Painting vinyl fabric couldn’t be easier! I love the hidden storage in a sewing stool so today I’m making one over by painting right over the vinyl with Fusion Mineral Paint! Hardly any prep necessary!

International Bloggers Club

In all honesty, this wasn’t the actual project I had planned for today’s International Bloggers Club (IBC) challenge. Our theme this month is Painted FurniFlips. However, we’re in lockdown once again (sigh) and the Midnight Blue fusion paint I really wanted is out of stock. So I rushed through this project just to have something to post :).

You’ll find all our friends’ furniture flip tutorials at the bottom of the post. So don’t forget to check them out before you go. And if you don’t have time to browse today, pop back in later in the week to pick up where you left off.

Paint the Stool, Jack

I’m embellishing the lid of my stool with a Union Jack design – or so I thought, as you’ll see further down. Apologies in advance to anyone of English decent (that includes most of my family)! Up until 1965, the Union Jack served as a flag for Canada until we adopted our own national flag.

For all my tips and tricks, watch the video near the end of this post or continue on to the tutorial below:

Before

Here’s what we started with; a typical sewing stool with dark stain. Hubs went ahead and sanded the one on the right, while I was painting the top. Initially I was going to paint the base too, but changed my mind.

Paint and Tape Supplies

Because you don’t know what will happen when testing new products and designs, it’s a good idea to do a practice run! In this case, a lot can happen! It’s my first time using Fusion Mineral Paint and I have no idea if taping over freshly painted vinyl will end well.

As a precaution, I’m trying out the delicate surface FrogTape shown (below right). The Fusion Mineral Paint colours I’m using are Prairie Sunset, for the base, along with Fort York Red and Algonquin.

Provided that I get the Midnight Blue colour, next time I’m painting vinyl fabric with Fusion Mineral Paint, I will use my regular FrogTape standby (above left)!

Clean Before Painting

The only prep, if you can even call it that, is to clean the surface of the vinyl to remove any dirt or grease. For that I just use soap and water, rinsing well.

Let the vinyl dry. Fusion will paint over vinyl, no problem! However, with the lighter colours, as with any other paint, you’ll need at least two coats.

Avoiding Brush Strokes

The best way to avoid brush strokes is to use a good brush (I’m using a Zibra Grip ‘n Glide). Brush the paint in one continuous motion end to end.

As you can see, after one coat, you can still see the brown peaking through. I wasn’t mindful to stroke end to end on this first coat, so the brush strokes are more noticeable.

I paint a second coat and let it dry overnight. The coverage is great after this coat. However, being more mindful to stroke end-to-end, I can still see the brush strokes. In order to minimize that, Fusion does sell an additive product (Fusion Extender) that provides more open time on the paint to help.

Because only a little of this base colour will show in the end, I’m not too concerned with brush strokes at this point.

Painting Vinyl Fabric – Union Jack

After letting it dry overnight, I was nervous that the paint was still too fresh to tape. So as I mentioned, I’m using specially formulated FrogTape specifically for fresh paint.

As a guide, I made myself a printed template of the Union Jack and use that to lightly mark the horizontal and vertical lines with pencil. Be mindful to mark more toward the sections that will get covered with darker paint (so you don’t have to erase markings on the lighter colour base coat).

Note that the Frogtape is almost 1″ wide, so is wider that what you’d ideally want if you’re aiming for a more authentic proportion Union Jack. I guess you could cut the tape in half along the length. But for this trial, I’m not overly picky. So I do the vertical and horizontal lines first.

After taping, gently lift the tape in the middle and make a cut with curved scissor as shown. Be careful not to drag the scissors along the painted vinyl: lift the tape, then snip. Then fold back toward the centre and completely cut away the middle section so you have a perfect clearing through the cross.

After the middle is cut away, lay down the diagonal lines.

Once again, cut away everything the infringes on the middle of the cross. Sorry about the lack of contrast below, but this particular FrogTape just happens to be a similar colour as the base!

How NOT to Thicken the Diagonal Lines

I got so swept up in the urgency to compete this project in time for the IBC challenge, I forgot to double check the extra tape placement on my Union Jack template before painting! Ooops; my bad.

So, I actually did ok initially but messed up on the second set of diagonal lines. As you can see, the extra tape on the lower right and upper left quadrants is correct. In the remaining quadrants, the tape should go between the black dotted lines. Anyhooo, when thickening the lines with the extra tape, mark 1/2″ first with a ruler and pencil. Then tape (on the correct side of the tape) so there is some overlap.

Maybe this is what the song ‘Hit the Road Jack’ is really all about. A DIY Union Jack gone awry? In any case, my Jack hit the road and didn’t come back no more.

On my template, it’s easier to see how the lines should actually be laid out thicker on opposing quadrants.  At least this is only a practice run. Live and learn!

Tips for Paining Vinyl Fabric

No matter what tape you use, be sure to burnish along all edges to prevent paint bleed. As it turns out, the delicate surface FrogTape does not stick overly well to Fusion Mineral Paint – especially on the curves, likely due to the texture of the vinyl. Despite the challenges, I went ahead with it out of curiosity and the PaintBlock technology did not disappoint!

As an extra precaution, I paint from the centre of the tape inward on the first coat (see the video), hoping to seal the edges for the second coat. This strategy worked well to minimize the bleed. However, I would definitely recommend letting the base coat dry for a full day. Then use the Multi-Surface FrogTape.

Paint the sections in the colours you desire. On colours such as yellow and red, you’ll need at least two coats of paint. I actually went with two coats for all colours. However, on the second coat, I switched over to a foam brush just to compare and was happy with the finish.

Unfortunately I didn’t notice the wrong tape placement until AFTER I painted. But my flub is to your benefit of what not to do – and you still get the idea.

The Verdict on the Tape

Just for fun, I substituted one piece of delicate surface FrogTape for a regular piece of painter’s tape (not FrogTape) so I can show you the difference.

Before removing the tape, I was expecting the worst.

But there’s only slight paint bleed on the delicate surface FrogTape (circled below)! That’s easy enough to touch up with a fine paint brush if you wish. And again, texture is a challenge.

However, the regular green painter’s tape I put on just for fun did not have the crisp, clean lines I want! It has jagged edge paint bleed all the way along. In comparison, look how smooth the other Frogtape edges are! I was blown away.

Our advice? As I mentioned, wait at least 24 hours (don’t be rushed like me) and use multi-surface FrogTape. If you do, you’ll get a flawless finish on your stripe work like I did with this Hudson’s Bay Point Blanket Inspired Upcycle.

Painting Vinyl Fabric Reveal

We showed you how to paint vinyl previously. However, that flexible coating was noxious to use! Fusion Mineral Paint is just as flexible on vinyl and guest what? There’s absolutely no VOCs! I’m like the canary in the coal mine, and breathing easy is paramount, so I can’t recommend this product highly enough (this isn’t a sponsored post, so you can trust me on that)!

You know what else is great about Fusion Mineral paint for paining vinyl fabric? As well as the great colour choices, it can be sprayed for a flawless finish. Not a brush stroke in sight. That’s what we’ll be showing you next time we’re painting vinyl fabric.

Although I missed the mark on the Union Jack, and the multi-surface FrogTape would be a better choice on top of Fusion Mineral Paint, the end result is still quite striking. Not too bad for a last minute scramble.

Watch the Video

Pin Painting Vinyl Fabric

Pinning is always welcome and appreciated.

International Bloggers Club – Painted FurniFlips

Maybe I inadvertently painted someone’s else’s flag, eh? But now onto the rest of the uber-talents participating in the IBC challenge this month. Check out these awesome painted furniture upcycle ideas:

1. What Meegan Makes
2. A Crafty Mix
3. Interior Frugalista
4. Unique Creations By Anita
5. Birdz of a Feather (that’s us!)