Projects for Leftover Paint!

July 3, 2018

 The easiest way to change the look of a wall, an accessory or an object in or around your house is with a can of paint. And if you’re the type of person who hangs on to leftover paint “just in case” – after all it does last for about 10 to 15 years if stored properly – but don’t need it anymore for touch-ups, here are a few project ideas that could use your repurposed latex and oil-based paint.

Using Leftover Paint Around the House

HGTV has umpteen uses for leftover paint on doors, cabinet interiors, bathroom vanities, stairs, wall embellishments and more. For example, you can use leftover paint as an accent color on an otherwise boring contractor-grade door. Or find a quirky garage sale, or thrift store item (there’s a Good Will store at 15509 E. Iliff Avenue in Aurora) and use your leftover paint to dip the legs or paint select parts. And this HGTV video offers a few more ideas on small little paint touches that you can pull off in mere seconds.

Better Homes and Gardens applied painter’s tape to a metal tray and alternated different colors of leftover paint stripes to add some pizzazz and Martha Stewart painted a plain wooden tray with a little bit of paint and added drawer pulls for fancy feet. She also snagged a flea market table that was missing a leg, sawed it in half and taking the two-legged remnant, transformed it with leftover paint into a half-table console and attached it to an entry wall. And Genevieve Gorder, a stylist on Hollywood television sets, shows Rachael Ray in this YouTube video how to use leftover paint to dress up faucets and knobs, mason jar pencil holders and picture frames.

Wood Wall Art with Extra Paint

This idea brings a whole new meaning to the term dip stick! Looking on Etsy and Pinterest, clever crafters have taken scrap wood, tongue depressors (right?!), wooden stirrers and popsicle sticks dipped in paint for wall art and wooden sculptures. The stick sizes and finished dimensions vary, but if you like a somewhat linear look – vertical or horizontal – use your leftover paint to create a signature piece. From the prices on Etsy and some art sites – your inexpensive DIY creation could be worth upwards of $400!

Head over to DIY Projects and check out the collection of art projects using paint and paint sticks – those freebies you get in the paint department at Home Depot on South Gun Club Road in Aurora. It’ll blow your mind. 

Leftover Paint Storage

Leslie at Goodbye House, Hello Home recommends transferring all the leftover paint to mason jars to extend its life – a little paint in a gallon paint can tends to dry out. She offers label templates on her site to track the paint – even if all you use it for is touching up baseboards!

And if you want to dispose of old leftover paint that has outlived its usefulness, Lowe’s offers several tips to avoid taking it to a recycling center. One involves letting small amounts of paint dry out in the can before tossing and another recommends kitty litter.

Weekends in Southshore

The options for your weekends in the lakeside,  master-planned community of Southshore  can include DIY projects, but there are also plenty of entertainment opportunities and recreational venues like the Aurora Reservoir – just minutes away! Stop by and tour the spectacular model homes from Toll Brothers, Century Communities and Richmond American Homes and explore life at the lake! New homes are available in ranch and two-story models, priced from the upper $300s to the $700s.