DIY Vintage Vase Makeover: Easy Chalk Paint and Spackling Tutorial

How to Transform an Old Vase with Vintage Style: A DIY Makeover Journey

Join me on a five-month journey to revamp a vase using chalk paint, spackling, and a touch of vintage charm. Discover tips, materials, and the lessons learned along the way in this DIY vase makeover.

Have you ever worked on a project, and wondered when will this be over?

That’s exactly how I felt about this vase that I decided needed a new lease on life.

You see, it had already gone through one makeover a few years back, but the new look just didn’t speak to me. It was okay, and I even shared it here with y'all, but it wasn’t me.

A few years ago, I tried to follow a few trends, but trendy just isn’t who I am. Good thing I wised up and decided to embrace the real me inside this gal. When it comes to my home, I like what I like, and it typically doesn’t involve what’s “in.”

The name of our blog, "Vintage Style Gal," describes me to a tee—I’m not a trendy style gal, and this vase makeover journey is proof of that.

On one of my basement adventures, I came across that ugly gray vase and thought, “Vase, you need a new look.” So, that’s exactly what I did. Don’t worry, I’ll share the ugliness this project went through and how I finally became okay with its new look.

Materials:

1. Old or thrifted vase
2. Dry Dex Heavyweight Spackling
3. Gloves
4. Cinnamon
5. Ivory Chalk Paint
6. Black Chalk Paint
7. Brown Chalk Paint
8. Apple Barrel Craft Paint
   
9. Chip Brush
10. Mod Podge Spray

Instructions:

• Begin by spooning out Dry Dex with your gloved hands, and placing onto the vase for the desired texture, this can be thick or thinner, I went for a more thick, textured look
• Add cinnamon to the vase as you are smoothing on the Dry Dex for an aged look

At this point, I wasn’t exactly happy with how the vase looked once it was dry. 

I’ve shared before that I’m never sure if my ideas will work out as I go through the process. This vase went on a long journey—nearly five months. No, I didn’t work on it the entire time; I took breaks. Long breaks, when I didn’t even want to look at it.

Every time I went downstairs, I’d glance at it, then skip right past it in search of something else to work on. Then, I had the bright idea to add black chalk paint, then ivory chalk paint, then jumped to brown chalk paint, thinking it would improve the look.

Did it?

Nope. It actually looked worse.

But since I’m a glutton for punishment, I picked up that vase again. Between dream and awake, that darn vase came to mind, and I just knew if I gave it another try, it would turn out the way I’d intended.

Round Three: I began by stippling ivory chalk paint over the brown splotches. Then, I grabbed my Apple Barrel nutmeg brown craft paint and added another layer. Can you see the direction I was going in all along?

Does it sort of look like stone? Fingers crossed you say yes...

Finally, I declared, "You are done, little vase. Go on and live your best life."

I added a few Dollar Tree picks, spruced them up, and sighed with relief. Now I can sleep and forget about this darn vase.

Moral of the Story?

Never give up. Keep tweaking, trying, and looking at things from different perspectives because one day, you’ll get there. It may take nearly five months, and it may only be a vase makeover, but hey, I made it. 

Thankfully!

I can be a stubborn gal, and on this project, I just wasn’t giving up until I reached the peak of the mountain and slid on down to the valley.

Oh, and those Dollar Tree picks? The orange of the pumpkins was too orange, and the leaves were too something... so, in case you weren’t aware, that antique wax I’m always yammering on about? You can totally use it on your florals for a new vintage look.

I mean, those high-end designers do it, so why can't we... and save a bit of money along the way?

Now, I will totally go off-topic here, but I joined a Facebook group a while back for a designer who brings to market what her gals suggest. While I love the concept, her merchandise is a bit on the pricey side.

For several years, I picked up many items, but then I noticed the quality wasn’t what I had come to expect. So, I stopped purchasing. Recently, I was upset with myself for not buying a set of pumpkins, but after seeing others’ purchases, I’m glad I didn’t. The quality was poor, and the detailing was way off.

So, another tip—don’t worry about buying the designer look. Buy what you can afford, and if it’s from Dollar Tree (which is where I like to find some of my florals), just change them to give them that high-end look.

I got a bit heavy-handed with my wax on one of the leaves. I had to take a call, leaving the wax on too long, and it left a dark mark—not as I had intended. But I’m going with it.

If you want to do this too, brush on antique wax, and then take a baby wipe to pull back the wax. I also applied it to the pumpkins. This large vase only needed two stems, so at $2.50 for fall florals, I thought, what a steal! And quite possibly giving those designer looks a run for their money with my dollar store florals, and old vase makeover. 

Okay, I hope you enjoy your weekend, friend. I’m heading off to see what else I can get into today... you never know what sorts of treasures I’ll find in our basement.

Don't Forget to Pin for Later!

Ciao,

Cara