Look, DIY wall art tutorials have been the only thing keeping me from losing it completely since I moved into this shoebox apartment last fall. The walls were screaming beige landlord special and every time I walked in I felt like I was living inside someone else’s sad beige life. So one random Tuesday night, after too much iced coffee and scrolling Pinterest until my eyes burned, I decided fuck it—I’m making my own wall art even if it looks like garbage.
Spoiler: a lot of it did look like garbage at first.
I’m talking canvases that ended up looking like crime scenes, yarn that knotted itself into divorce-level drama, hot glue burns on three fingers simultaneously. But weirdly… some pieces turned out kinda dope? And that’s the part nobody tells you: the ugly failures are what make the whole thing addictive.
Right now I’m sitting here on my couch in Faridabad heat (yes it’s still somehow January and I’m sweating), fan blasting directly at my face, surrounded by half-dead paint tubes and random cardboard scraps I swore I’d throw away three weeks ago. My place smells like acrylic, burnt glue, and yesterday’s Maggi. Romantic, I know.
The Absolute Basics Before You Start (Learned the Hard Way)
Don’t even think about jumping in without these or you’ll hate yourself in 45 minutes.
- Cheap canvases or literally any flat surface (old pizza boxes work in a pinch, I’m not joking)
- Acrylic paint – the student-grade stuff is fine, I promise
- Brushes of varying sizes (and an old toothbrush for splatter effects when you’re mad)
- Masking tape, scissors, glue gun (pray you don’t burn yourself again)
- Something to protect your floor because you WILL make a mess
I once tried to “just wing it” without taping anything down. Paint ended up on the ceiling somehow. Ceiling. I still don’t know physics allowed that.
Three DIY Wall Art Tutorials I’ve Actually Finished (Mostly)
1. The “I’m Not An Artist But I Have Feelings” Abstract Pour Painting
This is embarrassingly easy and stupidly satisfying.
- Get a canvas, pour random paint colors in lines or blobs (don’t overthink)
- Tilt the canvas like you’re trying to pour soup out of it—watch colors bleed and fight each other
- Maybe add gold metallic if you’re feeling bougie that day
- Cry when it looks better than anything you planned
Mine currently hangs above my TV and every time I see it I remember the night I spilled half a cup of phthalo blue on my favorite hoodie and just… kept going.
2. Cheap String Art That Doesn’t Look Like a Preschool Project
Buy a cheap wooden board or use an old picture frame backing.
Hammer nails in the rough shape of whatever (I did a wonky sun because why not).
Wrap embroidery floss or cheap yarn around the nails in random patterns until it feels full.
Swear a lot when the yarn snags.
My first one is shaped like a lopsided mandala and it’s hanging in the hallway where guests can judge it quietly. I love it anyway.
For better inspo than mine, this site actually helped: https://www.thesprucecrafts.com/string-art-ideas-4163931
3. Magazine Collage But Make It Moody and Slightly Unhinged
Rip up old magazines (or print random aesthetic pics if you’re fancy).
Mod Podge (or watered-down white glue in my broke era) everything down in chaotic layers.
Add doodles, washi tape, coffee stains for “vintage” effect.
Seal it so it doesn’t flake off when you sneeze.
I did one with fashion editorials and random Haryanvi truck art stickers I found in a drawer. It’s weird. It works.
The Ugly Truth About Homemade Wall Art (Mistakes I Keep Making)
- I never wait long enough for layers to dry → everything smears
- I buy way too many supplies “just in case” → now my shelf looks like a craft store had a stroke
- I hang things before the glue is fully set → things fall at 3 a.m. and scare the hell out of me
- I compare my stuff to Pinterest perfection → instant depression
But honestly? The wonky, slightly-off pieces are the ones I stare at longest. They feel like me.
If you want actual good advice instead of my rambling, this place is solid: https://www.momtastic.com/diy/124057-diy-wall-art-ideas/
Final Ramble Before I Go Touch More Wet Paint
DIY wall art tutorials aren’t about having a gallery wall that could be in Architectural Digest. They’re about claiming a tiny bit of space in a world that mostly feels like it belongs to someone else.
My apartment still isn’t “done.” There’s a half-painted canvas leaning against the fridge right now, taunting me. But every time I walk past something I made—even the ugly ones—I remember I’m allowed to make stuff. Messy, imperfect, loud-colored stuff.
So if your walls are depressing you, grab some cheap paint and ruin a Tuesday night. Worst case? You end up with a funny story and paint under your nails for a week.
Best case? You accidentally make something stunning.
Either way, you win.
Now excuse me while I go accidentally glue my fingers together again. Drop your own disasters in the comments—I need solidarity.
