How To DIY This 3D Dinosaur Art Gallery Wall

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How to make this 3D Dinosaur art for a kids’ room using plastic dinosaurs and old pictures frames.

If you do not have any dinosaur figures to hand, used plastic dinosaurs are ten a penny in charity shops and car boot sales across the country. In fact, I picked up most of the dinosaurs used in this DIY in the first charity shop I popped into on my local high street! While I was in there I also sourced a collection of frames in different shapes and sizes. I just removed the old artwork and cleaned up the frames they came in.

The first step in creating this DIY is to dispose of the back end of the dinosaur! I took each dinosaur and worked out what I wanted to ‘pop’ out of the frame and what I could get rid of from the back. I mostly kept all legs but got rid of the tail. You do not want your dinosaur to be too top-heavy, but if it is missing a leg it might look strange. Work out your cutting point and then slice him in two using a handsaw. I used a mitre box so that I could make a nice clean, straight chop. However, a mitre box is not essential if you have a good grip.

Once you’ve cut your dinosaurs you’ll find that in most instances your dinosaur is hollow and the sawed plastic rim you need to glue onto your mount inside the frame is quite thin. This is why I chose to use Gorilla Super Glue Precise Gel for this DIY. The gel can be applied in a very precise manner with the thin nozzle. As the glue is a thick gel it will not run, meaning that I can apply it to the cut outline easily without mess. The Precise Gel bonds metal, wood, ceramics, paper, rubber and plastics*. As my dinosaurs are a mix of rubber and plastic to be secured to the card, I knew this was the perfect product to use as they would join successfully.

To make my frames less mismatched and more interesting, I sprayed them all in a variety of bold colours. First of all, I cleaned the frames by wiping them down in soapy water so they didn’t have any dirt or grease on them, then once dry I gave them all two coats of primer in spray-paint form. Once the primer was dry, I used the small craft tins of gloss spray paint to add some colour. I gave all the frames two coats, making sure the frames were covered in paint from each angle.

Once the frames were dry I set about creating the mount to sit inside the frame. To create the mounts I purchased a couple of coloured mounting card boards from a craft supply shop. You need your mount to be strong and not bend as a thin piece of card will not take the weight of a plastic dinosaur. If your frame came with glass you may wish to place a piece of coloured paper behind the glass and glue the dinosaur directly on top of the glass. Both the mounting card and glass options work well for this DIY.

To create the mount I measured the inside of the frame or drew around the glass that it came with. I then cut out my mount with scissors and made sure it fitted my frame and could be easily inserted. Once I was happy with the mount size I applied a small amount of Gorilla Super Glue Precise Gel to the inside of the frame and stuck my card down so it did not shift or move about inside the frame and was completely secure.

Once I was happy with what dinosaur suited a particular frame, I applied Gorilla Super Glue Precise Gel to the thin rim of the dinosaur innard. As the application is so exact, I did not have to worry about the glue spilling over the edges of the dinosaur and marking the mounting card.

I carefully positioned the dinosaur front where I wanted it to sit in the middle of the frame and held it in place for 10-45 seconds in order for the glue to adhere to each surface. I then allowed my dinosaur art to cure for 24 hours until the glue had completely set.

Gorilla Heavy Duty Mounting Tape provides a quick and easy solution to provide a strong and secure, permanent bond to a surface. I simply cut the tape to size with scissors, applied it to the back of the frame vertically (Gorilla recommend this), removed the protective liner then pressed the frame firmly on the wall for a few seconds to grip.

My son loves his 3D dinosaur gallery wall and it makes a real statement as part of his bedroom decor. As Gorilla Glue can take real impact, I also know the dinosaurs can take a few knocks without falling off the wall or coming apart.

How To Paint Melamine Cupboards

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One of the main pieces of feedback I received in regard to the Revamp Restyle Reveal project was how I was going to tackle the dreaded built-in wardrobe dilemma. If you remember (or if you don't you can read all about it here!) I really disliked these cream-veneered built-in wardrobes that we inherited with the house:

The wardrobes just did not work with the room, stood out and I felt they were an eyesore. I'd spent the past couple of years really trying to decide what to do with them. I spoke to some very much in-the-know people (such as Oliver Thomas from the Great Interior Design Challenge) about what to do with them and they all told me to paint them in the same as the wall colour. The idea was that they would 'blend in' a lot more.

Even though I knew deep down this was the best idea, I was really scared of painting them. They get a lot of use, and I didn't want to regret painting them if they started to chip a few weeks down the line.

I spent a decent amount of time on the internet on other blogs and builder forums trying to find out the best way to paint melamine with a successful outcome. I knew it could be done, but I had to get it right the first time. All tradespeople seemed convinced that Zinsser B-I-N was the ultimate primer for melamine to make an eggshell paint adhere to the surface with no chipping, so along with some Earthborn paint in eggshell, I set about painting my melamine wardrobes in the same colour as the walls.

To make sure all the prep was 100% perfect, I first washed down the cupboard with sugar soap so there was not any grease or grime to cause any issues. I usually hate this job making sure I have clean enough rags, spray sugar soap and a washing up bowl to wash off the sugar soap, but I discovered sugar soap cleaning wipes recently and they are a game-changer! They make life so much easier as you use a wipe until it is used up and then dispose of it for a new one.

One the cupboards were dry, I taped off the sections I did not want to be painted with a low tack tape, then applied 3 coats of Zinsser B-I-N with a special furniture door and cupboard set roller. I used this pack of two rollers for the primer and the eggshell paint and I really felt they made a real difference to the application rather than using basic mini paint rollers. If you are painting any furniture, I would highly suggest using these for a smoother paint finish.

Zinsser B-I-N feels quite thin when you apply it, but it starts to thicken and really sticks very very quickly. If you find it too thin at first, pour some in a paint tray and leave it for 5 or 10 minutes for a thicker application. I left 24 hours between each application.

I then applied two coats of eggshell over the B-I-N and that was the wardrobes done! I think they blend in so much better now they are the same colour as the walls and so far so good - they do not look like they will chip at all! I wish I had painted them sooner!

* Tor Coatings did send me the Zinsser B-I-N as a gift to use for this project, but this is not an a paid ad- simply a review! Please note that this post does contain some affiliate links.