The base coat of your door hanger is arguably the most important part. It’s the first thing you paint, and it sets the foundation for everything else you do with it. So it makes total sense why you’d be frustrated if it’s not turning out smoothly! 

This has happened to me many times, but don’t worry — there is a solution! Keep reading to get my best tips for painting smoother blanks for beautiful door hangers!

#1: Use a car wash sponge to paint a smoother coat

I’ve been known to think outside the box when it comes to door hanger tips and tricks. And this time is no different. My secret weapon for painting a smoother base coat isn’t a paintbrush — it’s an old, cruddy car wash sponge!

I’ve had it for YEARS, and it still does the trick, even after multiple coats of paint. All I do is cut it into a few smaller pieces, then dip it in my paint, and use it like a paintbrush! It’s great for painting large areas, like a base coat, since it can cover more ground with a single stroke. 

Now, some people who also use this technique like to squirt their paint directly onto their wood blank. I would not recommend this if you’re a beginner. Simply dipping your sponge into your paint (whether you have a palette or a paper plate), will give you more control over how much you’re using. 

Once you have mastered your skills and can accurately estimate how much paint you need, you can skip the dipping part!

#2: Try a larger paintbrush

Don’t want to use a car wash sponge? Then make sure you have a paintbrush big enough to paint your base coat! 

I recommend using something that’s at least one inch wide. Again, this will help you cover more ground. Plus, shorter brush strokes are easy to see when you pile a lot on top of each other. Painting in longer strokes gives you a more even finish. 

With a brush, you’ll need fewer coats of paint, usually about two, so you may spend less time overall on the painting process. (I still think a sponge is better, though. I just love how smooth the paint looks after using it!)

#3: Use a fine mist spray bottle

A fine mist spray bottle is something I keep in my craft stash for many reasons — there are so many uses! But when it comes to getting a smoother paint finish, it comes in handy, too. I like to use it when spreading my paint out over dry pieces of wood. That way, the acrylic paint sticks onto the wood, while keeping the paint from getting watered down. 

I got my fine mist spray bottle in the crafting section of Hobby Lobby, in the scrapbook aisle right next to the rubber stamps!

#4: Use a sander to smooth out the wood 

Sometimes the problem isn’t the brush you’re using — it’s the wood! When you notice a gritty, uneven surface before you start painting, you can sand it down until the surface is smooth.

On your first go-round, try using 80-grit sandpaper (the higher the number, the finer the grit), working in circular motions until you’ve covered the entire surface. This will smooth out some of the rougher pieces on your wood. 

Then, feel the top of your wood blank to see if more work is needed. If so, work your way up, going to a 120-grit paper next, and then a 220-grit paper. 

Remember: the smoother your door hanger is, the higher grit paper you should use on your sander. Using 80-grit sandpaper on a door hanger that’s nearly smooth can damage the wood, so be careful!

P.S. Sanding only applies if you’re cutting out your own door hangers. All of the wood blanks in our shop are already cut and smooth, so you can get started ASAP!

What if you’ve already painted your door hanger? 

So you already painted your door hanger and it’s not smooth. What do you do? 

Take your 220-grit sandpaper and smooth it down!

Sometimes, an uneven texture after we paint happens because of too many short strokes. It can also happen when trying to patch over areas with a new coat of paint. It happens! 

You can smooth things out using sandpaper and then paint over those areas again!

#5: Make sure it’s fully dry before painting another coat

Another super important tip? Make sure you let each coat FULLY dry before moving on to the next one. 

When you paint on top of a coat that isn’t dry, you’re essentially pushing the previous coat of paint out of the way. This creates paint pile-ups and uneven texture. It can also give your door hanger a worn-down look because there isn’t enough paint to cover the blank. 

If you want to avoid this, make sure your paint dries all the way before starting another layer!

P.S. Need your coat of paint to dry faster? Use a hair dryer on a low heat setting to speed up the process! 

If you want more tips on all things DIY door hangers…

I hope you found these door hanger tips helpful, because there’s a lot more where that came from! If you enjoy bite-sized tips on all things door hangers, what you need is right here! Be sure to follow Southern Adoornments Decor on Facebook and Instagram to get all my best tips!