It’s delightful the way that textiles are being incorporated into home decor painting projects. So many crafters “cross over” into multiple areas, and I know a lot of seamstresses who love to Mod Podge and paint. Sewing always comes with a lot of scraps of fabric and even felt, so these birdhouses are a great way to put some use to those throwaways!
Our designer Holli was inspired by the beach when she was creating these. The distressing and bright colors reminded her of summer! Here’s what you’ll need to make them. Gather these supplies:
- Unfinished wood birdhouses
- FolkArt Acrylic colors – Wicker White, Light Peony, Yellow Citron, Calypso Sky, Hauser Green Light, Teddy Bear Brown
- Wax candle
- Sandpaper (medium grit)
- Flat paint brush
- Liner paint brush
- Felt pieces in various colors
- Scissors
- 9 buttons, coordinating (or enough for your flowers)
- Craft glue
- Pen
- Clear acrylic sealer (optional)
- Begin by basecoating each birdhouse with a color – one Light Peony, one Yellow Citron and one Calypso Sky. Also paint the roofs. Give at least two coats and allow to dry.
- Take your wax candle and rub with firm pressure on the edges, around the bird hole and on the fronts and roofs of the birdhouses. Rub the candle randomly; anywhere you want the distressed look is where you are going to rub wax. NOTE: On the Yellow Citron birdhouse, only the roof is distressed. This means you would only rub wax on the roof of this birdhouse.
- Paint the main parts Light Peony and Calypso Sky birdhouses with Wicker White.. Paint several coats, covering up the wax and other paint colors. Allow to dry.
- Repeat the same process on the roofs with Teddy Bear Brown. Allow to dry.
- Take your felt scraps and cut some flowers randomly out of them. Holli drew a large flower shape with a pen and then cut just inside the lines. You’ll also want to cut some “shingles” for one of the roofs. Set your flower shapes aside.
- When your birdhouses are dry, sand them lightly. You’ll be able to see the areas where the wax is under the paint – sand in these places to remove the paint from the surface, giving the project a distressed look. The more distressed you would like the project, the more you should sand. Just be careful not to sand TOO much – you don’t want to reach the surface below the paint.
- Now that your birdhouses are distressed, you can add the felt pieces. Glue the flowers on randomly with the craft glue – suggestions are shown in the photo. Also glue the shingles onto the roof. Finally, glue the buttons onto the centers of the flowers. Allow to dry.
- Using the liner brush and the Hauser Green Light thinned with a little water, paint stems and leaves below each of the flowers. Allow to dry at least 24 hours before using.
- Optional: spray all birdhouses with clear acrylic sealer for durability.
Paint Me Plaid 