Make a Collage

How to make a collage using items you can find around the house.

Dorothy Samuels Lampl

Artist Dorothy Samuels Lampl guides you through creating a colorful, expressive collage without leaving your house:

1. Come up with a central design or theme for the collage. A collage can be about anything you want. Paper gives you no shortage of different options, so it’s about whatever sparks your creativity. Perhaps you feel like collecting pictures of your favorite actor or want to make a message out of words cut from magazines. You could also arrange old photos to make a collage about your family, for instance.


2. Collect pictures and other images to make the collage. There are many different inexpensive and accessible sources you can use to find images. Flip through old magazines, newspapers, and even picture books for anything that inspires you.


3. Select a sturdy piece of paper for the base of the collage. Choose something thick to serve as a background for your collage. Thicker paper is less likely to fall apart after you add glue to it.


4. Cut out the images to fit in your collage.


5. Lay out your images on the paper without gluing them.


6. Add embellishments like ribbons to make the collage more colorful.


7. Glue material onto the paper using Mod Podge or alternative with a brush.

1 cup of white glue + 1/3 cup of water = Mod Podge alternative


8. Let the collage dry overnight to settle the glue. Since your collage probably contains several layers of glue, it needs plenty of time to dry. Come back the next day and take a look at your work. If the paper is dry and the decorations stay in place, your collage is set and ready to be put on display.


9. This artist has made her collage into a house. Watch the video below for ideas to transform your collage.

Gallery Examples

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