Wall art can make or break a room makeover. It can add color and personality but most artwork is so terribly expensive! Let me show you How to Upcycle a Thrift Store Painting into a piece you’ll be proud of.
Remember my horribly messy craft room?
That’s where this lovely piece of artwork had been hanging out for several years. I picked it up at a thrift store for only $5.00. The bland background and pitcher of flowers really wasn’t my thing but I knew I could do something with it.
With such a small price tag it would be perfect for the $100 Room Challenge I am doing in our dining room. Come see Week 1 and all the Dining Room Makeover Ideas.
What’s the $100 Room Challenge? The host is Erin from Lemons, Lavender, & Laundry and it’s all about using what you’ve got, thrift store finds, and inexpensive DIY projects. Here’s all the details about how the challenge works.
The truth is that thrift store paintings have never been safe from me. I’ve already updated one piece using a paint by paint technique and another with fabulously colorful abstract circles.
Every once in awhile I get the itch to play in paint and make something colorful. That’s why I created a Pinterest board for Home Decor: Painting and Artwork Inspiration. It’s full of lots of DIY art projects and even a few tutorials for how to upcycle a thrift store painting.
Here is the inspiration for this thrift store painting upcycle project. It’s “Confetti” Wall Art by Blair Culwell Staky {purchase at Minted}. I love the colors and different brush stroke techniques.
How to Upcycle a Thrift Store Painting
Thrift Store Painting {or purchase a canvas here}
Acrylic Paint {purchase the set I used}
Artist Paint Brushes {purchase here}
Step One: Paint Over the Original
Start the process by completely painting over the original thrift store painting. Gray acrylic paint makes a great base for this colorful thrift store painting upcycle.
Step Two: Just Go for It!
Yep. This is the part where you simply have to shrug your shoulders and go for it! Remember it was only a $5.00 painting that I didn’t like. So even if I ruined it the loss wouldn’t be too great.
It would be super hard for me to explain exactly how to upcycle a thrift store painting so I’ve created a quick video to show how the artwork developed.
Oh my goodness! I could not be happier with this inexpensive thrift store makeover.
Color makes me happy and this wall art definitely has color in abundance. It is going to fit right in with the coral and green color scheme in the dining room makeover.
Now I realize that this type of DIY art project might not be your cup of tea. But I love the colors in the inspiration piece and have adapted it to make it my own.
I hope that you have been encouraged to grab a thrift store painting and make it your one. Just follow this tutorial for how to upcycle a thrift store painting and let the paint flow!
The Dining Room Makeover Budget So Far…
Week One {Upcycle a Thrift Store Painting}
- thrift store painting – $5.00
- acrylic paint set and brushes – already had
Total So Far – $5.00
Coral and Green Dining Room Makeover {$100 Room Challenge}
Week One {Dining Room Decorating Ideas}
Week One {Dining Room Makeover Take Two}
Week Two {How to Upcycle a Thrift Store Painting}
Week Four {Dining Room Makeover Ideas on a Budget ~ The BIG Reveal}
Let the $100 Room Challenge Week 2 begin!
Don’t forget to check out all the bloggers that are working on this challenge throughout the month, using the links below.

Inexpensive Artwork for the Home
- Horse String Art Project ~ so simple your kiddos can do it!
- DIY Birch Tree Art from Persia Lou
- How to Make a Clock from an Electrical Spool
- Earth Day Craft: DIY Button Art Tree from Make & Do Crew
- DIY Abstract Circle Painting
Visit Ashley @ 3 Little Greenwoods’s profile on Pinterest.
I link up with these fun parties!
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Oh my goodness! This looks amazing! I love this, pinning for later. Thank you for sharing!
Nice going with this painting Ashley! I’ll be sure to keep an eye on those old paintings for now on! I’ll also be posting about DIY wall art for week 3 of the challenge. Love to see what you do next.
Oh I can’t wait to see your DIY wall art! Thanks for your sweet comment, Natalie!
love the pop of colors in the Artwork. Cant wait to see rest of the room
Thanks, Bharati! I’ve got big plans for the china cabinet next.
What a great idea! And you’re right, if you end up ruining it, it only cost $5 to begin with, so what do you have to lose? Perfect for this challenge!
Wow! It is amazing what you did with that! It looks so great! I have several pieces of art lying around that I just know I can do something with. Thanks for the inspiration!
Thank you so much, Nicki! I really do love my updated thrift store painting.
Wow Ashley, amazing job! I love the bright colors!