Distressed Wood Frame

Hello! My name is Abby, and I have a little blog called “Artist for Hire”. I really enjoy all things arts and crafts, and I also have a huge love of photography. You will often find me chasing my two children around with my camera! Today I want share a tutorial on how to create a distressed finish on a wooden frame. A perfect place for all those photos!

Level: Beginner

Time to Complete: 2 hours (including drying time)

Topics: Painting techniques

Materials:

Natural wooden frame

Acrylic paint

Sanding block or sand paper (fine grit)

Paintbrushes

Acrylic varnish

Newspaper (optional)

Spread some newspaper on your table. If your table is already paint covered, feel free to omit this step! Use a medium size paintbrush to coat the front and sides of your frame. Because you are going to distress this later, you do not have to worry about the paint being perfect. You can find these pre-made frames everywhere—I always see lots of them at Hobby Lobby. Let the paint dry.

Using a second color of paint, coat the front and sides of the frame. Again, don’t worry about this layer being perfect. It will probably look “streaky”. That is great because it will add to the distressed look. It works well to use a color similar to your first coat, only lighter or darker. Let this coat dry. Have a snack if you want!

Get your sanding block or sandpaper back out, and rough your frame up again. This time your first layer of paint will show through, as well as the natural wood. Pretty!

Now it is time to varnish. You would hate for that frame to get scratched! (It may seem silly to protect a distressed surface, but we’ve worked hard on it!) Use an acrylic varnish and a paintbrush to put a nice even coat on your frame. Follow the directions on your varnish for exact instructions.