Painted Tea Tins – A Craft for the Whole Family

When the family gathers for a holiday celebration, it’s nice to have some activities planned. While I’m all for letting kids entertain themselves, I know that when family time is hard to come by, planning something is key.

Two years ago for First Christmas our family painted birdhouses together. I was so impressed by everyone’s creativity and participation, I was quickly on a hunt for another craft we could all do together.

I didn’t think birdhouses would go over two years in a row, and I had dozens of tea tins begging to be repurposes. Tea drinkers can relate to the collection of nice metal tins that accumulates in a short amount of time.

I scoured the inter webs for ideas of what to do with tea tins, but came up fairly short, which is surprising since these tins are a dime a dozen and too nice to just toss.

We landed on the idea of simply painting them.

Painted Tea Tins for the Win

Again, the creativity that my family displayed was such a blessing to see! Three went with a Christmas theme, three with nature, and one with hobbit lore.

This project is super simple to do with people of all ages.

Supplies for Painted Tea Tins

Here’s what you’ll need for painted tea tins:

tea tins – I regularly drink a cup of Harney Tea every morning and we also stock several other flavors so used tea tins abound at my house. You can use another kind of tin or even tin cans if that’s what you have.

metal primer – So that the paint sticks to your painted tea tins, you’ll want to scuff them up with sand paper or steel wool and then prime them with a primer suitable for metal. This one was easily available at Walmart.

acrylic paint – This is fairly cheap at Walmart or the craft store. Amazon sells a multipack, too.

paint brushes – It’s good to have a variety of sizes and styles, like this multipack of brushes. Try for foam brushes as well as bristle brushes.

paint palettes – You can buy special craft palettes, but I just used disposable plastic plates.

cups of water and paper towels – This helps the painting process since you will want to change colors of paint.

Step-by-Step Instructions for Painted Tea Tins

This is a super easy craft to do!

1. Scuff up the tea tins with steel wool or sand paper. Wipe clean.
2. Prime the tins according to primer instructions. Allow to dry completely.
3. Lay out the tins, palettes, cups of water, brushes, and paint on a covered work surface.
4. Leave time and space for your people to paint. Play music, have conversations.

It’s really amazing how fun and chatty folks can be when they’re all focused on a project together. The finished painted tea tins are such a fun memory of the evening.

When to Do This Family Craft

You can do this as a Thanksgiving activity, on Christmas, as an Easter craft, or during any Family Night. It’s a great Summer afternoon activity for the kids.

This is a great activity to add to your Fall Bucket List. Then you can fill the tins and make them into Christmas gifts!

Consider making one for your Secret Santa and filling it with candy! Alternatively, fill it with coins and turn it into a cute money gift.