Make your own Abstract Art on a Budget

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Hi everyone, today I will be sharing a fun little project I did a few months ago.  We did our bathroom makeover and as we encountered a few mishaps, we ended up spending a little more than we anticipated, so I tried to save where I could and ended up creating this fun little abstract art for our bathroom.

I was after an art piece for the bathroom, but as always did not want to spend a fortune.  I had a couple of old canvases that I didn’t want to throw out.  They were not in a very good shape and also didn’t match any of our decor, so I decided to spruce them up a bit aka ‘totally transform them‘.

The first piece I did for the bathroom (blue one) and I loved it so much I ended up making another piece for our hallway.  I posted a photo on my Facebook page and also on Instagram and got so many comments and messages on asking me how I achieved the look.  The simple answer is – improvise AND GET YOUR HANDS DIRTY! Even though I love art, I am not an artist, I just love to experiment, try something new and hope it turns out nice…

So here goes..

First I cleaned and painted the canvas using some white emulsion to have a base.  I then mixed some Saltwash with blue paint and just slapped it on! So very different to when you are trying to paint a piece of furniture and don’t want any texture or brush strokes..  Doing this was the totally opposite.. the more texture the better.. I also used a bit of caulk to create more dramatic effect and some snow paste for a slightly different texture.

Then using my hands, a sponge and various paint brushed I went over with different coloured paints. The hardest part was the layering.. as you have to be patient, add colours, let them dry and occasionally wipe the excess off using a rag or newspaper (dab dab dab to create a unique effect).  I used chalk paint, sample pots, acrylics – anything I could find.

Once I was happy with the result, I added some silver leaf (on blue painting) and gold/copper leaf (on the green painting).

To finish it all off, I went over with clear varnish (as I was using  some chalk paint I wanted to bring out the colour a little bit more) , this also ensured the piece was sealed nicely!

And here is my green/brown piece I made for our hallway.

Which one is your favourite??

My efforts paid off as I also entered my green/gold piece in the The Royal Manx  Show and it came second!

23 thoughts on “Make your own Abstract Art on a Budget

  1. Thank you so much. I’ll “just go for it!” Like you I am not an artist but I sure do love to create and have always used reclaimed bits and pieces for my creations. It is so encouraging to hear of someone else who does this. Once I was asked if one of my art creations was an “original Jackson Pollock” All I could answer was, “I used up all the left over house paints from the past 20 years.” We had a great laugh. Sincerely, Grace Verrier

  2. I am just getting interested in paint abstract art. I am an artist, but more of a precise detail type artist.

  3. Very nice! I personally like the blue one better; I just love the water-tone colors. So, in applying the foil did you use adhesive at all or did the texture do the holding for you? Thanks for sharing!

    1. Thank you so much Sylvia! I did use some adhesive for the silver foil, it was pretty hard to see where the glue was once it had dreid a littel so it was a bit of trial an error! 🙂

  4. Love love love! Thank you for sharing your technique. I’m just beginning to use textures. Your share was very helpful on what to use. I like both, however really adore the green.

  5. Wow! Both pieces are stunning, but the green/silver is my favorite. I’m a graphic designer and dabble in painted mediums on the side. I don’t know a lot about impasto painting but I know I’d love to decorate my home with it. It can get pretty costly with art materials..I was looking for an affordable way to do this without spending more money on MORE art supplies. This sounds like so much fun without sacrificing too much money and still with awesome results. Thanks for sharing!

  6. I absolutely love the multi- colored one with the green, etc. It does take specific steps in which colors go first, and the order of layering process. I would appreciate it more than I can say if you would do tutorial of some sort to guide me through this process. While no two creations are the same, the methodical steps would be helpful to achieve the effects of layers as you have done. I am so anxious to create something similar, but don’t want to end up with a disappointing finished work because I didn’t know how to achieve the various layers that seem to peek through each other in places. Many thanks for your consideration.

  7. I really like them both but if I had to choose one, I guess it would be the green. (Could be because green is in MY colour scheme.

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