DIY Beach Umbrella Wall Art Mini Lesson

A year or so ago I wasn’t happy with the direction this framed Kmart canvas was going in. I’m not sure if it was because my son had taken a brush to it or because the beach was calling me 🌊 I wanted to recycle and give it (and you) new life as a repurposed holiday memory from Nazare, Portugal (without boring you, my hubby took me to this high vantage point in Nazare to look at the one of the world’s biggest waves but I couldn't help looking in the opposite direction and be drawn to all the brightly coloured umbrellas spotting the beach). 

Now it’s your turn to create your own! It doesn’t have to be umbrellas and it can be any beach aerial you have taken or found on the net. Just change the steps below to suit your image.

Give it a go and shout out if you get stuck! 

If I can do this, you certainly can too.

What you will need

1. A framed canvas from Kmart or equivalent. *Please purchase a framed canvas - not a print - there should be no glass over the artwork. You can usually pick up one on clearance for around $15.00 AUD; https://www.kmart.com.au/category/home-and-living/wall-art/?f.Product%20Type=Framed%20Canvas 

2. A stainless steel palette or painting knife. I skint on many an art supply but this is not one of them! Metal palette knives glide across the canvas and if you forget to wash it after painting (like I ALWAYS do) the paint will come off easily after soaking. The same cannot be said for the plastic versions (as I learnt in this exercise). 

   Those in Australia can pick up a ‘Born Painting Knife’ for $8.00 AUD. I recommend this one with the pointed edge to help shape our waves and umbrellas; https://www.officeworks.com.au/shop/officeworks/p/born-painting-knife-no-8-jaa401214

3. An (interior) paint brush for the base coat to cover the canvas image. But you can use your painting knife here in its place. This will add further texture. https://www.bunnings.com.au/search/products?q=paint+brush&sort=BoostOrder&page=1 

4. A medium sized paintbrush for the umbrella stripes (optional). Something similar to this would be suitable; https://www.officeworks.com.au/shop/officeworks/p/born-round-pony-paintbrush-size-8-jaa401376    

5. Wall spack or wall filler. This can be purchased from Bunnings for $6.50. 1 tub should do the job. https://www.bunnings.com.au/uni-pro-500g-multi-purpose-interior-filler_p1210281 

6. Cheap Acrylic paints in the colours you wish to paint your seascape. These days I’m a bit lazy when it comes to mixing colours as I spend my time mixing and not painting so I buy a lot of my colours premixed in a colour close to what I want. To save money you can always buy your primary colours and mix the traditional way. I also use what I have on hand such as kid’s poster paints or leftover white house paint. 
   Here is a guide to the colours I would start with as a base; 

   • ‘Sand’ from Officeworks for the beach sand; https://www.officeworks.com.au/shop/officeworks/p/born-acrylic-paint-60ml-sand-bo400922 

   • Dark blue for the ocean 

   • Possibly green for some teal in the ocean but again this is just a guide. You can paint your water any colour you like! 

   • Umbrella colours (think brights or a colour scheme that suits your interior decor. Use Pinterest if you get stuck for ideas!) 

   • White to cover the original artwork. This can be old house paint or anything you may have laying around. 

7. A lead pencil or coloured chalk to draw in the outline of the beach and umbrellas (optional). To give you an idea on umbrella size, my smallest was 2.5 cm and my largest 3.5 cm. *Left-handers may want to flip the artwork. 

8. Masking Tape for the wood-look edges.

Yay! You have your supplies. How exciting! Let’s get stuck in and remember there are no wrongs in art + any mistakes can be wiped off with a damp cloth - that’s why we are working on canvas! 

Step 1

Mask the wood-look frame as best you can. Although I found any acrylic / filler that dried on my frame could be wiped or scratched off. 

Step 2 

Paint a rough layer of white paint over the original picture. I like to have a tiny bit of the underlying colour peeping through (especially in the corners and around the edges.) I love using leftover house paint for my backgrounds as it adds extra texture but white acrylic or whatever you can find is fine here. 

Let that dry (the sun or a hairdryer helps speed this up if you are itching to get to the good parts). 

Step 3 (optional)

I always like to draw in a rough outline of what I'm painting so I don't have to keep referring back to my reference picture. 

I use pencil so I can erase it if I make a mistake but coloured chalk is also a good option here.

Step 4

Using a paint brush or palette knife, paint the sand in first so it sits in nicely underneath the waves (you will get in the flow of using the palette knife and if you anything like me - will absolutely love the technique and texture it creates!). I also like to add in a touch of fluro yellow into my sand to give it a little something something.

Let this layer dry (this might be a good time to go to Step 4 and create your ocean-coloured paints). 

Step 5

Mix your wave colours using the white wall filler as a base and add in a little of your coloured acrylic paints. I find it easier to mix 4-5 shades of the different ocean / water colours before painting in the waves. Grab a dollop of filler with your painting knife and mix in a very small amount of blue (here is where you can add a tiny bit of green in if you want a teal-blue ocean). Continue like this, adding more colour each time until you have at least 4 graduations of shades leading up to a dark blue.  

Add your colour into the white filler in small increments as it is easier to add in a little colour than it is to dilute a saturated colour with white.   

Step 6

Where the sand ends, use your (clean) painting knife and the white wall filler to add in a white wash shoreline over the top.

Along with your white filler, mix in a little of the lightest blue colour you have created and apply a little of this in a band next to the white wash  - working your way up the canvas gradually adding the darker colours as you go. Continue like this until you reach the top corner with your darkest blue. You might find you want to go over a section but remember the ocean isn’t a perfect graduation in colour and neither was my final artwork! 

So we don’t smudge the paint, let that dry before moving on to your umbrellas. 

Step 7

In the same way you mixed your ocean blues, mix your umbrella colours. You will only need a small amount of filler and paint here as your umbrellas will be relatively small.

Step 8 

Add the umbrellas in! I find it easiest to make a circle shape with your palette knife first and then go along and add the umbrella sections after - sweeping the palette knife from the outside of the umbrella into the middle to make a point for the tip of the umbrella. Again, use a damp cloth if you need to wipe your umbrella off and try again. Alternatively you could always create these on paper and once dry, cut and glue them to the artwork. Otherwise let the your painting knife umbrellas dry before moving onto Step 9. 

Step 9

Add in any umbrella stripes or dual tones. This was the most difficult part for me so I would proceed with caution or try using your medium sized paintbrush on a dry umbrella to create the striped sections. 

Step 10

Be sure to pat yourself on the back and sign and hang your beautiful piece. Also, please send me a pic! I would love to see what you have created!!!  

Let me know if you give it a go and give us a shout if you have any questions at all! Or if you don’t get around to it - let me know why… I truly believe the world would be a better place if more people created art and I would love to help you find your practise along with filling those boring blank walls at home. 

Guess what guys - this original of mine is up for sale. You can find it in my ‘shop’. 

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