Do you collect metal garden art to have on display in your flower beds? Like me, do you have some that have seen their better days?

Instead of replacing them, I'm sharing how to upcycle tattered metal garden art animals in a playful whimsical style. It's a fun garden craft to enjoy outdoors and even the kids can get in on the fun.

Upcycled Metal Garden Art Animals

The inspiration for breathing new life into my tattered yard art animals was this ceramic vintage camper flower pot. My daughter and I spent a lovely afternoon at a ceramics studio for some Mother/Daughter creative time.

She painted an adorable hedgehog flower pot while I painted this bright and whimsical vintage trailer flower pot for our deck.

Let's take a look at what my tattered bronze garden art animals looked like before their makeover. I've had them in the flower beds for over twenty years.

Purchased at Giant Tiger, a discount Canadian retail chain for $10 each and they've done fairly well in the elements. This is the metal hound dog with his springy tail and in dire need of a makeover.

Here is the metal dog art after the whimsical makeover and no longer does he look lost amongst the garden foliage.

Here's the stray metal cat yard art looking a little worse for wear from the outdoor elements.

And now he has loads of personality and whimsical charm.

Before we get into the nitty-gritty of how to upcycle the metal yard art, almost all of the DIY projects shared here at Interior Frugalista have step-by-step tutorials so why not get your budget DIY on and subscribe. You can also follow us on Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.

Here's What You'll Need

You only need a few supplies to breathe new life into your metal garden art and you may already have everything you need on hand. The possibilities for color and stencil choices are endless.

This post contains affiliate links so you can see what products I used or recommend for this project. As an Amazon Associate, I earn a small commission from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.

Supply List

• Metal Animal Statues (alternatives)
• Colonial Red Spray Paint
• Satin Clear Coat Spray (rated for outdoors)
• Satin Acrylic Craft Paint (Light Yellow, Pool Blue, Seafoam Green)
• Stencil Brush
• Small Art Brushes
• Pencil Eraser Tip (for polka dots)
• Self-adhesive Reusable Floral Stencil (alternative)

Here's How I Did It

This is DIY project eight of our budget-friendly deck makeover series. After the makeover, my whimsical animal garden art was looking too cute to put back in the fern grotto.

Instead, I moved them onto the deck to display in front of our Upcycled Louvered Door Deck Privacy Screen. Our grandkids love the colorful animal art!

Metal Animal Garden Art Makeover

We'll start the metal animal garden art makeover with how to freshen the old finish with the main paint color.

Step 1 - Spray Paint Metal Garden Art

First, decide on the main paint color. Red is my favorite color so no surprise that's the color I chose for my metal hound dog and kitty cat. I gave them both two coats of Colonial Red Rustoleum Ultra Cover Paint & Primer spray paint.

You could stop here with just one paint color but I had to do something more with those cute bulging eyes. One eye led to another and the next thing you know we had flowers and polka dots.

Step 2 - For The Love Of Polka Dots

Next, I used the same seafoam green paint leftover from the DIY Birdhouse Sign and added fun polka dots with the tip of a retractable pencil on the dog's droopy ears, the kitty's hind legs, and back of the head.

On the dog's hind legs I added some retro flower power with a floral stencil that I had on hand. The options for how you embellish your garden art are endless. I decided to paint the eyes, springs, and the cat's nose this color too.

Step 3 - Yellow Accents

I painted the cat's whiskers and around the eyes of both animals in light yellow. While I had the paint jar open I painted the tips of the tails yellow too.

Step 4 - A Pop Of Turquoise

For a bright pop of color, I painted the paws, cat's ears, and dog's nose a bright turquoise Pool Blue color.

Step 5 - Protecting The Painted Animal Art

Once the paint was completely dry I applied to coats of exterior Rustoleum Satin Spray Clear Coat.

The metal cat and dog yard art were looking a little lonely so I repurposed a cupcake stand into whimsical yard art flowers in bright colors too. I also added whimsical tin can windchimes to the mix too!

Thanks for stopping by the Interior Frugalista today! I hope you were inspired by how with just a little paint you can salvage and breathe new life into tattered and weathered metal garden art rather than it ending up in the landfill.

If you have any questions, please leave them in the comment section below or the Contact Me tab at the top to drop me an email. I love hearing from you!

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