A couple of DIY projects

I plan on finishing my chair this week. But the past couple of weeks I have done a couple of small DIY projects. Here are the pictures. I'll post some tutorials later.

Candy Jars

 Guest Room Curtains out of an IKEA duvet cover

 Candy Wreath

I love a good craft project!

From Shabby to Chic with just a can of spraypaint

I’m in the process of updating my guest bedroom. So first I started with the bed and made a DIY fabric headboard (I’ll post on that in a couple of days) and then I went for accessories. The room is black, white, and a little bit of yellow. So I knew it would be easy to find accessories – only problem is I didn’t want to break the bank. I don’t have an endless supply of money, so I needed to be creative. Enter Salvation Army and Goodwill. I spent a day going to different thrift stores and antique malls looking for inspiration or diamonds in the rough. And I got lucky!! Check out these beauties.

I know what you might be thinking, Alli those are hideous, ugly, brass, and beyond help. I know, I know, but I looked beyond that and saw a great shape. Yes the shades are gross too, but that is an easy fix. So they became mine and at only $8 for each I stayed in my “I’m only going to spend $20 for stuff” budget. There is nothing a little can of black glossy spray paint can’t do.

Out came my trusty can of black glossy spray paint. First I made sure to clean the lamps really well to get all the dust and grime off so I could have a nice clean surface. Next I took them outside and began to paint. If I could give you any tips on spray painting it is to be patient and keep it moving. If you leave the can in one spot too long it can cause a drip and that is an unnecessary headache you’ll have to fix. Plus you’ll want to do a couple of light coats till you get a nice even coverage, so don’t try to make it your color at one time. You’ll thank me later J

After the paint dried I stopped by my trusty Walmart for some inexpensive shades. At only $11 each, I was still able to keep the price down. I’m sure I could splurge for a nice drum shade or something like that, but they’re for the guest room, so something easy is a fine choice.

So without further ado here are the “after” pictures!

I LOVE them. I couldn’t be more thrilled, and since this was my first real attempt to spray paint anything, I think I’ve caught the bug because I want to repaint everything. I even think they look similar to these lamps from Pottery Barn.

And those babies are about one hundred dollars. Not too bad to save $80 per lamp. This calls for one big WHOOO HOOO!!!!!!!!!

Oh and if you notice the other object in the after picture, it was my little owl guy. And since I got sick with spraypaintitus I decided to transform him too. I picked him up at HomeGoods for only $14 but I decided he should be white so it’s not soo matchy matchy if i painted him black. I love him, and he is starting my slight obsession for owls… this could be bad. I really want an owl lamp but that might be too over-the-top.

From this:

To this:

So for the final breakdown of the dollars here we go:

Lamps - $16 for two

Shades - $22 for two

Paint - $5 for can of glossy black

Owl - $14

Paint - $5 for can of glossy white

Total = $43 for the two lamps (making it only $21.50 for each! SCORE!!)

            And $19 for my owl (a little more than what I should have spent, but I do love him)

Have you all spray painted anything lately? Please pretty please share what you’ve done. I love to see things get a second lease on decorating life!

PS - you can find the Pottery Barn lamps here in case your more of the "spend a lot of money on pretty lamp" type. :)