I've been seeing this project happening all over my Pinterest and Instagram feeds and thought I would give it a shot as I've been looking for some new items to freshen up some of my shelves. I went thrifting for some old vases that I could transform a couple weeks back but then this 3rd lockdown hit and I panicked that I did not have time to stock up on project supplies! I was pleasantly surprised when I looked into this DIY though and managed to scrounge up everything I needed. I'm hoping that you may be able to do the same, it's a super simple project so if you're looking for something easy to keep you occupied in this lockdown this may be the project for you!
Step 1: Collect a variety of vases, I had luckily went to Talize a couple weeks back and bought an assortment but you may already have some kicking around your own place. If you really want to get thrifty you could even check your recycling for some old pasta jars or cans that you could transform. Old planters or bowls could also be fun items to transform!
Step 2: Clean the vases with hot water and dish soap, I recommend removing any stickers from the bottom of items.
Step 3: Set up your paint station. I set out a plastic drop sheet and then poured my paint colours into plastic cups for easy clean up.
Step 4: Add baking powder to the paint, most recipes I looked at recommended a 1:1 ratio, I honestly just eyeballed it. The more baking powder you add the more texture your paint will have but you can always add more paint so I didn't stress too much about this step.
Step 5: You are simply going to dab the paint and baking power mixture on the vases. I took old brushes that had thick bristles to add lots of texture and just quickly worked my way around the vases. Within about 20 minutes I had my first coat on them and allowed them to sit overnight to thoroughly dry and adhere. If you don't let them sit long enough you could pull the paint off when you add your second layer so I highly recommend waiting 24 hrs to be safe and not create more work for yourself.
Step 6: I added a second coat the next day, ensuring that my paint was thick and clumpy to get the desired clay like texture.
Step 7: Once the second coat had time to dry (I waited another 12 hrs, but the longer you wait the better the adhesion will be) I added my accent colours. For my accent colours I didn't add the baking powder I just simply painted overtop. This allowed for crisper lines in my designs. If I'm being honest here, I rarely have a solid plan when I do projects...I think that's the creative in me? This is the fun part of the project in my opinion so have fun with it!
Some things I took into consideration to ensure cohesive pieces included:
-Only using a maximum of 3 colours per vase
-I varied where the accent colours were featured, ie. If I added a big chunk of green on the bottom of one vase I would then add it to the top of another. This would help ensure when I go to layer the vases on my shelves the colours wouldn't all just blend together.
-I kept my patterns simple, it can be easy to over do it if you are just looking at each piece individually but you have to remember when they are grouped all together it can be a lot going on so some pieces should be left more simple then others.
-I just freehanded my designs but you could take a pencil or light marker and draw guidelines for your design just be careful not to scratch off your paint! I think the beauty in these pieces are the fact that they feel like a natural material and handmade so I didn't want my pieces to have perfect lines but that's up to you to decide on your pieces!
For most of the accent pieces I just did one coat of paint but some of the larger lines and shapes I did 2 to ensure they were solid.
Step 8: Enjoy your new pieces of artwork! Just ensure you are gentle with these pieces, I found they can chip easily so you want to display them in a space that won't get them handled too much or get knocked over. It is easy to fix if you chip any pieces though you will just have to mix your baking powder and paint mixture together again and blot on the area that was chipped.
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