Inspired By Wes Anderson: Painted Oars for Decoration

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Learn how to make painted oars for decoration.

Good morning! Today, I’m joining some friends for Inspired by DIY hosted by Jess of Domicile 37 and Kathy from Up to Date Interiors. This month’s theme is Wes Anderson. 

It’s no secret that I love Wes Anderson movies. This past fall, I redid a bathroom for the One Room Challenge inspired by Moonrise Kingdom!

For this project, I had full intentions on doing a small room update, but I’m a bit behind on that thanks to multiple celebrations this month, plus a pesky surgery that I’m still recovering from.

Instead, I’m sharing the painted oars that were inspired by Wes Anderson.

Once again, I was inspired by Moonrise Kingdom. I couldn’t help it; the movie is just too good. While I was re-watching it, an entire mood board was formed in my mind for my basement family room.

Moonrise Kingdom is full of summer camp elements, plaid and nautical touches that fit well with my house in the woods. I knew that painted oars would look amazing against my navy blue walls. 

What kind of paint should I use for painted oars?

I used a variety of types of paint for this project, but I prefer chalk paint for a project like this. The coverage is excellent, so you can get away with painting fewer coats of paint. 

Make Painted Oars for Decoration

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Supplies for Painting Oars

• Wooden oars
• Paint
• Paintbrushes
• Painter’s tape
• Sand paper
• Suede cord, twine or ribbon

Scroll down for the oar coloring sheet.

Prep Work for Painted Oars

1. Figure out your oar design. This part was so much fun. I’ve made coloring sheets to download and print out for planning your oars. Or maybe you just want to color oars.

   

2. Tape out your designs. Once you have your designs figured out, start taping out your design. (You can see that I drew mine out before I made these.) I used frog tape and rubbed the edges well. 

   

3. Stripes are the easiest to tape off, but designs are also possible. An arrow is just a piece of tape and a triangle. RIP Snoopy.

   

Painting the Wooden Oars

1. Paint the first color. For the top oar, I wanted light blue and white stripes, so I painted a base of white first. I used chalk paint because it adheres well and less coats of paint are needed. The sides of the oars are painted, but I didn’t bother with the backs since they’re decorative.

   

2. Let the paint dry and add another coat if necessary.
3. Stripes. Once the paint is dry, add tape for stripes or other designs. Paint the stripes your chosen color.

   

4. Add hand painted details if desired. I painted the arrow in with white and added the quivers. 

   

5. Sand to age the oars a bit. When the oars were completely dry, I gently sanded them to make them look a little more worn. This knocks down the edges where the tape was and helps soften any mistakes. 

   

6. Add a loop for hanging. I added a loop of suede cord around the handle for hanging the oars. This was the easiest way to hang them.

   

I love how they look on my navy wall. My walls don’t look that crazy in person, but then again, it’s a basement that we keep pretty dark for watching movies.

Download the Oar Coloring Sheet

Oar Coloring Sheet

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