HOME DECOR DIY: Rainbow Galaxy Wood Glider Makeover

Back in February of LAST YEAR, I finished this rainbow galaxy wood glider makeover. So you know how you make a bunch of projects, with intentions of writing a tutorial or 12, but keep getting distracted by making MORE THINGS? Yeah, well that tends to happen a lot to me. Darn you creative brain! Anywho, it's a lovely 70 degrees and sunny here, which means we're getting snow again in March, and mother nature likes to tease us with spring weather. What's Winter? I think we had that for a week last month. Anywho, this tutorial is for you all who are ready for spring time. Granted this makeover is a serious blast of color, but the DecoArt Media Misters come in bright colors and black. Alternatively, there's a new DecoArt product called Americana Decor Color Stain which comes in 21 shades, including brights, dusty, neutrals, and jewel tones. I haven't played with it yet, but it is a color stain and might work similarly to how I used the DecoArt Media Misters for this makeover. I think I'm getting a picnic table soon for the girl child, so the color stains will get some use there.

TIME: We did this project over a few days, as it's time consuming to spray the whole glider. Splatter painting didn't take as long, bit it was still a lot of surface to cover. Grab a friend, spouse or older child to help.

SUPPLIES:
DecoArt provided me with their products for this project. I was not paid to create this project or tutorial. Everything else, I bought myself. The glider was a birthday gift many years ago. I use Amazon Affiliate links. Any purchases made using the Amazon links will result in Amazon paying me a small commision fee.

• Unfinished wood glider
• DecoArt Media Misters:
• 2 Primary Cyan
• 2 Primary Magenta
• 2 Yellow Green
• DecoArt Media Shimmer Misters:
• 2 Violet
• 2 Turquoise
• DecoArt Americana Acrylic Paint
• Snow
• Lamp Black
• DecoArt Dazzling Metallics in Shimmering Silver
• DecoArt Glow in the Dark Paint
• Minwax Polycrylic Protective Finish in Satin

TOOLS:

• White plastic table cloths
• Painters tape
• 5 1" foam brushes
• Water
• 5 bowls
• Stiff small paint brush
• Paper plate
• High quality 3" wide soft paint brush
• Cotton rags
• Paper towels

INSTRUCTIONS:

1) My glider is on my back covered balcony. While it doesn't get rained on, it does get dusty from pollen. Take a damp cotton rag and wipe the  I used plastic table cloths and painters tape to cover the balcony walls and floor where the glider sits.

2) Into each bowl, pour a little water and place a foam brush inside. Using the big paint brush, brush some water onto a glider section. This will help the wood soak up color. Spray a mister onto the wet wood. Use a foam brush to blend the paint into the wood. Repeat with another color, blending the color edges together. Work in sections, so the edges can be blended together well. Make sure to cover all the surfaces, including the back, sides, and bottom. I used one brush and bowl per color. I like to try to balance out color placement and coverage amounts, for more interesting finished piece. Let it completely dry, which might take a couple hours. The cotton rags and paper towels are great for clean up.

3) Pour a little of each paint color onto a paper plate. Add a tiny bit of water to each paint splotch. Dip the stiff bristle paint brush into one color. Rub a finger across the bristle end to flick paint onto the glider. Repeat with each color, until the entire front and arms of the glider have star like speckles. Obviously I had my daughter help me with this part. Let the paint completely dry. 

4) Paint on Minwax Polycrylic sealer with the 3" wide paint brush. Make sure to cover all painted surfaces. This will help the color stay vivid and protect the wood. Read the instructions for curing time before using the glider. Once the glider is dry to the touch, remove the plastic table cloths.

5) When the glider makeover is done, it should look similar to mine.

This project was definitely an undertaking. Whoo, it was a lot of bending into tight spots at odd angles. I'm glad we took what was a boring plain glider and made it into something colorful. My daughter has been enjoying using it during the warm months, to read and do art outside. The stars in the top photo are left over from Wooden Winter Wonderland Porch Decor I made a couple years ago. The other stars are on the opposite wall. Like I mentioned before, you can certainly do this project in other colors and designs. I know colorful bohemian decor isn't for everyone, but it inspires a lot of people, which what I aim to do. Whatever you're making, have fun with it! Happy Makery!