Tutorial: Wooden pendant

Materials:

1.5 inch wooden disc
Two 1.5 inch circles of decorative paper
Gesso
Acrylic paint
Decoupage medium or equal parts Elmer's glue and water
Polyurethane varnish
Glue-on bail
Adhesive such as E6000 or super glue

1. Prime the entire wooden disc with gesso.
2. Paint the edge of the disc with acrylic paint. The disc had curved sides which were visible from the front. I figured acrylic paint would look better than gesso white.
3. Decoupage the paper circles to the front and back of the disc. I typed the phrase on an old manual typewriter and then reinforced the type with a very fine permanent pen (Pigma Micron). The ink needs to be waterproof or it will smear as the decoupage medium is water based.

Update: Here are tips to prevent smudging/bleeding when using an ink-jet printer, including sticking the paper in the freezer for an hour. Sounds crazy but I tried it and it works.

4. Apply the varnish to the entire disc. I used 3-4 coats.
5. Glue the bail to the back.

Of note:

- Make sure the surfaces are dry before proceeding to the next step.

- I made a trial pendant using thinner wood and Mod Podge Dimensional Magic for the front of the pendant. (It's on the bottom right in the above pic.) It warped pretty badly, so I used thicker wood and varnish instead. I also primed the prototype with decoupage medium which may not have sealed the wood as well as gesso.

- I used a bail because I don't have a drill and the wood seemed too thick to bore a hole with a hammer and nail. If you have drill, you could make a hole at the top of the disc for a jump ring and skip the bail.

- Here's another variation with a glued-on resin flower but using the same process. This wood was thin enough to bore a hole with a nail.