Thrift Store Painting Upcycle

Oh Darling Let’s Be Adventurers. We’re going on a thrift store painting upcycle adventure!

Summer is for adventures. And spray paint. Embrace both with this DIY thrift store painting upcycle project.

Begin by heading to your favorite thrift store. It’s good to have an idea of what you are looking for before you arrive. Based on the adventurer quote that I wanted to use I knew that I was looking for a painting that featured a landscape. I also wanted a fairly good sized painting. My thrift store had all of the painting stacked on top of one another on shelves. It took some digging but I was able to find this landscape canvas that is 16”x20” for just $3.

Once you find your painting you are ready to begin your upcycle. The other supplies that you will need for this project are:
– Spray paint
– Vinyl letter stickers (you can buy them or cut them out yourself)
– Paper
– Masking tape
– A place to spray paint

Place the vinyl letter stickers down on your canvas. I used letter stickers that I purchased from a craft store. Take your time in applying the letters to make sure they are attached firmly.

To preserve some of the original landscape, I decided to do a little color blocking with my quote. I used regular white paper and masking tape to mask off the top and bottom of the painting. I wanted the center of the painting to be solid white with only the color from the letters showing through.

Follow the directions on the spray paint, using several light coats and allowing the canvas to dry between each coat. This will help keep spray paint from bleeding underneath the letters. When the final coat of spray paint is dry remove the letters.

Once the lettering was finished, I covered that area of the painting and did one light coat of spray paint over the rest of the canvas. My canvas was slightly dingy and this brightened up the whole piece.

Allow the final coat to dry, which should take just a few minutes. Then your upcycled canvas is ready to be displayed.

Use the same process to upcycle canvases for other parts of your home as well. Take a food still life and add a quote about eating. The possibilities are endless.