Leftover paint?
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Von
Lisa B.
Colorful recycling: Innovative DIY ideas for painting by numbers leftover paint
You are probably familiar with the following situation: You have finished a great painting by numbers artwork and there are some leftover paint in the pots. The best conditions for a DIY project , because you can use the leftover paint by numbers, e.g. from Schipper, to realize any number of creative projects.
This article has all the inspiration you need for exciting craft ideas with acrylic paints.
Now it's getting colorful: advantages of color recycling
The most serious reason why you should recycle your leftover paint instead of throwing it away is obvious: because it's incredible fun! But there are other arguments that clearly speak in favor of reusing leftover paint:
- 🌍Environmentally friendly: Whenever you decide to use up leftovers instead of disposing of them, you are being environmentally friendly.
- 💡 Creative development: DIY projects with leftover paint thrive on your creativity, so you canlet off steam to your heart's content andrelaxat the same time.
- ✂️ Beautiful handicrafts: You'll end up with great results that you've created with your own hands and can either use yourself or give as a gift to your loved ones.
Get to your brushes: Creative craft ideas with acrylic paints - or what's left of them
We have a few suggestions for you, among which you are guaranteed to find ideas that appeal to you. Perhaps you are planning to recycle leftover paint as a family activity, as a meaningful activity for a children's birthday party or as creative fun for the next friends' evening.
Basically, you need these materials for most DIY crafts with acrylic paints:
Leftover paint 🎨
Brushes 🖌️
Sponges 🧽
Pad for sketches and notes 📝
Newspaper as a base 🗞️
In addition, a place where you feel comfortable and can get involved in the creative crafting experience in peace. Once you have that, you can get started right away!
Personalized bookmarks
For bookworms and anyone who wants to become one, personalizing bookmarks with leftover paint is the ideal DIY craft project.
You need:
Sturdy cardboard 📦
Scissors ✂️
Punch
Laminator & laminating film (optional)
Gift ribbon or string 🎀🪢
And this is how it works:
- Cut the cardboard to the desired size for your bookmark and place it on the newspaper to protect your work surface from any drops of paint.
- Grab the leftover paint, brushes and sponges and paint or dab on the bookmark as you wish. For example, you could aim for a cheerful design with colorful dots or a springtime look with little bees and ladybugs. But a pretty color gradient or a blue sky with softly dotted clouds will also look great.
- Allow the paint to dry well and then use the hole punch to punch a hole in the middle of the top of the bookmark.
- Optional: If you have a laminator, you can use it to laminate the bookmark for more protection and stability.
- Cut a piece of ribbon or string, thread it through the hole and tie it in a knot to form a flap.
Creative candles
Have you ever embellished candles using the dip-dye technique? We explain how you can implement this craft idea with acrylic paint.
You need:
Candles 🕯️
Small bowls 🥣
And this is how it works:
- Pour your leftover Schipper paintinto the bowls. Depending on the length of the candle and the desired result, the paint should be a few centimetres high.
- Place the bowls on newspaper, hold the candle by the wick and dip it into the paint, bottom side first. The deeper you dip it, the more it will be dyed.
- Pull the candle out again, let the excess paint drip off and hang the candle by the wick to dry.
- If you don't want a hard transition between the acrylic and candle paint, you can gently dab the "edge" of the paint with a sponge to create a soft color gradient.
- After the drying time, you can add further decorations. For example, create candles with seasonal motifs by adding snowflakes, leaves and pumpkins, hearts or flowers.
- Finally, leave the pretty candles to dry again.
Upcycling furniture & decorative objects
If you have pieces of furniture or decorative items that could do with a fresh coat of paint, you can also use leftover paint.
Small side tables and shelves, picture frames, vases, flower pots, baskets, candlesticks, coasters or wooden caskets are all suitable for upcycling with paint by numbers. For your first attempt, it is best to choose an object that you can get over if not everything works out perfectly. With more practice, you can then move on to your favorite pieces.
Important: Clean the surfaces you want to paint with Schipper paint residues thoroughly and make sure that they are materials to which acrylic paints will adhere and dry well.
To apply the paint, you can use brushes, small paint rollers or sponges, depending on the visual effect you want to create.
For geometric patterns and detailed motifs, for example, you need very fine brushes, while you can paint large areas evenly with rollers and sponges are wonderful for soft gradients.
If you have leftover paint that you no longer want to use, you should find out how to dispose of acrylic paint correctly. This is exactly what our guide on "Disposing of acrylic paint: how to do it safely and in an environmentally friendly way" is all about.
From leftover paint to works of art: Get the best out of your leftovers
Color recycling is an exciting alternative to throwing away leftover paint from Schipper paint by numbers, for example. With a little time and a good dose of creativity, you can use your leftover paint to create great works of art and put them to good use.
Our Schipper online store awaits you with versatile paint by number motifs and offers you paints, brushes, varnishes and more, so that you can equip yourself with useful accessories for your next DIY craft project with leftover paint.