DIY Paint Chip Art

Tuesday, March 19, 2013



Like most things, I was a bit behind on the whole paint chip craft trend. I plan to try ombre hair this fall and put a bubble necklace on my Christmas list. Oh, and 2014 is totally going to be my sock bun year.

I have stumbled across some cute projects here and there via Pinterest and some fellow bloggers, but had no idea how they obtained all those paint chips. You know those walls stocked with them at Home Depot? Yeah, you just grab some. Rocket science, Sarah. 


During a recent trip, I snagged a bunch and set to work. I perused the craft punch section at Michael's and found the cutest little owl punch/embosser. I simply punched away while catching up on my DVR one weekend afternoon. Easy peasy.


I had a 12x12 canvas left over from my confetti art project which was perfect since the owls were only about an inch long. A bigger canvas would have looked odd (and taken forever). I struggled a bit with how to create a color gradient, and tried a few different methods, until Kiddo said "put the dark ones in the middle and have it get lighter as you go out". He was totally right. I should be embarrassed that he was all over it, but I chalk that up to the fact that I am most definitely an over-thinker and, well, I'm happy to say he did not inherit that rather frustrating quality.



Once I found an arrangement I liked, I attached each piece with an adhesive foam dot. I ended up eyeballing the placement, but it looks surprisingly straight and uniform.


The still-bare freshly painted walls in my bedroom screamed for some color. I hung this on a little section of wall between a window and the bathroom doorway. I recently picked up a colorful owl print and whimsical frame from IKEA and together they made the perfect pairing.


The canvas was part of a value pack (on sale) and only cost about $2. The paint chips were free. I used a 40% off coupon for the punch, but it completely fell apart so I returned it. Luckily, I had enough punched to complete the project.

FYI: The Martha Stewart punches like the one I used have a weird rubber liner inside which, even with gentle use, got displaced and chewed up every time I used the punch. Without it, the punch is useless. Hence the return. They really are darling, and perhaps my experience was just a fluke, but beware of the potential for these to break.

20 comments :

  1. How adorable! I love that! I just may try that for my son, who is buying a new home.

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  2. Oh my gosh, this is an AMAZING idea! I made the paint chip garland last year for Easter, but I think I might head to the craft store soon to find a fun stamp cut out to try this with :) Thanks for sharing!

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  3. Such a cute idea! I LOVE OWLS!! XD
    Sarah xxxx
    www.whimsicalmumblings.blogspot.co.uk - GIVEAWAY NOW ON!

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    1. Thanks, Sarah! I'm really happy with it! I wish I could say that about all my crafting endeavors. :)

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  4. The owls are super cute!! Love it!!
    Mendy
    http://1crazydaisy3pokeyjoes.blogspot.com/

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  5. Such a cute idea! I love it! I used some paint chips for a few garlands and felt totally awkward grabbing tons of paint chips! ha ha.

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  6. This is amazing. Omg. I've seen this paint chip trend and been dying to partake (thinking about doing a heart garland); these owls are a fabulous use of it. Awesome job!

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  7. Holy Macrol, Andy ... that is fantastic! Wow, girl ... you have talent and patience. I could have never pulled that off! xo

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  8. this is so cool! what an awesome idea!!

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  9. I've hesitated to join the paint chip craft bandwagon for fear that I would be the one who tip the scales and caused all home repair stores to stop supplying paint chips with a sign that said "We regret that we will no longer be able to provide courtesy paint chips because Nicki Burgess took more than she could possibly need to decide a paint color for her walls. We suspect she solely intended to use them for crafting." Nightmares about this to be honest.

    Now the whole ombre hair thing, I might have to join you on this one come Fall.

    PS - Love the owl crafts (and your secret is safe with me) [wink wink]

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    1. Similar nightmares. I felt like such a dirty paint chip stealer. It took me a long time to compile all those because I was convinced they knew what I was up to. In the end, I realized that they had about a thousand paint chips per color palette and wouldn't miss the twenty I took in varying colors. Plus, they get them for free from the vendor. At least I think. Good thing I look good in both orange and stripes.

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  10. Youre so creative. It came out great!

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  11. That's really cute! I have a bazillion paint chip cards laying around, this would put them to good use, cause lord only knows what I would do with thousands of paint chips and only 6 rooms....

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  12. I did this exact same thing for my son, with a deer punch. It's so simple and so cute.

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  13. That's really cute- I've seen paint chip projects all on pinterest too but this one is definitely one of the cuter ones- especially since I love/am obsessed with owls!!

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  14. I love this! So simple but stylish. The glittery owl is a perfect touch. Funny how kids can point out the obvious sometimes. Their brains are less cluttered!

    Stopping by from the Monday Funday link party.

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  15. I love it! I did this, too, thanks to fellow blogger Honey We're Home!

    http://thepinteresthousewife.blogspot.com/2013/03/reach-for-stars-paint-chip-art-diy.html

    LOVE THE OWLS!!!!!!

    Christina P.

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  16. This is really a great DIY project, i enjoyed your post. Thanks for sharing......


    http://www.docstoc.com/profile/jim.thomson82

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