“Sharpie Art” Jewelry Dish

Before — Here's what my ramekin sort of looked like before (Oops! Forgot to take a before photo)

In this DIY project, I took a ceramic ramekin that I found at a thrift store for $0.69 and a $2.99 pair of gold Sharpies (with a Hobby Lobby 40% off coupon, of course!), and I decided to try a little experiment. The latest trends became my inspiration: gold, chevron, deer heads, monograms, arrows. We see these everywhere, especially all over Pinterest. Sharpie Art is also popular (successes and fails!), and I've attempted Sharpie Art before wondering if it is really as great as DIY bloggers lead on. Last Christmas, I used Sharpies to sketch the phrase "Give...pass it on" in cursive on a plate for homemade baked goods I gave to my family hoping they'd pay it forward and pass along the plate and tasty treats to their friends. The Sharpie seemed to work well, but I'm not sure how well it held up after repeated washes. I don't think it is a project for the dishwasher, as the comments I read on Sharpie projects say the artwork doesn't hold up to repeated washes.

I figured with a plate that could be handwashed it would probably be fine. After I drew my design, to finish the plate, I baked it at 200 degrees for 30 minutes to try to seal the design. With the jewelry holder, I did the same thing. I freehanded the artwork, then baked it, and it looks pretty good. I would say though, the more you bake the dish and the higher the heat, the duller the gold (or color) will appear. It was also pretty difficult to get a solid block of color without marker streaks. To prevent streaks, make sure to take your time painting and do so in good lighting so that you notice any bare spots immediately. I wasn't careful and painted the dish in low light and too quickly (hey, it was an experiment, right?!), and when I tried to color over the spots I missed, the Sharpie actually erased gold marks that had already dried! I also made the mistake of trying to remove a stubborn price tag sticker with Goo Gone after painting...did you know Goo Gone removes Sharpie on ceramics?

Here's another bowl I'd like to paint with Sharpies...it was a bit of a "splurge" at 1.99, but it has a great unique shape! ;) — My next Sharpie project. It was a bit of a "splurge" at $1.99, but it has a great shape!

So...would I do it again? Definitely, yes! There are tons of great dishes for pennies at the thrift store just waiting for a creative overhaul! I think Sharpie Ceramic Art is great for jewelry dishes (be careful though, tossing jewelry into a dish over time could start to scratch off your inside design), vases or display pieces on tables or bookshelves, hand washed items like platters, and even Christmas ornaments. This is such an easy project, even kids can do it (that is, if you're brave enough to give a kid a permanent marker!). Have fun!