The rain barrels we made in the rain barrel class are a bright blue. And while it's a nice color, it doesn't really go well against the side of the house. So... we decided to experiment with painting one to see how it would turn out. And every learning experience for us is also of benefit to you, our dear readers! So here is the account of how things turned out.
In the rain barrel class were told that there are really are two options for painting a rain barrel: 1) put down a primer first and then your paint on top of that or 2) use Krylon paints as they have a type that works on plastic without the need for primer. We went with option 2.
I took a paint chip from the bottom of the garage door (it needs to be re-painted this fall and that'll be a project we'll blog about, too) to match up paint colors:
We went with this lighter shade of Krylon Fusion Satin For Plastic paint. It actually turned out to be a perfect match as the gutters and drains were the lighter shade anyhow (we didn't think to actually check the gutter color as for some reason, in our minds, it was the same as the brick and house color...).
The next step was to add a strip of painters tape down one side. The reason for this was so that we could still see the water level in the barrel once it was painted. A plastic bag was placed underneath as a drop cloth and we elevated the rain barrel on some bricks to make it a bit easier to paint.
And the painting begins. When painting, be sure to do so on a sunny day that is not too humid and one with less wind. The key is to move the spray evenly to get a consistent coat.
When we were in the store, we wondered how many cans of paint would cover one rain barrel. We estimated that one would not do the trick and so we bought two cans. We were right as one can only got us to 2/3 of the way around.
Then it was time for the outside of the lid:
and the downspout extension (which was originally green):
We then had to let the paint dry for 15 minutes. One could then touch the paint but you were supposed to wait another hour before moving the painted item. So we set the timer and waited. Here's the final, painted rain barrel:
Looks nice, no? And a glimpse at the side of the rain barrel with the blue peek-a-boo stripe:
Ok, now here's a few extra items of note regarding our project:
A. We decided not to paint the metal lid ring. One can do so but we figured the paint would just scratch off too fast from anytime we had to open the lid. So we skipped it. But you can do so if you want.
B. The extra cost of the two cans of paint came out to an additional $11.98 plus tax ($5.99 each).
C. You can seal the paint with an extra coat or two of sealant. We chose not to.
D. Even though the paint adhered to the plastic well, it isn't really scratch proof. In fact, it can still scratch pretty easily. We wonder if sealing it would make it hardier for wear-n-tear? So be careful when moving it back into place so you can keep your paint touch-ups to a minimum.
We're not all that jazzed about how easily it scratches, actually. Ellen from the class said, "sand first," and even though the paint can said "no sanding or priming," Ellen was right.
For our next barrel, we're going to try priming because J. Pario wants to use some acrylic paint in places. Yes, my wife is going to paint flowers all over hers....
. It's not that hard, but I'm still panting when I'm done, and it's broken into sections so I can just do twenty minutes, forty minutes, or the whole thing for 60 minutes. (Yeah. That hasn't happened. It's a theoretical possibility.) 
by David Hoffman.