Painted Fan Blades – Give your fan blades a faux wood look!

I’ve seen painted fan blades on Pinterest, but I really wanted a look of faux barnwood.  The blades that came with our new fan were not attractive at all!  So, when in doubt, I paint it!

I promise this faux paint treatment isn’t hard at all! So, let’s get started learning how to make your ceiling fan go from boring to fabulous!

I really love Rust-oleum products. They hold up, and dry super fast! I purchased Rust-oleum wood stain in the color “Kona”. You will need one small bottle of acrylic paint in the color light gray and black.

Your first step is to apply the Rust-oleum. (I did not apply a primer.) Use a rag to apply the stain.  Go back and forth until you get the look of wood grain.

If your blades have a dark and a light side, choose the lighter side to apply your wood stain.  You want that lighter color to peek through.

Once your your paint is completely dry, you are ready to apply the gray paint. Use a cheap scruffy brush to apply the paint. You want to apply the paint using a technique called “dry brushing”. The trick to doing this technique is to dip your brush into the paint, and then wipe off as much of the paint as possible.

Go back and forth gently. Keep your brush in a straight line.

Adding Faux Wood Grain to The Painted Fan Blades

The last step is to add the darker wood grain. What makes faux painting look real is having layers of colors that are dark, medium, and light.

The light color is the acrylic gray and the original pine color. The wood stain color is the medium color, and the dark layer will be created using black acrylic paint.

Below is a drawing of how you will want to paint your wood grain.  Use a thin brush to paint your lines and small markings.

On the edge of the fan paint a medium line with the black paint, then take your finger and smudge back and forth to create a worn look on the edges. Once the paint is completely dry, add a coat of poly-acrylic.  What a difference!