DIY Abstract Gold Leaf Painting

I’m always on the lookout for DIY wall art ideas. Being a former “art kid” who took just about every single art class in high school, I cringe at the thought of paying for art to put on my walls. I was very pleased with my first wall art project for my bedroom and the fact that it didn’t look too handmade (which is, in my mind, not a good thing when it comes to wall art), so I figured I would tackle another. I had seen a few abstract gold leaf paintings around Pinterest and I loved the look of them. Unfortunately I couldn’t find any gold leaf sheets when I made my latest trip to JoAnn’s, but I did find some liquid gold leaf. And, to my surprise, I think it turned out even better than the sheets would have.

This is what I used to have on my wall. The typical, used to be original and trendy, fabric with embroidery hoops hung haphazardly on a wall. I was never quite pleased with the spacing and arrangement, but I didn’t dare put any more holes in the wall to try and remedy it.

It was high time to update. Luckily, Bean is just as into painting as I am (pretty much). She’s such a goofball.

I got her all set up with her painting “smock”, easel, and paints, set up my own easel, and away we went working on our paintings.

Bean got her easel and paint set from Santa for Christmas this year and she has been in love with it ever since! I admit, I was living out a childhood fantasy when I picked it for her Christmas gift, I never had one like this but always wanted one. Bean’s painting turned out pretty abstract-fantastic, don’t you think? Maybe even better than mine!

This is my final product. I’m usually more specific with where I put my brush and what colors I use when I do a painting (I’m more into realistic art pop), so this was challenging for me. Using acrylic paint I started with the darker blue and purple, swiping colors wherever it struck my fancy. Then, knowing the laws of color, I placed the magenta and teal. FYI: red and green make brown, so I avoided putting them directly next to each other as much as I could.

After the entire canvas was covered, I took my gold leaf paint and swiped it in random areas but still flowing with the direction of the brush strokes. Because I loved the look of it so much, I decided to add more gold by loading the paint brush and splattering the canvas. Surprisingly, my kitchen floor wasn’t covered with gold leaf paint in the end. I was aware of how badly it can stain and tried to make sure every drop hit the canvas.

Now I have a rich, colorful painting to look at every morning instead of the tired, old, fabric embroidery hoops. I am in love with how it turned out. Maybe I should do more abstract paintings in the future?