How to Get the Barnwood Look for Less

This post is sponsored by Plaid Crafts, all thoughts, words, and opinions are my own.

Wow, you guys, I finally get to show you my FAVORITE product from my visit to Plaid Craft’s Headquarters in March. This new FolkArt Painted Finishes product will ROCK YOUR WORLD!! Let me just tell you. So barnwood anything is really in these days and people pay GOOD money for that farmhouse look. What if you could do it yourself at home with the new FolkArt Painted Finishes ? Today I’ll show you how to get the barnwood look for less when I made this DIY Mossy Barnwood Chest! All of it was made with Painted Finishes from FolkArt, which I know you will love.

FolkArt Painted Finishes come in a variety of finishes including Concrete, Rust, Moss, and Barnwood. For this project I used the FolkArt Painted Finish in Moss and Barnwood. The moss finish is a very easy to dab on formula that gives the illusion of real moss. It comes in two colors for depth and variety and can be used on a variety of surfaces like wood, metal, plastic, and terra cotta.

The Barnwood Finish is an easy to brush on formula that gives the illusion of aged barn wood. It comes in two colors: Barnwood Tint and Barnwood Wax and is used to give wood that aged, worn, rustic look.

I also used the FolkArt Shortie Brushes for this project to get the great texture that the Painted Finishes provide that gives it that amazingly realistic look!!

So now that you know about my new FAVORITE craft product on the market…. let’s see how I did my DIY Mossy Barnwood Chest and why I did it!

My son is one of those little boys that brings home everything he sees and fills his pockets with “treasures” to show us later–at any given time I may have a cup full of dirt, a handful of rocks, or little lost keepsakes and buttons that he found on the ground. So I thought to myself…why not create a place for him to put his “treasures” so they’re out of my way and he can admire them whenever he wanted without me “accidentally” throwing them out (total accident! I swear! LOL). So that’s what we did!

We took this simple unfinished wooden chest from the craft store and turned it into a mossy barnwood chest in no time at all!!

First, we started by painting it with the FolkArt Painted Finishes in Barnwood. I let my son help me paint it and he really got into it.

The tint goes on really easily and I let it dry before I started with the FolkArt Painted Finishes Barnwood Wax. You apply the same way, using the FolkArt Painted Finishes Brushes, but afterwards you can use a card to give it that barnwood texture. After I used the card to scrape some of it off, I took a paper towel and lightly wiped off the excess to give it a nice rustic look.

You can even take the card and make some lines and dents in the wax a little so it adds character to that barnwood look. See below for steps….

See all that great wood grain and texture!! I just LOOOOVE the barnwood look and it’s so easily obtainable with FolkArt Painted Finishes!!

Next up, I rinsed off my brushes and got started with the Painted Finish in Moss. I tried to picture where moss would grow on a chest and then I used the lighter moss first, followed by the darker moss to give it some depth and dimension. When I used the moss, I just dabbed it onto the chest so that the texture would really show through.

Finally, I added a little bit of the FolkArt Painted Finishes in Rust around the hinges and on the very top of the chest to make it a little weathered looking…which is really fun!

Look at that gorgeous barnwood and all that great texture!

I gotta say, it’s REALLY fun painting items like this and using your imagination. You can get CRAZY and really make it rustic and weathered looking or keep it simple and pretty. And with all the FolkArt Painted Finishes, you really have SO many options to turn things into whatever you want them to be without messing with the hassle of dealing with actual concrete or rust or moss. Who needs that mess?!

My finished chest has so much character and really comes to life and draws the eye to all the different textures and feels. We put it in our credenza in our living room and now our son has a place to put all of life’s little treasures.

If you love the farmhouse, rustic look like I do…you’ve GOT to try out these fun new FolkArt Painted Finishes–you can turn the everyday into something special and I have so many more fun projects planned that I can’t wait to show you guys!!

In the meantime, be sure to check out my other Plaid Crafts posts….

DIY USA Map