How to Turn an Ordinary Paddle Into Vintage Inspired Decor

 A lovely friend (who works at the shop where I teach classes) gave me this beautiful paddle.  Her dad makes them – and does a gorgeous job I might add! The craftsman ship in the paddle is beautiful and is perfect for the cottage.As soon as I saw the paddle, I knew I wanted to give it a vintage feel and use milk paint to achieve it.

Painting the Paddle…

Milk Paint is perfect for raw wood!  It soaks right into the wood and will actually work as a natural stain (think picnic tables, Adirondack chairs, etc… oh the possibilities are endless when using it as a stain!)

To give the paddle the vintage feel I wanted, I used [easyazon_link identifier=”B01GWBLNJW” locale=”US” tag=”recredesig20-20″]Miss Mustard Seed’s Milk Paint in Curio[/easyazon_link] to stain it first.  The Curio gave the wood a nice warm brown colour that looked like it had been used for years in the water.For the pattern on the paddle, I kept picturing what I would see at the beach 50, 60 or even 70 years ago. Vintage paddles and oars, blue and white awnings and umbrellas, and chippy paint on bathing shacks and cabins.  I definitely wanted the paddle to have that feel.

With those things in mind, several areas were taped off in differing widths.  Using [easyazon_link identifier=”B01GWBMYUY” locale=”US” tag=”recredesig20-20″]Miss Mustard Seed’s Milk Paint in French Enamel[/easyazon_link], [easyazon_link identifier=”B01GWBL0FY” locale=”US” tag=”recredesig20-20″]Ironstone[/easyazon_link] and a combination of both, each section was painted.Thin [easyazon_link identifier=”B01GWBM2BA” locale=”US” tag=”recredesig20-20″]Trophy[/easyazon_link] coloured lines were added to define some of the stripes after they were painted, as well as to add the word Lake and the arrow.

For more directions on how to add words and graphics, you can see this post here… The final touch to the paddle recreation was some old hemp twine wrapped around the handle.

Hanging the paddle to add a vintage feel… 

I have always loved the water and being at the lake…. this is no secret 😉  This paddle combines my love of those with all things vintage. I can just imagine it hanging in an old boat house or lodge.It was the perfect addition to the porch on our 60-year-old cottage and certainly looks right at home.Summer is the time to slow down and enjoy the lazy, long, warm days and even though I can’t use the paddle in the water, it will be a great reminder to take time to do something I love.

Those perfect days will be over all too quickly so I want to enjoy them while I can… like my Mom, reading one of our favourite magazines ♥ in my favourite chairs. I hope you find time to do the things you love this summer and reminisce about the past while enjoying the moment.Oh, and even though I used a raw paddle for my project, you could find a vintage paddle or oar and it would work just as beautifully!  If you want to use a vintage one, add some of the [easyazon_link identifier=”B01HYPVLWE” locale=”US” tag=”recredesig20-20″]Miss Mustard Seed Bonding Agent[/easyazon_link]to your paint and it will adhere beautifully to your vintage piece.

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