Do you mix your own colors for paint projects? I typically keep large tubes of the primary colors as well as black and white for all of my acrylic paint projects. It is awesome because it allows you to get the precise shade you want. Unfortunately it can also lead to an excess of paint at the end of the project. This recently happened with me and I couldn’t bear seeing such a large amount of paint wasted. So, I decided to pull out a large blank canvas and see what I could create to use up the rest of the paint. The result was this gorgeous DIY sunset sailboat painting. (Please note that in the materials section I have included the end color of paint needed. This is to make it easier for you if you don’t feel like mixing your own paint colors.)

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[bctt tweet=”This gorgeous #DIY sunset sailboat painting is made with excess paint and you can make it easily!” username=”diyadulation”]

Materials

• 24” x 36” White Stapled Canvas
• Orange Acrylic Paint
• Teal Acrylic Paint
• Navy Acrylic Paint
• White Acrylic Paint
• 2” Paintbrush
• Fine Point Paintbrush

Step 1

Spread orange paint on the top 2/3 of your canvas with a 2” paintbrush.

Tip:

• Allow some of the white of the canvas to show through your brush strokes.

Step 2

One the bottom third of your canvas, brush on the teal paint.

Tip:

• This should be thicker than your orange paint above with little-to-no white showing through.

Step 3

Start outlining your sailboat with navy paint by first painting the boat and then moving on to the first sail. See the picture above for reference.

Note:

• Use your fine point brush for this part.

Step 4

Next, outline your second sail. Be sure to leave a gap between the 2 sails like you see in the picture.

Step 5

Once you have finished outlining your sailboat, fill it in with paint.

Step 6 (Optional)

My first coal on the sailboat was too light so I added a second coat of navy paint. If yours is looking too light as well, add a second coat to it.

Step 7

Add some white accents to your water by dipping your 2” inch brush in white paint and brushing the excess onto a scrap of paper before brushing over your water.

Step 8

Next, paint a light shadow of the boat on the water. See the picture above for reference.

Step 9

Once you are happy with the look of the shadows, darken them with your navy paint.

Step 10

Allow your painting to dry completely and enjoy!

Isn’t this so pretty? It’s a perfect example of the saying that necessity is the mother of all invention. This DIY sunset sailboat painting never would have come to be if there hadn’t been so much paint to be used up. The next time you find yourself getting ready to rinse all of that paint off of your palette, pause. Think if maybe there is a project begging to be made with it. Even if your project doesn’t turn out (which has totally happened to me before) you haven’t wasted any supplies making it. Plus the best part about canvases is that if you mess up you can paint over the whole thing and start over. That is definitely winning all around!

See where I’m linking up!

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