When some friends approached me about helping decorate their wedding, my mind almost immediately went to a painted globe guestbook. They both love traveling and actually met while on a mission trip. It turns out the bride also wanted a painted globe guestbook! I’ve seen them all over Pinterest and Etsy, so I was dying to get my DIY hands on a globe and start painting. Their wedding was the perfect opportunity to try this DIY. The bride had a globe already which solved the problem of hunting one down, but if you need one check local thrift stores. Antique stores will likely have options too, but I find those to usually be priced higher because of age. All this globe needed was a custom paint job.
Disclosure: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase.
The stand was already an antique gold, so it didn’t require any painting. I started painting the white first. I did my best to paint around the land and only paint the water white, but I may have lost some islands. Haha! The white took several coats because I didn’t want any of the globe to bleed through. All the paint used is chalk paint from Walmart made by the Plaid company. You can buy different sizes, and it goes a long way. It’s probably my favorite paint for projects like this one.
Once the coats of white were dry, I mixed a custom color for the land. Black, white, and light blue gave me a bluish-gray color that went well with the wedding colors. It took fewer coats of this color to cover, and after it dried, I was able to sketch their name and wedding date.
There are many different ways you can add the lettering if you aren’t confident in your hand-lettering. Mine isn’t perfect, but using a pencil allowed me to sketch out their names and fix any mess-ups before I started painting. After I was happy with the sketching in the Pacific Ocean, I started painting the lettering in navy acrylic paint (I used acrylic for this because it’s what I had on hand).
The final element the bride wanted to add were florals. I did these free hand and used complimentary colors to match the wedding.
The globe was set up at the reception with gold Sharpie pens and a small sign. The sign was printed from my home computer, trimmed, and put into a gold frame from Hobby Lobby. I love how the globe looked with all the notes and signatures at the end of the night.
If you are attempting this DIY don’t underestimate the time it will take. I always underestimate the time it will take me to do something. HAHA! The coats of paint and the careful strokes to get the landmasses will take time, but the finished product is worth it!
Here are some more clever ideas for painted globes. I’d love to know if you try this DIY. Tag me on social media @annakateturner.
