Create a Wall Hanging With Antique Ceiling Tin
82Using Architectural Salvage as Home Decor - A Sustainable Practice
Salvaged material can be made into attractive decor for the home, giving a vintage look or adding a unique touch to your home design. It's fun to create art projects with recycled items. I'll show you how to make an attractive wall hanging out of salvaged ceiling tin with step by step instructions. (Shown below)
I picked up a piece of antique ceiling tin at an architectural salvage yard, not sure of what to do with it. I thought maybe I'd mount it behind the stove, but could not get it to fit.
Then, I saw several wall hangings made out of old tin ceiling panels for sale at a local art festival and decided to give it a try. It was really quite easy to do and a lot of fun.
The first order of the day was to strip off the old paint, which was peeling off anyway. Since it was probably lead based paint, I tried to be careful. I used a stripping liquid, steel wool, and a metal brush. This was done outdoors in winter. I spread a large piece of heavy plastic on the ground and wore gloves, a mask, and safety glasses.
Tin Ceiling Wall Hanging
Tin Ceiling Wall Hanging - Equipment Needed
Here are some of the things that I used to complete the project, after I finished stripping off the old paint:
- Tin snips
- Wood for framing (1" x 2")
- A vise
- C Clamps
- Rubber mallet
- Electric drill and titanium drill bit (to go through metal)
- Screws
- Heavy duty staple gun and staples
- Metal primer spray paint (white)
- Acrylic paint ( a good quality paint will give richer colors)
- Acrylic clear coat paint spray
Clamp tin between 2 boards, then between C clamps, then clamp in vise
How To Make Tin Ceiling Wall Hanging
- Cut the ceiling tin to the size you want with tin snips - it's quite easy!
- Measure the edges of the tin
- Cut 2 pieces of wood for the long edges and 2 for the short if you are making a rectangle, or 4 even pieces if you are making a square. Cut the frame pieces a bit smaller than you cut the metal. You will want to fold the metal over the frame.
- Clamp the edge of the tin between 2 pieces of wood with the C Clamps, with one piece of wood turned on its side - the side that will be the outer edge of the frame
- Then clamp the whole thing in a vise
Bend the tin forward
- Bend the tin forward over the wood frame
- Hammer the edges with a rubber mallet
- After you've bent the tin, repeat with all 4 sides, checking to make sure that the tin fits over the frame.
Squash the edges
Press frame into box you made with the tin
Put the tin in the vise and press the edges real tight as shown in picture on the right. Make sure you press the corners down tightly so that it will look neat.
Press the frame pieces into the shallow box that you have made with the tin.
The frame does not have to support the tin, per se, so it does not have to be cut at an angle. This is a frame even a dummy can make. Of course, if you are good at this sort of thing, you can do it the right way. But that's not me!
Staple the wood pieces together. You can use a bit of wood glue first.
Screw the tin onto the frame
- Set the framed ceiling tin in a vise
- With the electric drill, predrill screw holes in the tin but do not go all the way into the wood (the screw holes should be a tad smaller than the screws)
- Screw the screws into the holes with the electric drill
- Squash all along the edges with the vise, it really neatens it up!
Use Primer Paint for a First Coat
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Painting the Tin Ceiling Wall Hanging
Paint with a metal primer. I used Krylon metal outdoor spray paint.
After you have decided on the colors you want to use, just let the creatives juices flow. Of course, you can make the wall hanging one color, but I wanted to use 3 - brown, teal, and copper.
I am sorry that I can't tell you exactly how to do this properly, but if you look at the pictures, you can see how I did it. This is where the creativity comes in.
For a multicolored tin ceiling wall hanging, you should build up the layers. Go over each layer several times, but not exactly. I was going for a smeary look that I thought would add some character.
It may be a good idea to use a piece of scrap tin for practice to help you get a good idea of what you want it to look like. Or, just let it happen! Wheee!
Painting the Ceiling Tile Wall Hanging
Paint the First Layer
Paint over each layer for a richer color.
First I smeared some brown paint unevenly on top of the white primer.
I used a rag to apply the paint for a smudgy look
Next Add Some Blue
After allowing the brown to dry, I applied some of the blue in the areas that were still white.
Remember that acrylic paint dries very quickly. If you opt for an oil paint, you will have to wait longer for the paint to dry
The Brown and the Blue
Here is another section of the tin with the blue and brown. I did not want all the sections to look the same.
This picture shows the ceiling tin after several layers of blue and brown paint were applied.
Some of the paint was overlapped and some was ragged off while still wet to get a real funky look
Tin Ceiling With Copper
Highlight With Copper
After I was satisfied with the brown and blue, I added some metalic copper paint.
Layer the copper paint for a richer look
Of course, there is no right or wrong way of doing this - just have fun.
I wanted to make sure that I got it the way that I liked it. I sure didn't want to sand it down again.
Tin Ceiling Tile Wall Hanging With Copper Highlights
Acrylic Paint - Metalic Copper
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Thank you, Richard. Actually I am quite the copy cat as I saw some similar ones and looked them over, haha. When I see something that I like, I love to try to make it myself.
Wow! This is gorgeous. Eye candy!
Thank you, Sally!
Right now my time is spent learning how to oil paint, however this idea of yours could be next. Thanks Dolores.
Dolores!!! You're a genius!! I'm enthralled with this project!! I do love antique tin ceilings, but have never run across any salvage samples. I had in mind to tool some tin as a backdrop for the back of the furnace which served as a solid back wall of a towel closet in the little cabin George & I built at the ranch. But this is so glorious!! Your talents are unlimited!! Thanks for sharing this!!
One man's trash is anothers art. Great ideas. Thanks for sharing.
Dolores , your hub Salvage Art - How to Create a Wall Hanging With Antique Ceiling Tile is a great ideea.
What a woman! You remind me of the Manhattan decorator/designer, Muriel Brandolini. These are gorgeous, CREATIVE art pieces. I wish we had a garage, though.:)
Holy tile, Batman - what a wonderful work of art - and the pictures are excellent! Great hub on a neat way to decorate using something interesting.
This is really awesome I love the old antique feel and the even better feeling of recycling. Salvage are sounds like a great new hobby for us art types. Peace :)
Great idea! I love stuff like this!
melani - I tried oil painting and it wasn't pretty. I just made a big mess - must take class. Thank you!
Nellie - thank you! Old tin ceiling tile is available at a Restore near you. Also, you can do something like this with new tin ceiling panels too!
dallas - thank you! (I love trash!)
Ted - glad you liked it!
Tracy - thank you so much! Who needs a garage? You can keep junk anywhere, haha. Just ask my next door neighbor!
Audrey - thank you! It's actually pretty easy. I am not so good with tools and such, so if I can do it, anyone can!
katie - you can do so much with salvage! I love the idea of recycling old junk. Heck, I love the old stuff as is!
Hi, Habee - thanks so much!
What I like about your hubs Dolores is the easy to follow instructions
I've never heard of a Restore near me or anywhere. Guess I need to broaden my horizons! I do have Home Depot & Lowe's within my beat, though and they surely have the new version of the tin ceiling tiles. But I'd prefer the authentic stuff. It wouldn't be as much fun using new forms, I'm thinking... Maybe I should just go upstairs to my easel and do some watercolours! LOL That's been long neglected!!
ethel - thank you. I have a problem with directions myself so add pictures to help. I appreciate that you told me my own directions make sense. Sometimes it's hard to tell when you already know.
Nellie - there is a link above to Restore. They are affiliated with Habitat for Humanity. Glad to hear that you are hitting the watercolors. Your paintings are lovely, original, stylish, and charming!
You are a remarkable woman, so many things you can do! I love the old things myself, some have said there is nothing in my house that I can't tell a story about, and they are pretty much right. Anyway, I'm impressed with your range of talents, and you did a very good job of showing us how to approach and 'do' this project.
Great idea and easy to follow instructions! I am now on the lookout for old tin!
interesting hub thanks for sharing Your article writing style is very nice so keep it
Thank you so much, K, you are so kind! It's wonderful to have a home full of things that actually mean something to you - it just makes living so much richer.
Shawn - I appreciate your comment. Old tin is pretty easy to find. But you can make something like this with new tin as well!
Thank you, king!
Thank you, king!
Really cool idea !!!
Thank you, carolina! It was a lot of fun and looks great on my bathroom wall.
Dolores,
a woman after my own heart..I love finding neat "stuff" and reuse it to create something new and different. You provided some very detailed step by step, I need to start documenting my projects. Thanks for the great idea!
I really do like tin ceiling tiles and would be happy to have them and use them anywhere. Thanks so much for an informative hub. Only a true artist would see artistry in everything.
Great hub!
enjoy reading your writing - great work
Beautiful wall hanging. Something similar could also be made with the paper molded paper ceiling tiles, for those of us that are not good with metal.
Absolutely stunning! I LOVE the colors and you did an awesome job. Thanks for sharing your renovated art piece!
Thumbs way up.
This looks amazing! I'm all about recycled decorating materials.
Wow, you really provide a great deal of info on this process. They look great, especially with the copper. Thanks for this Hub.
Puppies - thank you! I find that documenting projects is so useful. Plus, it comes in handy here at HP!
BK - thank you for the lovely comment! You are so kind!
net - thank you!
susan - believe me, I am no metal worker and pretty much a sloppy craftsperson. If I can do it, anybody can. Old ceiling tile is very easy to work with! Thank you!
Dorsi- thank you! It sure was a fun project. I've got another piece of ceiling tile waiting in the basement!
cj- thank you! Working with old materials is a lot of fun, and gets the old creativity going!
MK - I've been dying to play around with metalic copper paint, so this worked out real well. Thank you!
Beautiful! This is a perfect project for me to highlight on my green blog, "Peachy Green." I'm thinking about writing a post and linking to this hub. Upcycling salvage materials to create art is wonderful! Thumbs up!
steph - wow, thanks, I would so appreciate that and look forward to checking out your blog. I started a blog myself but have not really worked on it nearly enough.
What a great idea and beautiful application. You are an artist! My ceilings are way too high for this and contemporary, but I love the creativity involved in the process and thought... cemetery rubbings! I could actually create a bit of artwork by imitating that old process with these tiles. You did a great job combining photos and text. Thumbs up!
Story - I love the old ceiling tiles too, that's why I created the wall hanging. I love the idea of rubbings! That sounds like an interesting project! Thanks for the comment!
Great ideas indeed! Yo0ur hangings are quite beautiful. I love pressed steel ceilings and this is a wonderful way to get me life out of them.
Love and peace
Tony
Hi, Tony. Thank you very much! I love to go into older buildings that still have the old tin ceilings and using just a piece gives me a bit of that old fashioned charm. Well not me, but my house, haha.
Very artistic! I love what you have done. I look forward to more ideas.
Thanks!
Teresa Speer
Teresa - thank you very much!
Very beautiful, my friend. You show great art work to me. The most interesting is you complete this hub with step by step instruction. I really enjoy to read this hub. Excellent, my friend. Thank you very much.
Prasetio
I think this is great.
Rather than throw stuff away, make something nice out of it.
Alan
prasetio - thank you! I created this hub when I wanting to make a wall hanging out of old ceiling tile and could not find instructions.
Alan - actually, I bought the ceiling tile at a salvage yard, but it was pretty cheap. The ceiling tile that I used cost about $3.50. Thanks for commenting.
What a great idea and a great "how to." Thank you for sharing. I like your tri-color effect. Great job!
RT- thank you. Every time I read a 'how to' article, I want pictures. They seem to make a big difference. Glad you liked it!
great idea.. I was very inspired
Thank you, agungin!
Beautiful idea! Thanks for sharing, Dolores!
Thanks, Kenny!
Dolores: Great hub! As an architect and painter, artsy-craftsy type, I can relate. (You might enjoy my hubs on drawing, sketching, cartoons, caricatures and even architectural renderings. Plus I've got a lot of cartoons & humor.) Keep 'em coming! Regards, Rick Z
Thank you, Rick, glad you liked!
Thanks for the great ideas, you are right, from antique tiles or materials from homes, you can reuse to create new art. I like the way you use paint to mix the coppers and blue to create a visually interesting effect that mimics the green/blue that copper turns into when oxidising!
Tapestries - thank you! I love the colors too!
This is exactly what I was hoping to find. I got a bunch of large odd sized pieces of ceiling tile from an old store in northern Nebraska and want to make hanging pieces. Your directions are wonderful. So far I have sprayed the back of one with a Rustoleum product, Rust Reformer, which says it changes rust into a paintable surface. There is severe rust damage on the backs in several areas so I'll see how this works.
An amazing idea, thanks for sharing this post - the wall hanging looks complicated and decorative.
morgang -oh thank you, I am so glad that I am of help! Dealing with rust can be a pain but if you are into this sort of thing, it can be a lot of fun. Hope you enjoy creating your ceiling tile piece!
CollB - not quite as complicated as it looks. So many things look difficult if you've never done it before. I kept putting off making the wall hanging because I could not find enough information on how to do it. Think of a recipe for, say, soup. It looks complicated if you've never done it, but once you learn, it goes pretty well. Thanks!
Dolores, quite some time ago, I saw tin tile, I don't think it was antique though. I wondered what I could do with it, but didn't get it. I am certain I could have applied the same techniques that you've outlined here. If ever I see scrap tin tiles again, I'm not passing it up. I have a wall in my guest room, that's waiting for a piece of art, just like this. I want to make something, and this is perfect!
imatellmuva - sure you can use new pieces of tin or whatever it is made out of. You can make it look old by being a bit creative with paint. And with new tin, you don't have to worry about old lead based paint chipping off! Thanks!
I have always loved antique ceiling tiles but never thought of making art from them. Love this, thanks.
Jan - this project is great for small pieces of ceiling tin. I found a whole pile at a salvage yard. Thanks!
This is so cool! What a great idea - you really turned it into a work of art.
Song-bird - well the wall hanging was a fun project and I was so happy that it turned out well. Thank you!
Dolores this is a great hub, full of how to information, the products necessary to do the project, and awesome results taking salvage and turning it into ART. Very COOL!
Green Art - thank you. I was just cleaning the basement and found some more of my collected salvage. Time for a new project!
Have fun creating! Look forward to seeing your next work of ART.
juneaukid Level 2 Commenter 21 months ago
A Fantastic idea, Dolores! This is truly innovative thinking--thank you.