Vintage Postage Stamp Table

by Alys

Easy

I turned my father's beloved postage stamp collection into a table top. It's a wonderful conversation piece and a way to honor his memory. Here's what I did:
I started with a pre-made plywood circle. While I like the idea of using power tools, I find them intimidating. I headed to our local Home Depot and bought a circular plywood table top for about $20. I wanted a round surface to suggest stamps from around the world.

Painted plywood table top from Home Depot

After sanding the surfaces smooth, I added a coat of paint using leftover Benjamin Moore Heritage Green, the same color used on our living room walls.

Vintage Postage Stamp Collection

I sorted the stamps by color, saving the multi-colored and unusual stamps for the table's border. I had exactly four triangle-shaped stamps in the collection.

Center of table top

I used the triangle stamps as my starting point at the center of the circle, then moved my way out in rainbow order. I adhered the stamps with Mod Podge®Matte waterless sealer.

Table top border

In order to create a water-resistant finish, I applied 5 - 7 layers of ModPodge® Furniture Gloss. It produced a nice glossy finish, that can be wiped clean with a damp cloth.

Here's the finished table.