From the novice skiers, the experts, and the professionals alike, you’ve all had this thought cross your mind at least once, and that is – can you paint skis and personalize them.
As time goes on, they will inevitably start to reflect their character (from all the scratches and dents) but something like painting your skis and making them YOUR OWN is something almost all skiers want to do at some point.
But the problem is that you pay an awful lot of money for your skis, and there’s this reasonable fear of ruining them by mistake – and we understand that it is a huge risk to take. But we are here to let you know that you CAN paint your skis, and there are fun and safe ways to do that.
So next time you go skiing, you will be armed with your stylishly personalized skis, as you chase powder on the snowy slopes like the pro you are.
Table of Contents
How To Paint Skis?
First, you will need to prepare the skis for painting. Now you have to understand that this part is a teensy bit time-consuming but once you get the hang of it you can breeze through it.
You will first need to make sure your skis are bone dry (and we mean BONE dry, any semblance of water will lead to cracking).
Then you will need to sand the surface of where you’re going to draw so that the paint will stick better.
Also read our guide on ski base cleaner substitutes
Once the sanding is done with, you can go ahead and apply a coat of polyurethane paint (the color and shade will be based on your taste of course) and then place some stickers or go ahead with further customization if you want – this is the part where you can go nuts!
What you can do next is, in order to protect your masterpiece, to apply a coat of clear polyurethane so that everything settles and will endure all the scratches and dents.
What Is The Best Paint To Use For Skis?
There’s a wide range of paint options you can use on your skis and they all come with varying price points, so you can pick whatever option fits your budget.
But as mentioned earlier you can always go with epoxy or polyurethane paint, or pick markers (metallic ones are AMAZING!) and acrylic paint. Acrylic paint can be crazy expensive, but know that with bougie prices comes great coverage and long lasting vibrancy.
However, you are free to choose something cheaper which is completely fine – something like FolkArt acrylics which are superb and affordable.
How To Paint Skis For Decoration?
Painting skis for decoration (which is different from just giving your skis a fresh coat of paint) can often include painting detailed and artistically demanding designs, and sometimes they might end up in your bedrooms or man caves as pieces of art!
If you have the niche and talent for this, you will first need to settle on a design – it can be simple (if you are a new artist or still getting used to drawing things) or you can go for something really expressive.
But make sure that whatever you settle on does not have its best and most colorful parts going under the bindings or the side edges of the skis.
Also read our guide on how to hang skis on walls.
Once you’ve settled on a design, you have to then figure out if it’s a compound image that spans across the two skis or two separate images that you can paint onto the skis one after the other.
Then comes the sanding process which is slightly more complicated than when applying a simple coat of polyurethane. You should sand the skis, and apply a coat of primer 3 times, while sanding in between each primer application.
Then, and only then, can you move onto the painting process.
You can then transfer the drawing or sketch onto the skis using carbon paper, (or freestyle it if you are that pro!) and then get on with the painting. Using markers and acrylic paint will be the best choice in this since you can create a very detailed and artistic creation on your skis.
Then comes saving what you’ve created – that is applying your clear coat (you don’t have to do this if you are not taking them out for skiing). Make sure you let your skis dry out for 24 hours, and then go ahead with the clear coat.
Can You Paint A Ski Helmet?
While this is entirely possible, painting your helmet is not the best decision you can make as a skier. Ski helmets are made with very precise and advanced engineering. They are made with protection, strength and aerodynamics in mind.
Also read our guide on why you need a ski helmet.
When you apply paint over something created with such accuracy, you have the tendency to damage or ruin its design.
Paint can make your helmet heavier, and that can affect your overall ski experience. While a medium like spray paint might not add a lot to the overall weight of the helmet, acrylics, and epoxy can drastically change the weight and this will definitely affect your overall comfort.
Moreover, painting can also block certain holes and vents in your helmet that have been created to increase ventilation, so overall, painting your ski helmets is not a good idea.
However, if you still want to paint them (and you’re sure that you can avoid making the aforementioned mistakes), the process is pretty much the same as the ski painting process.
Can You Paint Ski Boots?
Painting ski boots is also possible, as it has a very inviting plastic covering that can very easily act as a canvas for the imaginative skier. However, painting ski boots can be a messy process because they can often lead to chipping – since the boots bend and contort a lot.
One way of combating this is by sanding and priming the boots before painting (much like the skis) and then applying your preferred design on them. Afterward, finish off with a clear coat.
This will help with the chipping, but you will still need to repaint more often than you do with skis, because (despite our enthusiasm) ski boots aren’t essentially made for being painted on!
Bottom Line
You can paint skis and it’s not a difficult task, however painting skis for decorations can be a bit time consuming. We covered how to do both in this article.
You can paint your ski boots and helmets too, but I don’t recommend it because there are a few complications, like the boot chipping or peeling and the paint interfering with the ski helmet’s design.
