Do-It-Yourself Leopard Print Glitter Purse
To be honest, I'm not sure where the idea for this came from. I suppose I was inspired (yet again) by Miu Miu's fall collection and its liberal use of glitter; by my Marc Jacobs glitter flatforms; by Deborah Lippmann's sparkly nail polishes; and most of all, by the custom, Lanvin-inspired Vans that makeover.
I love the classic Coach look, and the simple, modern shape of this particular purse as well as its crossbody design really lent itself to a dramatic transformation. If I had tried this DIY idea on a bigger bag or one that was even a little edgier, it would have turned out way too over the top. The finished product is way more sparkly than it looks here, it's amazing! Here's how you can create your own glitter-accented bag at home!
1/7What You Need
First, gather your supplies! This is a relatively easy project, so all you'll need are:
A bag (leather works really well, but canvas will also do)
Very light sandpaper (necessary if your bag has a waxy or slick finish
Opaque silver fabric paint
Glitter fabric paint (I used silver glitter paint) with a clear base
Three shades of superfinely milled glitter (works best if you have two lighter colors and one darker color)
Four shallow dishes for mixing paint
A paint brush
Newspaper to keep your workspace clean
2/7Give your old purse a makeover by transforming it into a shimmery leopard print bag with these simple and wallet-friendly steps.
3/7Paint the Base
Lay down some newspaper to work on. If your leather bag has a waxy coat or feels slick, start by very lightly rubbing the area you're going to paint with sandpaper; this will help the paint stick. After you're done, wipe away any dust with a damp washcloth. Now you're ready to start painting! If your bag is a dark color, apply a layer or two of silver fabric paint. I decided to make over just the front of my bag, so I painted two thin coats of silver on only the areas I planned to apply glitter.
4/7Add a Second Base Coat
If you want, go over your bag with a second layer of the base coat. (I think it's probably a good idea to do so. We'd hate to end up with non-sparkly bald spots!)
5/7Add Leopard Spots
Next, it's time to start working on the leopard print. Decide how much of your bag should get the leopard treatment. I thought it would be cute to use it on only half of my bag, but go for as little or as much leopard print as you want! Using one of the lighter glitter colors (I chose light pink), mix up another batch of the thick glitter paint in another shallow dish by pouring the loose glitter into the silver glitter paint. Leopard print isn't supereasy to draw, so you might want to practice the following a little before you paint it onto the actual bag: I usually start by painting a few curved lines and "c" shapes. Try to vary their sizes as well as the placement. The neat thing about animal print is that it's not supposed to look perfect, so you can't make a mistake!
6/7The Finishing Touch
Finally, in your last shallow dish, mix up a batch of dark glitter paint (I used dark purple glitter). With your brush, dab on the darker color in random spots around the curved lines. If you drew "c" shapes with the lighter glitter color, fill in the empty spot in the center with the darker color and then add some more dark spots around the edges.
7/7Voilà!
Let your bag dry overnight and you're done! Wear it with pride!
