I still say spray paint is hands down the easiest way to transform something. Anything. I have spray painted some peculiar things. Bamboo shades for one. It worked! I did lost a few brain cells on that one but they looked great!
I’ve curbed my obsession a little over the years – there was a time I got a little carried away by spraying everything black. Ever.y.thing. That phase has passed, thankfully, but when you discover the power of this stuff it’s hard to stop.
Of course one of the easiest mediums to spray paint is wood:
I’ve sprayed a lot of light fixtures in my day. Most are pretty easy, some are a bigger pain in the butt. I shared how I easily taped off this formerly 80’s masterpiece so I could make it into a more updated look here:
I think metal is the easiest to paint. Lamps are excellent candidates for it, especially those you find at Goodwill:
Those navy blue lamps are my favorites in the house!
Some of the more random items I’ve sprayed in our house are the floor vents:
It’s super easy! These have held up incredibly well and I’ve had them painted for years now. This is that same vent (the wall looks different because of the window seat now) and it’s by far the worst looking one in the house:
It got a lot of wear during the window seat and trim install but it still looks pretty dang good.
I sprayed our coach lights years and years ago and they came out SO beautifully!:
You have to see the before to see how worn they were by the elements. They looked AWFUL. But I loved the actual lights and knew I could give them more life, at least for a year or two.
Well it’s been four and a half years now since painted those lights – and this is how they look today:
Pretty spectacular, yes? I find spray paint holds up incredibly well outside, especially if you’re not touching the item. I sprayed some planters from Goodwill about seven years ago and they are still looking fantastic.
Years back when I painted our front door I knew the brass kick plate wasn’t going to jive anymore. So I taped it off and sprayed it the oil rubbed bronze to match the lights and the door hardware:
It still looks fantastic, all this time later! Oh yeah, and I painted those planters too. ;)
Here’s my advice for spraying anything --
1. Clean it well. Soap and water, a cleaning wipe, whatever.
2. If it’s wood with a protective finish, you may want to sand at least a little.
3. At the very least, use a spray primer.
4. Shake the can well and for a few minutes before you start.
5. Use short, quick sprays, not long ones.
6. Many lights coats work better than one or two heavy ones.
7. If your surface crackles the item was too warm or was not cleaned enough.
8. Sand down any imperfections or drips and spray again.
9. Let it cure – wood takes a little longer, metal shorter.
10. Clean like normal once it cures – but I avoid heavy duty cleaners.
I did a spray paint “taste test” last year that shows how the different paints fared:
I’ve sprayed glass, metal, wood, ceramic and plastic. I had one ceramic pitcher fail but otherwise my only other fail ever was our door knobs – they did not hold up to daily use. You can find more about that here.
Are you a spray paint fan? What’s the craziest thing you’ve painted? Have you had any luck with sprayed door knobs?
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