Upcycle Your Old Vases with This DIY Faux “Terracotta” Hack

As a commuter living at home, I’m always looking for ways to update my bedroom to reflect my personality — especially as I grow into adulthood. But also, as a college student on a budget, I need these updates to be budget-friendly, which is why I love finding inexpensive crafts that double as decor. 

Recently, I’ve been very into the idea of having a cute and stylish terracotta vase, but these vases can be expensive (even this small one from Target is $30), and it’s just not in my budget to buy one brand-new. However, during a recent scroll through my Pinterest feed, I found a DIY terracotta-style painted vase tutorial from creator Diane D. Waller that seemed affordable and looked easy to make, and I instantly knew I’d found my next project.

In her video, Waller first showed herself shopping for inexpensive vases of various sizes at a dollar store in her area. Then, she mixed a cream-colored paint with baking powder (which I later learned can be substituted with baking soda — more on that below) to create a textured, terracotta-esque look. Then she covered her vases with paint, let them dry, and voila! A spot-on dupe for the terracotta style I love. 

I was instantly drawn to the idea of creating an elevated look for such a small amount of money, so I tried it out for myself. Here’s how it went.

• Vase: I got a 7-inch by 5-inch one at Goodwill for 99 cents!
• Water-based paint of choice: I used acrylic.
• Baking soda or baking powder: I used soda.
• Paintbrush: I used a large one to make the paint job faster.
• Bowl for mixing: I used a medium-sized bowl I already owned. You can use whatever bowl you have on-hand; just be sure to wash it soon after use so you’re not stuck scrubbing off dried-on paint.
• A cup of water to clean your paintbrush: I used room-temp tap water, but the temperature doesn’t really matter.

As any project involving paint is pretty much guaranteed to be messy, I like to lay down old newspapers or parchment paper before getting started, to protect whatever surface I’m working on from errant paint drips or spills. I also ran my vase through the dishwasher to make sure it was clean, and then dried it off with a dish towel to ensure it was totally dry and ready for paint.

In her video, Waller used paint and baking powder for her paint mixture; however, I did some research and learned you can also use baking soda for a similar effect, and that’s what I had on hand, so that’s what I used instead. The video didn’t specify what ratio to use for this mixture, so I eyeballed it, aiming for about two parts paint to one part baking soda. Then I mixed it up until combined; it looked like a slightly grainier version of normal paint. If the texture is not to your liking, I recommend adding more of either ingredient until you find your preferred ratio.

Using my paintbrush, I covered the vase with one coat of paint. Once it was dry, I touched up a few spots where the paint seemed a little thin, but I didn’t need to do a full second coat. It’s totally up to you how many coats you want to add to your vase.

Once fully dry, my upcycled vase was ready to put on display! I put some cute dried florals in it, then set it up on my TV stand in my room. I can’t wait to swap in seasonal florals, foliage, and other decor in the coming months.

This DIY project was really easy, with simple steps that allowed me to relax as I crafted. I also love that I saved so much money doing this project at home, rather than going out and finding a vase in a store. If you keep kitchen staples like baking soda or powder and art supplies like paint and paintbrushes on hand, you can likely pull this craft off for free — and even if you had to buy everything on the supply list, you’d likely only have to spend around $5 to $10, compared to the $30 if you bought a similar-sized version. Plus, this DIY brought me the satisfaction of creating my own decor piece that I can be proud of whenever I look at it!