Use toy figures to make candy jars and bookends

Use plastic animal figurines to make fun and easy projects for your home.
Here’s two ways to decorate with animal figurines.

Resene upcycling for good with Sarah Herring - Project 38

Finished project

You will need: Small detail brushes, testpot brushes, clear-dry extra strong glue, hand saw to cut timber (or ask someone to do this for you), sandpaper, Resene Quick Dry primer undercoat, Resene testpots – Sarah used Resene Echo Blue, Resene Half Pale Rose and Resene Reservoir (project 1) and Resene Colour Me Pink and Resene Green Pea (project 2).

Before

Finished project

Project one – Candy jars

Step one
Choose three small animal figurines and three small glass jars with lids. Wash and dry the plastic figurines to make sure they are clean and ready for painting. If your jars are also second hand, then give them a thorough wash and clean too. Carefully apply super strong glue to the feet of the animal figurines and place them on the lids of the jars. Leave to dry completely.

Step two
Once the figurines are glued on to the lids, apply three different paint colours using a very small detail brush, covering the entire animal figurine and the whole lid. Apply two coats, waiting for each one to dry in between. Sarah chose Resene Echo Blue, Resene Half Pale Rose and Reservoir to achieve pastel tones on the jars.

Step three
Fill the jars with candy (or buttons, coins, etc) and reattach the lids. These make great party favours or small gifts, simply add a decorative ribbon or name tag.

Project two – Bookends

Step one
Choose four large animal figurines. Sarah chose dinosaurs. Wash and dry the plastic figurines to make sure they are clean and ready for painting. Measure, cut and sand four pieces of scrap timber to fit the figurines.

Step two
Assemble the timber pieces into the two ‘L’ shapes you need for bookends. Use strong clear drying PVA glue to hold the pieces together. Wait until the glue has dried completely.

Step three
Apply a coat of Resene Quick Dry primer undercoat to both the timber bookends, and the figurines.

Step four
Paint your first bookend and two figurines in the colour of your choice. Sarah chose Resene Colour Me Pink. Apply two coats of colour. Repeat with your second bookend and remaining two figurines. Sarah chose Resene Green Pea. Wait until dry.

Step five
Carefully apply super strong glue to the feet/tails of the dinosaur figurines and glue them onto the bookends. Leave to dry completely. Once the glue is dry you can touch up any missed areas of paint with a detail brush. Pop them into your kid’s bedroom (or home office!) to add a pop of fun, bright colour to the bookshelf.

Top tip:
For extra bling use Resene FX Metallic for the bookends. Or try combining multiple colours for a more colourful effect.

Upcycling for Good

You can find a huge range of treasures, from ornaments and picture frames, to furniture and toys at your local Salvation Army store that you can easily upcycle with a little Resene paint and some imagination.

"Our Family Stores are full of treasures generously donated by members of the public. We value these donations and try our hardest to re-purpose and sell as much as possible. We’re all about re-using and recycling, so teaming up with Resene on Upcycling for Good was a perfect match. Resene’s products and tips are a natural fit with our pre-loved furniture and accessories, which are usually great quality but could sometimes do with a lick of paint to ensure they fly off the shelves.

Each year, nationally, our stores save 16,000 tonnes from landfill. This initiative increases the value of the donated product, improves the range of goods for our customers, and furthers The Salvation Army’s mission and Resene’s community activity.” Gareth Marshall, The Salvation Army's National Family Store Manager.

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Resene Paints Ltd – www.resene.com