Welcome to Art Club!
It’s been a few years since we built this cubby house, and after months of rain let’s just say it’s looking a little worse for wear and is totally ready for a glow up! I’ve been trying to work out what to do with this space to make it more about active play and creativity (rather than just endless games of playing shops) and I realised…. I need to make it an ART STUDIO! Both my daughters love art and painting so much, we often take over the veranda to do it but having a dedicated space that can get messy and where they can make as much art as they like… magic! Here’s how I did it.
Step 1: Cleaning It Up
Before I could get creative, the cubby needed a major clean up. After years of weather exposure and so much recent rain, it had honestly aged in dog years, it was so dirty! And let’s just say, a few spiders had made themselves at home! I was definitely not prepared for how intense the cleaning would be, but it was a must. I put on a hazmat-style paint suit and got to work. I used my high pressure washer and leaf blower to clean it and and it worked so well.
Step 2: Giving It a Fresh Coat of Paint
Once the cubby was cleaned up, I couldn’t wait to add some color, I also knew paint would make it so much more crisp looking. I decided on a light pink for the walls and chose ‘Pink Vision’ from British Paints and I used my Bosch AdvanceSpray paint spray gun, which was amazing! It made the process so much faster, and because it doesn’t have tubing, it’s really easy to clean up after. But the pink paint was just the beginning, because I knew I wanted to make this art studio extra special.
If you’re interested in this spray gun, check it out here.
Step 3: Adding A Flower Mural
The cubby was looking great with the new coat of paint, but I wanted to make it even more exciting for Frankie and Bobbie! I was scrolling through Pinterest when I saw some beautiful floral murals that inspired me. But a warning: this turned out to be so much harder to do than I expected! First I made some templates of flowers in the rough size I wanted them, and then I traced them onto the outside of the cubby in pencil. I then took some small brushes and painted all the flowers on, starting with the base of the flower and then doing the leaves and finally the extra details on the flower. It took so long but was so relaxing to do. I ended up painting over parts of it so many times to get it right! These are the colourd I used for the flowers, all from British Paints:
- Red splendour
- Glazed ruby
- Yellow mania
- Apricot lace
- Garden centre
- Mossy road
- Brunswick green
- River Star
- Sweet Caress
Step 4: Adding the Sign
Frankie did a little sketch of the studio and dubbed it the ‘art club’, so of course, I had to make a little sign for the outside! I first cut a piece of timber and painted it green, then I *thought* I would be able to use a paint pen to hand write the lettering, but it looked so bad so I painted over it. I ended up designing it on Cricut and cutting out a stencil using vinyl, then I sketched around the stencil and hand painted it. It was labourious but so worth it!
Voila!
I was so happy to finally share this space with the girls – Frankie and Bobbie absolutely love their new art studio, and it’s the perfect space for them to get as creative and messy as they want. Oh, and to keep the spiders from returning, I’ll treat the cubby with a peppermint and vinegar solution every so often. It’s a simple and natural way to keep the space fresh and spider-free. So many of you guys recommended this so I am going to do it!
