Crafts, Decorating, DIY, DIY Decor, My Home

Thrift Store Transformation Tuesday – DIY Vintage Crock

Hello, friends! I’m excited to be sharing my latest DIY craft project – a DIY vintage crock. For months I’ve been hunting for a true vintage crock to use in my decor, but I haven’t been able to find one. When I spotted a terra-cotta container at the thrift store I knew that I could give it a quick and easy makeover to transform it!

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I’m joining up with some fellow bloggers for this Thrift Store Transformation Tuesday! Be sure to read through to the end of the post to check out their thrift store transformations!

While at my favorite local thrift store last month I found this simple terra-cotta pot. It looks like it is possibly meant to hold a bottle of wine, but I thought it could be turned into something totally different!

I’ve loved the look of vintage crocks for a long time, but I’ve never found one in my thrifting outings. I have found some online, but they were super expensive and not in my budget. While looking at the terra-cotta pot in the thrift store I had the idea of painting it!

I found some paint at Hobby Lobby to transform my pot and give it the look of a vintage crock. For only a few dollars I had all the supplies I needed to get started!

Materials Needed:

Terra-cotta pot
Paintbrushes
White glossy paint
Paint ( I used this paint in the color French Blue )
Home printer

How to make a vintage style crock:

First I gave the terra-cotta pot 4 coats of white glossy paint. This paint did not have great coverage, so I would recommend multiple coats. Another option would be to give it a coat with a thicker chalk-based paint as a base coat, and then add a couple coats of the glossy paint.

After the paint had dried, I googled a photo of a vintage crock to find the graphic I wanted for the front. I measured the size of the area the graphic would fill (for me it was 2 inches by 2 inches) and then scaled the photo in photoshop to fit that size. Then I printed it out and started my easy transfer method. (NOTE: I added the graphic to the back side of the pot, so the grapes do not show)

I shaded the back of the paper using pencil, and then I turned the paper over and taped it down to the pot. Then I traced the graphic with my pencil to transfer the pencil outline to the surface. When I lifted up the paper I had my outline!

Next I took my light blue paint and carefully painted over my pencil lines using a small artist’s paintbrush. After the paint was dry added one more light coat of the glossy white paint to make the design look more faded and vintage.

That’s it! It was super fast and easy, and totally looks like a vintage crock that you’d find in an antique store. I’m loving how it looks on my buffet in my dining room!