Painting vintage knick-knacks and other thrifted finds is a hot new trend. I typically like the original vintage colors, but a fresh coat of paint revitalizes a find. It comes in handy if you want to cover chips or for selling an item that's been sitting on the shelves for too long.
Here are tips for painting vintage knick-knacks for the impatient bastard crafter!:
1. Use spray paint. Pick any brand, but use a primer.
Any brand of spray paint you use will do the trick, just make sure you apply a nice solid white base coat to help the colors pop and prevent and bleed-through of the original color.
2. I skip the sanding, so should you!
What can I say, I'm an impatient crafter. I'm not going to sit around sanding knick-knacks for hours. Primer usually does the trick.
3. Be mindful of the colors you choose.
Some colors like yellow and light green can be a nightmare. They apply thinly and take multiple coats to come out right. If you're impatient like me, choose bold vibrant colors which are usually a thicker consistency.
Painting vintage is less daunting than it may seem. It's cheap, fun, and easy. What I love about painting thrifted finds is that there's no guilty if you mess it up, you can't "make mistakes" with cheap or free finds! Experiment with your thrift finds and see what works for you!
How do you paint your vintage finds? What do you like better, painted or un-painted scores?
Oh, no! Tell me this isn't a trend..... But if it is, your tips should be very helpful :)
ReplyDeleteI have a lamb like that. It never entered my mind to paint it!
I couldn't sell the lamb as it was for ages- we'll see how it does painted!
DeleteVan - I agree! The second new antique mall that I am in has way more Dealers with re-purposed furniture and spray painted doodads. These items are flying out the door! {On the flip side, the other antique mall that I am also in, has less re-purposed stuff...mostly brown furniture and tons of dishware}...
ReplyDeleteI usually spray paint anything that was gold with off-white, pink, or blue. I hadn't thought of BOLD colors, but I like this idea and will give it a try! I LOVE spray painting stuff whenever I can! xo
-pamela ;)
People LOVE pink, I bought a bright pepto-bismol like color that I'm going to use today on a Gargoyle and some unicorns :) It really does help some things fly off the shelves!
DeleteSanding is a MUST! It roughs up the surface, allowing the paint and primer to hold on and stay there. Otherwise it will begin to crack and peel in very short order, especially if you're mixing paint types (oil and latex).
ReplyDeleteWe haven't encountered problems with the "lazy" measures...yet. But I definitely see your point. I was going to write a follow-up post on the knick knacks with a glossy surface, we started using the "stone" textured spray paint, it adds a texture for the spray paint to adhere to and works really well at "roughing" it up without sanding.
DeleteThis may have a nice backlash in a few years....items commonly painted will be more valuable in the future as rare unpainted pieces! Lol! For now, it's great that they are flying off the shelf!
ReplyDeleteI've thought about that, I wonder if they will be a big restoration trend where people use chemicals to strip the paint and bring back the natural item ;) ?
DeleteHey hey!! I am finding that the natural wood look is not as popular as a wooden piece that's been painted. I have had a few things sit, and when I bring them home, paint them and take them back they SELL!! I hate investing the extra time (I'm all for the quick turnover), but I don't want to pass up on the investment and a possible sale. I have had great luck at my local HD oops paint department. Great buys for 50/cents most times. I pop in whenever I have an extra 10 minutes to check out what they have. Also Hobby Lobby has a great selection of colors and you can use a 40% off coupon.
ReplyDeleteOh, I love the idea of using the Home Depot's paint flub section to score deals on nice colors. I haven't tried that yet. Michael's and Joanne's always have 20%/40%/50% off coupons online and in-papers, and sometimes they'll honor competitor's coupons.
DeleteOh, forgot to mention, I'm surprised the original wood finish stuff doesn't sell well at first. I love delicious wood grain! To each their own...
Deletewell, I generally do not paint scores b/c I'm drawn to the original colors in the first place. That being said, i do like this trend and think using some of the textured paints (like the faux granite and such) could be neat, too
ReplyDeleteI used the faux granite on the sheep pictured in this post before spray painting to help paint adhere to the glossy surface. It adds a nice texture, too.
DeleteSame here, I always put my items in with the original colors before painting them.
I'm all for the trend! The painted trend has yet to catch on where I live.
ReplyDeleteYou could be the first to usher in the trend in your area! It's nice to be a trend setter!
DeleteI LOVE the way your two items look up there. Ever since your white owl, I've been meaning to give it a try myself! I have a few ideas rolling around in my (already swimming) noggin.
ReplyDelete"I'm not going to sit around sanding knick-knacks for hours..."
Laughing my ass off.
Me neither!
Try it, Chantal. It's addictive ;)
DeleteHey, I did the lazy guide for a reason, some of us are slow crafters. I'll do a detailed guide to follow-up, though.
Hi Vanessa,
ReplyDeleteI just realized I won the photography giveaway I am so exited. Thank You
Barbara
You should be getting an e-mail soon. :)
DeleteI love how you update these vintage finds with a coat of spray paint. I would really like to have you share this tip at Restyled Sundays.
ReplyDeleteNice post and your home looks ideal.New Port Richey painters Love that images and all things are so motivated and inspirational. By doing these changes house certainly looks beautiful
ReplyDeleteHow much does it cost to hire our Orland Park, IL Kitchen Cabinet Painting Company? prices vary accordingly.
ReplyDeleteOur professional Orland Park kitchen cabinet painters are skilled.
Rather than replacing your cabinets, it’s much more cost effective to bring in kitchen cabinets painting contractors from JRT Painting to revitalize your cabinets look.
There are many reasons for hiring kitchen cabinet refinishing companies in Orland Park.
You could try painting your cabinets, but without a kitchen cabinet painting service, it’s unlikely you’ll get the look you want.You need the right combination of preparation, product and spray equipment to get the right look. The point of doing it yourself is to save money, and with the amount you would pay to get the right equipment for a professional kitchen cabinet look, you would probably eat up any potential savings.
Cost for Orland Park professional cabinet painters may vary, but if you find the right Orland Park kitchen cabinet refinishers, it is often worth it.
What is a blogging site where people give a lot of quick feedback?
ReplyDeleteMy site : 강남오피
thankyou for sharing this informational article.
ReplyDeleteregards
mx player for pc download
I really enjoyed reading this article! This great site will be linked from Our website contains content.
ReplyDeleteregards
Roblox mod unlimited robux apk