Make your table look super festive without spending a fortune with these cool contemporary brush-effect charger plates to go underneath your main dinner plates.

We bought $3 plates from Kmart, and gave them two coats of metallic paint using a testpot of Resene Solid Gold. Leave the plates to dry overnight then using a Resene testpot paint brush and a testpot of Resene Alabaster, brush the paint in random strokes for this abstract effect. 

Team it with a plain white top plate, some gold cutlery if you have it, and voila, instant impact.

Jazz up some plain white A3 paper sheets by using testpots of Resene Solid Gold and Resene Silver Aluminum from the Resene Metallics and Special Effects range. 

Use round dab brushes to create the spots or create free-hand brush-strokes with a Resene testpot brush. Mix and match the colours and the patterns.

Use the same painted patterns on some white gift tags for a coordinated look. It’s so simple you can get the whole family involved in this fun project. 

Upcycle old Christmas baubles by painting a pattern on them with metallic paint. Round dab brushes are great for creating spots.

Put painter’s masking tape around the bauble and paint the bottom half to achieve a dipped look. If you have some plain ply or wooden decorations, give them an update with a lick of Resene testpot paint.

Hang them on your tree, or use them to create a ‘wall tree’ by sticking them onto the wall using washi tape. This is a great solution if you don’t have space, or just don’t want a traditional tree.