Barn Metal Pride Flag

Today I am finally finishing an “after project” from a few years back when I made this American flag from some antique barn metal.

The Blue Building Antiques Shopatblu barn metal flag deck

I had planned to follow up that project by making a Pride flag. But, I never got back to the barn metal. Today is the day!

Well, if we are upcyling some old barn metal into something fabulous, must be that it is…

Be sure to check out the team posts at the end of this one!

Using Antique Barn Metal

shopatblu barn metal pride flag antique sheet

This antique metal came from my friend, Gina’s old barn that she and her husband tore down. Gina’s grandad had built this barn. When she tore it down, she asked if anyone wanted some of the barn metal for projects. You know I jumped in my van and drove to Tennessee.

Here is the previous tutorial on how I cleaned, prepped, cut and painted the barn metal. As always, use the proper tools for the projects.

Safety gloves are a must to protect your skin from the sharp metal.

I followed the same process with this barn metal pride flag. I did have to trim the one edge to square up the metal.

Don’t worry. I did take my own advise and stopped at this point to grab my gloves. You can’t be too careful when handling sharp metal.

After the trim, I sanded the edges just to make sure I would not cut myself. I used a high grit (low number) sandpaper that was very coarse. This worked perfectly. After sanding, I cleaned the barn metal to remove all of the dust. TSP is my go to for prepping pieces for paint.

Design your Pride Flag

If Pride isn’t your thing, you can use these same techniques to make any other flag…family colors, school pride, etc.

Once I wiped down the metal with some TSP, she was ready for paint. I selected some vivid colors and grabbed the Frog Tape. And started to design and measure.

Next step was to mask off the lined for the flag pattern. I needed 6 broad stripes.

The tops of the stripes would be covered by a “V” comprised of a series of 4 other colors. So, I measured and used Frog Tape to mask off the six wide stripes.

Burnish the edges of your painter’s tape to ensure a good seal that prevents the paint from seeping under the tape resulting in non-crisp painted lines.

I taped off every other stripe. Then I painted those and allowed them to dry. I reset the tape to complete the last 3 stripes.

Be sure to allow the paint to dry somewhat before moving your tape.

I am an impatient creator. So while the bottom of the pride flag was drying, I was taping off the top.

I alternated between stripes. While one section was drying, I was starting another section.

Of course, I did have some paint seep under the tape edges so I did have to allow those areas to dry.

To minimize seepage, don’t overload your brush. And, dab the paint along the tape edges instead of brushing. This adds the paint more slowly. Thicker applications of paint tend to seep under the tape lines. Thinner applications tend to stay where they are applies. I went back and touched up those leaked lines once the paint was completely dry. If you use a thin flat brush, it is super easy to touch up. Here is the brush I used for touch up. Like applying the paint to the tape lines, I dabbed in from the side instead of using a brushing stroke. Use the flat tip of the brush to tap the line into place.

I just went from color to color making any necessary touch ups. And, before I knew it, she was ready!

I sealed her with my go to sealer Crab Coat by Black Dog Salvage Furniture Paint. This fabulous sealer ensures that the metal will be protected from the harsh Alabama sun and heat.

Shopatblu metal garden decor lantern crab coat

Here is an antique metal ice box that I keep outside. She is well protected with Crab Coat!

shopatblu the blue building antiques antiques ice box refresh corner storage

I’m not sure where to put my beautifully colored Pride flag. Right now, we are in the process of re-staining our deck. So excuse the clutter behind the flag.