Making record time: Repurposing old vinyl

I loved going to the local vintage stores, searching through old records, looking for leftover or scratched vinyl. I would play the record and listen to the music, but sometimes they were too damaged. So I decided to get creative and start painting the records.

This became my process for months!

When I started getting into the idea of painting old, scratched vinyl, I found myself mesmerized by it all. I have always loved playing music on the record player, especially older records. I found beauty and creativity through this, and I wanted to emphasize this beauty more with painting the scratched side of the vinyl.

Starting out, I wasn’t sure where to start. I started going to vintage shops around town to find old, scratched records that would be good to paint on. On some of the records, I was able to listen to the sides that weren’t as scratched and played them before painting. After that, I grabbed my paints and jumped right into it. The first record I painted was a Kentucky record with a drip effect at the top. I absolutely adored how this turned out, and I just kept going.

Over this summer, I tried many different styles including the drip effect, patterns like succulents and animal prints, as well as bubble lettering. These records became an everyday thing for me to complete as I started to enjoy doing them more and more.

Each record would take a few days to complete after I started into a routine. This included going by layers each day. I would do base layers for the next couple of records I was wanting to paint in a day. This got me in a schedule, and it became easier and easier to think of new ideas to complete.

As of right now, I’ve painted thirteen records and am still so excited about the many more ideas coming. I recently hung them on my wall, unsure of what to do with all of them, and I honestly adore it. It reminds me to stay calm and find things in my daily life that I love to do. Overall, this process has given me something I can manage and control in my life. I feel less stressed and accomplished by painting records.

My advice is to find something in your life that can help you destress. This can be anything from reading a book, working out, going outside, or maybe you’re like me and want to paint old records. Whatever it is, do it! Do it passionately and put your whole heart into those things. You will feel accomplished and determined to keep going and finding more things like that in your life!