Let’s Make Wooden Nutcrackers Look Like Metal!

Here is a little Christmas craft for you! Do you like Nutcrackers? I’ve never been super fond of them. But whether or not we like them, they are a staple of Christmas decor. Recently, I saw @navagepatch on Instagram painting wooden nutcrackers with metallic paint in an effort to make them look like metal. They looked really good! Even though I don’t particularly love nutcrackers, I thought I’d give the project a try! If I love them after the project, I’ll keep one for my holiday decor!

Buying nutcrackers

Step 1: Repair & Sand

Because I bought the nutcrackers in January, the garage was WAY too cold for spray painting. I packed up the nutcracker in a couple of boxes and put them in the shed to wait for warmer weather. When the garage warmed up, I pulled them out of the shed and go to work. Two of the nutcracker’s noses had fallen off. I glued them back on with wood glue. I then lightly sanded the wood to smooth out any rough edges.

Step 2: Shellac

Following the process by Navage Patch, I sprayed each nutcracker with Shellac before painting. He found out that this helped to hide the grain on the ends of the wood while acting as a primer. I found it easiest to hold the nutcracker upside down by the base to start covering it with shellac/paint. I then set it on its base and sprayed the remaining sections.

Step 3: Paint

The shellac takes an hour to dry but following the process, I started applying the metallic paint sooner. Navage Patch noticed that this created a different, more metal looking result. He had used Rustoleum Antique Bronze but I couldn’t find it locally and the price online was 3 times as much. So, I started with Rustoleum Champagne Bronze with is more golden. I applied a couple of coats but wasn’t thrilled with the look. Although there was a fun effect on the crown, I could still see wood grain. I also noticed that the metallic paint made the nutcrackers feel a little rough. You can lightly sand them after they dry if desired.

Step 4: Start with black

It seemed like the metallic paint wasn’t covering as well as it should. I thought that if it had a darker base, it might work better. I decided to paint the nutcrackers black first. I had both satin and flat black spray paint. Since I didn’t know if it mattered, I painted one of each. After applying the top coat of Champagne Bronze, I decided that the satin black was a better base so I used that color to spray all of the nutcrackers, including the one I had already sprayed Champagne Bronze. You can see that having the undercoat of black helped gave more depth to the topcoat.

Step 5: Deep Bronze

After painting 3 nutcrackers, I ran out of Champagne Bronze. Because I had to buy more paint, I chose a different color to try, Deep Bronze. I really liked the result of using the Deep Bronze! Some of the paint turned a silvery color on certain sections of the nutcrackers. I painted three of them with this color.

Step 6: Antique Bronze!

Finished Nutcrackers

This was a really fun project/experiment! Do the nutcrackers look like metal? For me, it’s hard to tell because I KNOW they are wood. But they do look great! If you are looking for a holiday craft or gift, this one is fun and quick!

Before, During, After

Even though the stripping process took several days, it was SO worth the time invested! I don’t know why I ever painted the trash can! I love the way the stain looks against the cabinets and it goes so well with the floor color!

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