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Do you or your kids love to play video games? Have you ever tried painting your game controllers? Painted controllers are so cool! Our crafting expert Tonya is here today to show you how to paint gaming controllers in our latest post in our ongoing sponsored campaign with Testors.com.
I have three children between the ages of 11 and 22. They are all gamers, but my two boys especially love gaming. I don’t know how many fights I’ve broken up because someone claims a controller is theirs. The controllers are exactly the same. Exactly! I don’t know how they can tell them apart, but it always seems to end in a battle of wills.
Well, now my boys have their own customized controllers and can no longer fight over which controller belongs to them.
Customize Your Controllers
You can now customize your gaming controllers with the cool new Testors Color Shift that will be available in Michaels Stores and online at Amazon.com in June, and in Hobby Lobby in July.
I’m going to show you exactly how to paint gaming controllers.
Watch How Easy It Is To Paint Gaming Controllers
What you need to paint gaming controllers:
- Gaming controller
- Testors Color Shift paint – available in Blue Galaxy, Emerald Turquoise, and Purple Fog
- Testors Craft 3oz Aerosol Paint  – Black Gloss
- Tools to take apart your gaming controller
How To Paint Gaming Controllers
Step 1: Take apart your gaming controller. You will need to remove the outer shell, and then the circuits and buttons inside.
Step 2: Place the shell of the controller onto a large sheet of paper or plastic and spray with two coats of Testors Craft 3oz Aerosol Paint in black. Allow each coat to dry for 30 minutes. Note: I only painted the front shell of our controllers, not the back.
Step 3: Once the two coats of black paint have dried you can apply 2-3 thin coats of color shift paint in whichever shade you like. I did one controller in Purple Fog and the other in Emerald Turquoise.
Note: For the purple controller I added two coats, but for the emerald I added three coats. The more coats the brighter the result.
Step 4: Allow the controller to dry thoroughly (preferably a few hours to overnight) and then reassemble them.
The new Testors Color Shift paint is an aerosol flip formulation that will change colors depending upon how the light hits it. It’s perfect for all kinds of DIY projects around the home.
Don’t Miss These DIY Tutorials…
Be sure to check out our other DIY posts using Testors paints:
- How to Airbrush Personalized Shirts for Kids
- How To Make an Easy Unicorn Costume for Kids
- DIY Handmade Breakfast Tray
- DIY Snowman Tin Can Toss
Pin It For Later
Disclosure: This post is sponsored, so extra thanks for reading and sharing.
Written by Tonya Staab, contributor at 5 Minutes for Mom
Talk with us: @5minutesformom and Facebook.com/5minutesformom
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Derek says
curious if there are any sealin problems with these or other testor craft paints. I once tried painting a Nintendo controller white, but the color quickly took on a nasty yellow color from my hand sweat 🤢 I would like to try again, but would hate to muck up another controller. Also, surprised that no sanding was required before painting. Is this also something to do with the paint, or maybe something material-specific? Appreciate any insights.
Susan says
Hi Derek, I’m not sure about any sealing issues. But let us know if you try it out.
Shane says
Would it work on shoes?
Leah Shumack says
I never thought about that! Would be cool to do and then everyone would know their own controller!!
Kayla Klontz says
Both of my children love gaming, they’d love being able to decorate their own controller.
Breanne says
I love video games and I’ve always wanted to paint my controller sparkly purple!
Cassandra M says
our family all plays and we would love to paint our controllers! would be awesome to personalize.
maria gentry says
We would love to try painting our controllers!
Silva says
These are great. I will make
Meagan BS says
my husband and daughter play video games and I think this paint would be very cool on the controllers!
Elizabeth Brooks says
This looks like a great idea for customization
Tajreen says
We love video games, but I think I’d use these paints for something else, personally!
Jessica Whitehouse says
We enjoy video games- but I don’t know that I want to chance taking my controller apart– I’m afraid I couldn’t get it together again properly.
sarah alexis says
My son is a total gamer lol… he would LOVE if I painted his controllers!!!
LeAnn Harbert says
My boys play video games. They would paint their controllers or their model cars.
Angela Saver says
My son is a huge gamer, and he would love to do this! I can’t wait to paint his controllers!
Shannon says
This is a great idea. My kids would love it.
Susan Florio says
I like to game but I like PC games, not ones with controllers. My husband likes to buy consoles and then sell them when new ones come out so I don’t he’d like the customized controllers (for the resale value) but I think that I could find a million uses for this paint in other ways!
Tara Gauthier says
My kids like to paint video games and this is a cool way to personalize controllers. I think we might find another way to use these paints though with some kind of different DIY project.
Michelle Leslie says
Nooooooo, my son will go gaga over this idea. MMmmmmm, I wonder if I can trust him with some spray paint 😉
Dave S says
My son and I play video games all the time. I would love to paint my controller but would also use these paints to paint his NERF guns.
vickie couturier says
yes the grandkids use controllers,but i have some decorating to do in my grandaughters room with some shelves and frames that need painting
Tamara N says
I have 2 boys that just love their video games. I can definitely see my older son painting his controllers.
Christa Bengtsson says
All 4 of my kids and my husband love to play video games. They would love to use this to paint their controllers.
SARAH RAINWATER says
My kids love thier ps4, but I’d want to pay some garden stakes instead. =)
Edye says
We like video games! We would use this to paint a bird house.
Surinder gurm says
I love colour so there are a lot of craft projects I could use the paints for.
Sarah Jestings says
My kids love playing their video games. It would be fun to paint their controllers with this paint.
Melissa Cunningham says
I think this would be fun for my kids to paint their gaming controllers!
D H says
Would follow the same and paint the controllers
Mother of 3 says
I LOVE this idea! My boys all have their “own” controller but I can’t always tell them apart. They’d love to customize them. Pinned.
brittany doerfler says
Yes we love to game in our house, I would consider painting our controllers!
harold says
They love video games, I would use it to paint controllers, it would be green because my grandson loves the color
Cheryl B says
Not a video gamer, but we would use it to paint jars for our flowers.
Melissa Storms says
My son is a computer gamer mostly. I would love to paint a few different things with Paint shift .
Bryan Vice says
I’ve never painted my controllers but I love the colors would love to try
latanya says
my son would paint his controllers the same color as his fave character
Roberta Thompson says
Those paints would be great for the not so special rocks I add to my Agate/Jasper rock garden. I’ve been collecting paints recently to start this project.
Priscilla Bryant says
All my kids are gamers this is an awesome idea to keep controllers separate
Stacy says
My son is a gamer and he and his friends would love to paint their controllers.
meghan says
These are neat! Would love to pain outside pots with these 🙂
Lydia Ponto says
My kids like playing video games and generally mix up their controllers. If I win the Testors Craft Color Shift Paint, I plan to paint their controllers different colors. This paint will not only make the controllers look and feel new and clean but will also help my kids be able to more easily identify their contoller.
Yona Williams says
Wow! Those colors look really good on the controllers. My nephew plays a lot of video games….and I wouldn’t mind having a controller like that for myself.