Monday, January 11, 2010

Decorating a Tin Can…Ballard Style

 Stenciled Tin Can 013

Have you seen the Dog Food Canister in the Ballard Designs Catalog???  I have wanted one of these can ever since spotting it in their catalog but can’t quite seem to place the order.  I think that has something to do with the $49.00 price tag associated with it.  It’s cute but not $49.00 worth of cute.

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Then on one of my recent trips to the Goodwill I spotted this steel can.  The price tag said $1.99.  Sold. Goodwill 005

I took it home and washed it up.  Then took it outside for some American Accents Heirloom White Re-hab.

Goodwill 011

I gave it two coats of paint and let it dry over night.  I really wanted the paint to adhere so that I don’t have it chipping off when take the lid on and off.

Next step was to decorate it somehow.

Stenciled Tin Can 010 

I settled on painting some numbers on it since I was just itching to use my new number stencils.  They worked so well on my Burlap Place Mats Project that I wanted to try them on something else.  Now I have to say I do like the look I achieved with these stencils but I also have to tell you they were much more difficult to work with on a hard surface like this for some reason.   I even used my favorite blue painter’s tape.   The edges were not nearly as crisp as I would have like and I had lots of smudging and had to go back over most of the numbers with a small paint brush.  Next time I think I will try spray adhesive in addition to the painter’s tape. 

Stenciled Tin Can 014

  But overall, I am happy with how it turned out. :)

Stenciled Tin Can 013

If you want to try this yourself, keep your eyes out for cans like this one or even those old popcorn or potato chip cans.  They could easily be turned into a container just like mine.  This will be a much more attractive way to store Oakley’s dog food and it cost me next to nothing to make. 

Stenciled Tin Can 021

And here’s another thought…Wouldn’t a can like this be cute if you painted a big rectangle on it with chalkboard paint?  Then you could use chalk to write anything you want on it.   I also found a cute stamp of a dog’s paw.  That would be cute on a can like this if it was going to be used as the dog food container. I found another empty can at Goodwill the other day so I think that I  might be an making another one.  Chalkboard or Dog paw?

I am going to link this project up over at Twice Remembered Cottage for MAKE IT MONDAY.  Come see what everyone else has been making.

28 comments:

Sissie's Shabby Cottage said...

I love what you have done with the tin can!!! Wow!! It's funny that you posted this morning about Pottery Barn's because I too was thinking of ordering one but couldn't get passed the price, eek!
So, I am going to try and make one.
Thanks so much for the how to. I love it!

hugs~~Sissie

CosmoGirl Carla said...

LOVE IT!!! Great tip about using the big popcorn tins. Since I'm closet hoarder and can't throw anything away, I have 3 or 4 of them up in the attic.
Mmmm . . . I feel a new project coming.

Thanks for sharing!

Linda@Coastal Charm said...

What an awesome job you did on this tin can...much better than the 'BALLARD" one!

Blessings,
Linda

Erin said...

Quite lovely, indeed. I hope the pooch appreciates dining in style.

Amy@TheLemonCottage said...

Awesome job!
It turned out fantastic.
I've looked at that in the catalog too. Too much for me to put dog food in.
I'm thinking I have a popcorn tin downstairs... please warm up weather!!!
~Amy

The Daily Connoisseur said...

I love this- Gatsby should have such a beautiful dog food tin!

Karen said...

Great Idea! I need something like that for Milo's food. Do the numbers have any significance to you?

Karen said...

p.s. We have an old 5 gallon paint can that has been cleaned out--does that kind of paint work on that hard plastic? I think that might be a great dog food holder--even though I buy the HUGE bags. How much does the one you made hold?

Maya @ Completely Coastal said...

Fabulous! I have to get my hands on that catalogue too!!

Kathy @ Creative Home Expressions said...

This is great, Lisa! I am actually looking for some kind of large container to put my dog's food in and something like this would be perfect! Love the number stencil you did.

Do you ever have a problem when you are painting something like tin or metal with it not staying on? I did a metal lid to a glass jar this weekend with regular black spray paint and it didn't really seem to adhere well in some spots. Maybe I was rushing it and you need to let each coat dry for 24 hours? Unless I should just be getting a spray paint for metal.

MsAnnieBelle said...

beautiful! i love the new trend of numbering things.. very chic. :)

Scooterblu's Whimsy~Rhonda said...

Very cute! I'll have to be on the lookout for a similar can now, to make this neat project! :) ~Rhonda

Marianne said...

How funny I have posted a chalkboard project. Your can looks great and so does the numbering. Pretty good knock of in my book.

Pat@Back Porch Musings said...

Great job! I love it!

Anonymous said...

very cute! love the use of numbers! thanks for sharing!

Brenda Pruitt said...

Well how cute! I've been drooling over that in the catalog for ages myself. Just can't bring myself to spend that much on a can!
Brenda

Anny said...

Cuteness!

Charity said...

I love this, I am going to stop by my thrift store tomorrow and see if I can find one to do. Thanks for the inspiration.
Cha Cha

David and Christine said...

What a fabulous idea! The thought "why didn't I think of that"! kind of pop in my head! LOL. Now I know I have an empty popcorn tin around here somewhere and now I just need the white paint.

I'll be sure to send you a pic once it's completed.

Christine

Anonymous said...

That's really a great project. I can think of lots of uses for that technique!

~Country Lady~ said...

Super great idea! My precious pooch, Maggie Mae, would love one of these for her hard food. Thanks for the inspiration. Yours looks great!

Melanie said...

Lisa, I have wanted that dog canister since I saw it in the magazine but would never spend that much on it. I was in Target and they had a big can with a lid in the dogfood area and I bought it. I love it and it was 1/2 off. It has ridges all the way around it so I can' add words to it but I love it all the same. Good job!

Twice Remembered said...

What a smart idea! Great job!

Unknown said...

Wow, that's amazing and how crazy the amount they are charging! Crazy prices. Love what you've done :)

happy thrifty thrusday and great ideas

Leigh of Tales from Bloggeritaville said...

Hi Sweet Lisa!
Forgive my absense (Ill explain more in a bit-but also been crazy latley. I still LOVE your blog!!)
LOVE this idea!
LOVE.
Love.
Love.
I am so going to do this. I mean, how many cans of popsorn have I thrown away. To many! I couldve had cuteness such as this! No more.
I wanna be like Lisa!
Hey , are you on FB/ Look me up.
Sorry I am so late. As it ended up, we did have a (6 hour) 2AM-8Am stint in the ER with my son. Praise God, all is ok. But,it's taken me some time to recover from being up all night. Alas, I am late in getting around to everyone this week. My apologies.
Sincere thanks for linking up to Tales from Bloggeritville Thrifty Thursday!

HUGS,
Leigh
Tales from Bloggeritaville
www.lbratina.blogspot.com

Leigh of Tales from Bloggeritaville said...

link love in my monday post!

René said...

You are too clever! I love it and have added metal bucket to my thrift store wish list. Thanks for the inspiration!

Dollar Store Crafter said...

LOVE IT !!!