small piece I had cut off the initial piece of contact paper around a jar in the bathroom like so:
I don’t know much about different brands of marble contact paper but I was pretty satisfied with this one. It’s by Duck and it’s supposed to be permanent which is great for lots of things, but I found when I was laying it that I could pull it back up if I accidentally let an air bubble in and it would still stick just as well when I laid it back down. On a different texture or anything painted, it may not come up as easily.
The satin finish is very reminiscent of real marble too.
I think it’d be super fun to lay this stuff over a countertop somewhere and then top it with some polycrylic or resin for a super budget-friendly upgrade. I’m not sure how it would do being covered up with a liquid like poly considering it’s paper but a sample test would give a good hint.
Either way, this little project rang in at a whopping three dollars AND I still have 90% of the roll of marble paper left. 
I smell another project…errr, marriage.
If you’re not a human match-maker, try your hand at decor. The shoe might just fit. ;)
. . .
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