Tuesday, November 18, 2014

Removing Printed Logos From Items - Camelbak Review

Last week, someone didn't want this water bottle. I was excited knowing it was a "Camelbak" brand, I for sure wanted it. It happens to be the color of Princess Five's school colors so I was thrilled to get it. 

Two years ago, I purchased one of these exact water bottles for my mother to clip to her walker and to keep by her bed at night so she won't spill water in the night. 

I purchased it new from a store for over $17. I NEVER in my life thought I would spend so much on a water bottle but because it was for my mom, and I knew what she would need, I spent the money. 

One of the main reasons I purchased it was the even when the spigot is closed, it won't leak. My mother would throw it into her purse, bag or walker and if it weren't closed all the way, the content would then be sticky all over the bag and walker. 

With this water bottle, you have to "Bite" down on the valve over the straw mouthpiece in order to "suck" the water out or if you take out the straw, you have to bite down and then tilt the bottle up in order for the water to come out. 

In one of the pictures, I show how you have to "bite" and there is a little slit that opens and then you can drink. 

I also show in the pictures how that rubber or soft plastic valve top comes off and you can wash each piece of the bottle. I also like that you can use the bottle without the straw. Thus, if my mom lost the straw portion, she could still use the bottle by tipping it up and even if she didn't get it closed all the way, it wouldn't leak. 

I know sometimes I will put my water bottle in my purse and I hit the little piece that lifts the straw and it will sometimes leak.


I guess my mom's was a first edition as now the new ones are $28.99 for this exact water bottle and color on Amazon. Click here to go to Amazon to see how much this costs new.

Princess Five was happy about getting the new water bottle but it had a "logo" for a company we've never heard of and since she will be using it for cheer, she wanted to put her name on the side.

I told her we could dot paint it using fingernail polish but since she wants her name on it, I couldn't show you the finished product to protect her privacy. 

So, I thought I would just show you how to take off the company logo, advertising, or advertisement.  


If the company advertising is "cool" enough, you probably want to leave it on the item. However, many times, it is a company you don't really care to advertise. If that is the case, you can remove the painted name by using acetone fingernail polish remover. If you like the logo art but not the company name, you can just remove the part of the name you don't want and leave the art.

If the item is expensive, you may not want to risk ruining it and NEVER use this method on wood or painted items. It would work on non-painted metal, hard plastic and glass usually. Always test a section first so you don't ruin your item. Use a cotton ball as the paper towel I used just smeared it and made a mess. I was lazy and in a hurry and since we were painting that area, we didn't worry about it taking the "shine" off as it can and will probably do to any plastic item you use acetone on.

If you take off their advertisement or logo, you can always paint your own on using oil based paint or fingernail polish. To make the dots for letters, use the back of a small paint brush, a small dowel or even a wooden shish-kabob skewer cut off so the tip isn't sharp. 

Just dip the painting item into the paint and then dab it onto a paper plate to blot off so much of the paint and then apply a dot to the item you are painting. Sometimes I find it helpful to draw out the letters in chalk on the item so I can make sure they fit well and are in the style I want. You can also do pictures in dots like they do on didgeridoos. 

Most all of the didgeridoos I have seen always have dot painted items and since they are long, a favorite is a snake painted down the side. I have snakes on my larger didgeridoo.

Anyway, you can paint anything you want on almost any item that has had a logo on it. Dot painting is one of the easiest for people who don't feel like they are very "artsy" or "crafty" but end up giving a great look. As you can see there are only a few colors in the painting but it gives a nice design. 

I am thinking I may print off and take some patters of dot art when we make the walking sticks I cut off the tree last week for girls camp. Wouldn't that be fun.

I was grateful to get this water bottle and I think it will be a great addition since I have always hated the cheap plastic water bottles they get from the cheer or dance camps. They leak and have toxic chemicals in them but she wants to fit in carrying them around as all my girls have. 

This is the spec list for this bottle:
  • BPA Free design maintains the durability, clarity and vibrant color of the original Better Bottle
  • Easy sipping and no spilling with our patented Big Bite Valve design.
  • Quick Flip Close allows Big Bite Valve to stay clean when not in use and easily flips back into drinking position.
  • Easy to Clean and dishwasher safe.
  • One hand usage allows you to drink without tipping. (although it's possible if you remove the straw) 
  • Here is a video clip I took for youtube while taking off the logo.
Who wouldn't want it? I saved myself $20-$30 and now Princess has a great water bottle! I'm excited I can throw out all those plastic ones that I constantly find replicating in my cupboards!

2 comments:

  1. Unfortunately this doesn't work with all branding. I tried it on my camelbak with no result, so I tried plain acetone with also no change at all. By then, my bottle looked so sad, I decided to just try anything, so I ended up scraping my logo off with a box knife blade. It tore up the bottle a bit where it was, but I'm hoping my design I'm going to paint will cover it all.

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    1. I am sorry that the polish remover didn't work. Usually, one of either type with or without acetone works. I did have an interesting discovery when trying to get Sharpie off some bin lids. It is another post: http://thesecretisgratitude.blogspot.com/2016/01/removing-marker-off-plastic-bins-toys.html
      Or type in "removing marker" in the search box at the bottom of the page. Perhaps try this along with the fingernail polish remover. I guess it all depends on what type of paint they used on the logo. Sorry it wasn't more help. I wonder if just dabbing paint stripper on the logo and quickly wiping it off would work before it has time to damage the plastic? Just some thoughts.

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