Upcycling with acrylic paint is a great way to give new life to old items. Acrylic paint is a widely available and versatile paint that adheres well to a wide range of surfaces, making it an obvious choice for upcycling projects.
We had this fish-shaped light pull for many years; it is almost a family heirloom. It has moved with us at least 4 times through 3 cities, and it has always been there for as long as kids can remember. Sadly, when we redone our bathroom, the fish completely did not fit the new décor. Since we really wanted to keep it, I decided to upcycle it by painting it with acrylic paint.
The result was better than I expected!
I was so pleased with it that I decided to upcycle some of our old plastic plant pots as well. Not only do they not look plastic anymore, but you also cannot tell them apart from the expensive speckled planters I bought recently.
In both upcycling projects, I used the “splatter” technique, which is my favourite! I have used regular acrylic paint, but you can get special textured paints that will give you an instant look of a stone or concrete. I have not used primer since I was able to sand my items, and the acrylic paint adhered well to them. If you cannot sand the item for whatever reason, using a primer before the paint is always a good idea.
Some other items that would look great upcycled with acrylic paint are picture frames, bottles, trinket boxes or even small furniture items.
Materials & Equipment
Item(s) for upcycling
Acrylic paint
Clear varnish
Sandpaper (optional)
Paint brushes
Method
- Prepare the thing(s) you will be upcycling by cleaning and sanding them.
I have sanded the fish with fine sandpaper to help the paint stick to the surface better. I have also sanded the plastic plant pots, which made painting much easier. - Paint the item(s). I used charcoal colour acrylic paint as a base for the fish and then splashed it with different colours (teal, green, maroon, brown, yellow and grey). For the plant pots, I used dark grey and then splashed them with a mixture of pearlescent white with a tiny addition of blue to make it off-white.
- Allow your creation(s) to dry completely before spraying it with clear varnish. I have used satin finish spray varnish, but depending on the item and desired effect, you may want to use gloss or matt instead.
- Enjoy your new old piece(s)!
