Giving outdoor decor new life with spray paint!

Hello all! The temps are starting to cool down and it’s the perfect time to work outside! You may not think of fall as a big “fix up” time of year, but it’s one of my favorite times to address outdoor projects. 

No humidity and temps in the 60’s are ideal outside working weather for me! Fall is a great time to plant bushes and trees — they don’t stress as much in the cooler temps and it’s a lot easier to keep them hydrated. 

It’s also my favorite time (well, other than spring) to spray paint all the things! I’ve been working with Krylon to share some fun spray paint projects (see how I sprayed our kitchen hardware here!) and this time I’m showing you how to give some exterior items new life. 

Years ago I shared how I spray painted our outdoor coach lights on the garage…they held up beautifully for seven years (till we moved), even in the elements! 

We got these wood and metal outdoor lanterns last fall and they were already looking pretty sad: 

I knew a coat of spray paint would fix them right up! 

I gave them a good cleaning (just with a wet rag) and let it dry. Then I grabbed the Krylon Fusion All-in-One spray paint in oil rubbed bronze: 

This paint goes on like butter! So easy, so fast. Look at the difference with just two quick coats: 

I even took the latch hardware off since it was standing out after the top was painted. I used foam blocks for the screws and laid the rest on a box: 

They look so much better!:

I painted these in August — they still look perfect! And they are out exposed to the sun, heat and rain every day. Next year I’ll sand the wood down a bit and give that a refresh too.

The best part about tackling these projects in the fall is they will be completely refreshed when we pull them back out in the spring. 

My next victims were our two hose holders. I bought these when we moved in and they looked awful: 

They were a dark metallic brown color when we bought them. They function great and are in good shape, so I knew spray paint would give them new life. 

I use these instead of the hanging versions because I don’t want to put holes in our stone. Have you ever drilled into stone? It’s super fun. 😉

Anyway, I gave these a good wash first — this dark tone is how they looked originally: 

I used a cardboard box (that my sister left…no babies here!) to prop up the holders: 

I always share three recommendations when spray painting — one is cleaning the item well, another is using numerous light coats instead of heavy ones. This will give you a perfect finish (no drips!) and your item will dry super fast!

The third is to let it cure well before using — I left these out for a few days (they even got a day of rain) before I put the hoses back in. Look at that beautiful finish!: 

I didn’t focus on the inside as much as the out, but even that looks SO much better!: 

I used one can of the Krylon Fusion paint for both projects — not bad for a completely new look! 

By the way, it’s about time disconnect your hoses from the bibs! Don’t leave them connected over the winter if you get freezing temps (it could be a recipe for water disaster inside the house):