Spotlight on Navy (Lamp Redo!)

A few weeks ago I was perusing our local Goodwill when I spied a pair of matching gold table lamps. 
(I have a feeling a large percentage of my posts start with the same sort of scenario.  Ha!) 
I had been on the lookout for matching lamps for our nightstands so I was excited…though that emotion quickly turned to more of a “meh” as I picked one up and saw the price.  They were $7 a piece, and it was more than I was willing to pay for lamps that would need some updating so I passed.
Fast forward to the next week, when I was back to Goodwill for the next tag sale day.  (All blue tags were $1.49 this particular day.)  You know where this is going…I was again checking out my favorite sections of the thrift store when I looked in the infamous lamp section…and yes, the lamps were still there!  I checked and sure enough, they were blue tags!!! 
I grabbed them super fast.  :)
(I can’t believe they were still there.  It was meant to be!)
A few months before I had seen the lamp redo that Sarah at Thrifty Decor Chick did and was really loving how the glossy navy looked on her (formerly) brass lamps.  I had the same navy spray paint in my stash so I tried my  hand at it. 
Behold, the brassy befores!

(Night lighting in the garage.)  How do you like my paint can stands??

They were very very brassy.  Almost blindingly so, in fact.  I primed them with some spray primer I had on hand and got to work with the navy.  I immediately loved how they looked.  The glossiness and the color really brought out the contours of the lamp and made them look much better in my opinion. 

Here is one of the pair today (I promise the other looks almost exactly alike):

Again…I really like how they turned out!! 

I ended up covering some lamp shades that I had on hand with fabric from my stash (so great to use some of it!!).  I used this tutorial  for cutting out the fabric and then the tutorial for covering the shades from the Young House Love book that I borrowed from the library recently.  It was really really easy.  I kind of feel like recovering all the lamp shades in the house now.  (Don’t worry honey…I won’t.  ;) 

My sister came and helped paint our bedroom a couple of weeks ago so it is really looking a lot more fresh in there though it could use some accessorizing (and non-old-lady bedsheets…though that is another post :).  I feel like I’ve done enough “starts” of projects lately without a “finished” post so I’ll spare you the master bedroom plan for now. 

It’s great to have a little pop of color in there now! 

The Tale of the Thrifted Tufted Chair

Say that three times fast!

A few weeks ago while I was hitting up our local Goodwill I spotted this chair and literally push-sprinted across the store to take a closer look at it.  Good, the tag was still on it, meaning no one else had claimed it yet!

It was in amazing shape.  The velvet was still full and soft with no stains, the wicker on the back was in pristine shape,and the wood frame was sturdy with no nicks or gouges.  Best part?  It was $9.99! 

You’d better believe I ripped that tag off fast.

Then I thought about it as I shopped around the rest of the store.  Did I really need a chair like this?  Would we use it?  Would it become a misfit chair that takes up space in the garage?  In the end, I knew I could easily find a new home for it if we ended up not using it (and I knew if I didn’t buy the chair it would move to the top of my Thrifting/Garage Sale Regret List!) so OF COURSE I bought it.  Don’t worry, I never seriously considered not buying it. :)

 

It has this fun Greek key design on the arms:

Then I got it home and as I was lifting it out of the car I smelled a bit of funk…oh no!  I hadn’t been totally sold on the color originally so I knew that I might want to re-upholster the chair--but then when I smelled that I realized re-upholstering might have to be prioritized.  I decided to give the chair a good cleaning and see what I thought after.  I know there are lots of people out there who would never buy used upholstered furniture but honestly I have never bought a new piece of furniture nor do we have the money to do so.  I feel comfortable buying used upholstery if I know I can clean it in such a way as to kill all the surface germs and to get out any stains. 

First I vacuumed the chair really really well, making sure to spread out the tufted parts to expose all the fabric. 

I looked at odor-removal tips on the internet but I didn’t have any vinegar on hand (the recent pickle-making had depleted my supply!) so I decided to try Oxy-clean.  I use Oxy-clean instead of bleach most of the time and I’m really a big fan of it so I thought that might kill the odor and really clean up the chair well.  I sprayed it down with a strong mixture of water/oxy-clean until it was soaking wet.  I wanted it to get really deep into the chair in case the odor was coming from the foam.  Also, it was in the heat of the summer here so I knew I could leave it outside in the sun to dry quickly.  I blotted the chair with clean rags and then blotted the chair with fresh clean water to remove some of the Oxy-clean solution.  Then I put it out in the sun for the day. 

If I had spent more money on the chair I would have been more careful to test the Oxy-clean on the velvet first for color-fastness, but in this case I didn’t really care.  I knew I could always re-cover it in another fabric.  It ended up being fine—the color didn’t fade or change at all—it actually looked brighter afterwards. 

The next day I still could smell a little something on the chair so I decided to sprinkle it liberally with baking soda.  I left it out again in the hot sun, and again the next day.  Then I vacuumed the baking soda from the chair and wow, what a difference!  It smelled fine!!!!  I was so happy that it worked.  :)

 

I put the chair in our “music-room” for now.  Who knows, I might still re-cover the chair (I could really picture it in a navy velvet with a white frame) but for now we’re enjoying it as is. 

I’m planning to start a house tour section on the blog soon…it will take a while for most rooms to look photo-worthy (if they ever do!) but the music room is getting close.  :)

Old-School Metal Desk Re-do (Tutorial and Afters)

I mentioned a while back that I was working on a desk I picked up at a garage sale (for $2) for our 5 year old who is going into Kindergarten this fall.  (How did that happen!!!!) 
I was almost done with it…and then disaster struck.  When I sprayed the protective clear coat on at the end, the white paint on top bubbled up and peeled away.  Lesson learned---always, always use primer on a laminate surface.  :)
However, I am done with it now!! 
To refresh your memory, this is what I started out with:
It was kind of rusty, rather dirty, and was a little beat up, but it is going to be for a 5 year old who cannot for the life of her keep her room clean for more than 10 minutes…so I didn’t want to get something for her that I would freak out about if she colored all over it or scratched with her pencils. 
First I wiped it down with a clean rag to get all of the dust/grime off (and had to scrape away some gum and dried up glue too).  Then I taped off the top.  Now, this is where I start to go wrong.  I should have just primed the whole thing except for the blond wood stripe…but I am here to help you learn from my mistakes people!

I primed the base of the desk with Rustoleum white flat spray primer, then recoated after it was dry.  Then I spray painted the base with Rustoleum white gloss paint and again recoated.  Nothing most of you haven’t already done!
I took the tape/newspaper off the top and I noticed that the edges of the laminate top had some gouging in them so I filled them with wood filler and sanded when dry.

I grabbed my blue painters tape and eyeballed some lines across the desk.  I wanted some stripes but I didn’t want stripes all over the top of the desk, so this was my compromise.

Then it was time to paint the edge.  I got a sample size can of Pomegranate Pucker (I think!  I forgot the paint chip at the paint store and they didn’t put a sticker on top!) and I just brushed it on the edge, being careful not to get any on the underside of the desk top where I had already painted it white. 

The next couple of steps I don’t have any pictures of, but this is where I started to realize that I made more work for myself.  In order to paint the top white I had to re-tape the edges that I had recently painted.  I had run out of primer and I was mad at myself for not just priming the whole thing (sans stripes) white to begin with! 
So, I spray painted the whole top white.  Then, I decided I wanted a pop of gold to be the third “color” in the palette so I grabbed a can of old metallic bronze that I had sitting around (since our wedding!) and sprayed the area between the painter’s tape on top with that.  I did a couple of coats. 
 
While I was at it, I decided the feet of the desk needed a little prettifying so I taped off and painted the bottom of each leg with the same metallic paint. 

Looking better! 

I then covered the gold stripes on top with more tape and sprayed the whole top again with white. 

(I was doing this on a rather sunny day under a tree so the dappled shade makes strange shadows on the desk top!)

I couldn’t wait any longer so I went ahead and peeled off all the tape to reveal the stripes/slight plaid pattern below!

Much better, don’t you think? 
And this is where I messed up bigtime.  I sprayed the clear-coat on top and the white paint bubbled up in the lower right corner of the desk.  I was so frustrated, I took a break from it for about a week.  Finally I got some more spray paint (I got Rustoleum paint+primer this time!) and sanded and re-taped it and re-sprayed it.  Lots of lessons learned in this re-do!  Finally I put another coat of clear polycrylic on it and this time it worked great!  I really like how the natural “wood” of the desk top shows through in a couple of the stripes and the metallic adds a little drama to it. 

The metallic paint has a shimmer to it that is really hard to capture in the photos.    This photo probably shows it best:

I decided the desk needed something to hide the tantalizing crayons/paper/art projects inside from curious younger brothers, so I found a piece of fabric in my stash that was a similar coral color and I cut it to a size that would fit in the opening, then hot glued the edges under 3 sides (2 short and 1 long). 
I wanted a little pleat in the center so I pinned that, flipped the whole desk over, and hammered push-pins in to secure the fabric flap to the bottom of the desk top.  I was originally going to staple it but I couldn’t fit the stapler in that small of a space. 

I still need to find a chair for it (I’ve been scouring garage sales and thrift stores but so far nothing) but I’m calling this project done!
Here it is in her room, ready for schoolwork, homework or art projects or whatever creative thing she might think up!  (Which might be coloring directly on it…who knows!)

Shhhh…don’t tell the toddler what’s hiding inside!

I’m getting a little nostalgic here now…

All done!! 

  Now on to the next project…have I shown you the tufted chair I picked up at the thrift store???  ; )

Linking up at The DIY'ers, and  Not Just a Housewife

How to Make Jadeite! (the faux way)

Want to have a jadeite collection like this one below but don’t have the money to buy expensive real jadeite pieces?

(Source)

(source)

Me too.  Here’s how!
The other day as I was walking through the aisles of my local Walmart (and looking for spray paint, of course) I noticed a can of spray paint that looked strikingly like the color of jadeite.  The wheels in my brain started turning and before long that can of spray paint was in my cart and I was excited to try my idea out. 
This is the spray paint:
Krylon ColorMaster in Pistachio (mine was satin, glossy would be better)


My tester piece is sitting next to it.  I wanted to try it out on something that didn’t really matter if it got destroyed (and something that was free/cheap). 
Here it is after one coat:


I was pretty excited to see that the color was very similar to a real jadeite piece I have:

Of course, it doesn’t have that translucent milky quality of real jadeite, but if you’d like a display on shelves like the first picture it would hardly be noticeable.  Like I have here: 

I decided that the finish was a little too “flat” for my tastes, so I sprayed on some polycrylic clear coat to make it more glossy.  If you can find the Pistachio color in glossy it would probably eliminate the need for a clear coat on top. 
I wanted to experiment a bit more with this so I got a few more things from the thrift store. 

I chose these items because they have very simple lines (most real jadeite isn’t heavily ornamented and has clean lines) and would allow me to try out other ways of doing this.  I sprayed just the outside on the top piece and left the inside of the bowl unpainted and it gave it more of a glassy look, but this wouldn’t work for any items that have handles or are not clear glass. 
I also wanted to see how the paint would look over something that was not clear glass.  White glass doesn’t allow much light to shine through but the color is still close enough to the real jadeite that it is fine. 
Here is the finished beaker from above:

The lighting in this picture is terrible but you can get a general idea of how it looks next to real jadeite (on the right):

Again, not quite as good as real but a looot more affordable!  

In simple steps, here is what I did:
1.  Find glass pieces that most resemble real jadeite pieces (it never hurts to gaze at beautiful displays of jadeite for inspiration!)  Look for clean lines, interesting handles, chunky glassware, and unusual shapes.  Avoid plates with etched Christmas scenes and very ruffly vases.  :)
2. Make sure they are clean, then spray one or two light coats of Krylon Pistachio on every side, inside and out.
3.  If you are using satin paint like I was, wait a few minutes and spray on a clear coat of polycrylic (I used Rustoleum brand’s)
4.  Let dry, arrange (perhaps with real jadeite to fill out your collection), and live it up like Martha! 

(marthastewart.com)

(Be aware that any china or glassware painted like this is no longer food-safe…use your real jadeite for that! ) 

Linking to Remodelaholic's Anonymous Link Party!  :)

Last Week’s Thrifting Haul

You just never know what you’re going to find.  I found lots of decor items last weekend, and a baby gate too (not pictured—who wants to look at a picture of a baby gate?).  Our little guy is very mobile now and the new house has an open stair down to the basement so a baby gate is  very  necessary. 
See that cute little footstool?  I thought it would be darling reupholstered in a velvet…perhaps with the legs painted or at least stained another shade?  $1.
Tin platter of the Sacre Coeur in Paris.  I have happy memories of that lovely church near Montmartre—this will go on a wall eventually.  25 c.
Two geometric metallic balls…50 c each.
Orange glass bowl…$1.
Cake plate (brand new Threshold brand from Target!) $1.
My favorite find of the week---metal urn, also a dollar.  I’ve seen these all over blogland and finally have one of my own now to decorate with!  Yay!  I could see this with evergreen boughs in at Christmas time. 
Blue basket (also originally from Target) $1.50
Garage saling can be really hit or miss, and I’m calling this week a hit.  :)  Our citywide garage sales are this weekend but I doubt I’ll have much time to go as we’re closing on our current house and the new house and moving on Thursday.  (EEEP!)
I’m excited to see what the garage sales are like in our new neighborhood! 

Scrounging and thrifting

My husband really  likes the term scrounging.  He will call me and tell me that he scrounged a candy bar or the like (unopened—I hope, ha!) at work.  It basically means he found it somewhere or got it for free and he rescued it. 
I’m ambivalent about the term, but this week when I was out garage saling I scrounged a few things…meaning I got them for free…that I’m excited about!
First off, this:

Not sure what exactly it was used for in it’s former life (it doesn’t seem to have ever held gasoline or anything like that in it)…but I’m thinking about using it as a pretty watering can, or even a flower pot!  Or maybe I’ll clean it up and use it in the house somehow.  We’ll see!
And this:

I realize this probably doesn’t look like much.  In fact, you might be wondering what rocker I’m off of. 
They’re canna lily bulbs!  One garage sale had a whole bunch of them for free, and they were really nice looking ones so I grabbed a bunch.  Despite the fact that we are moving and why on earth am I planting flowers that I will not see bloom?  Idon’tknoweither.  :)
(My sister said that she will adopt them!  Yay!)
I also got a red belt out of a freebie box.  No, I have no picture, but it was just a basic belt, red, and I have been looking for a red belt for a while.  That’s all. 
Now for things that I actually paid a small pittance for:

Milk glass candy jar (?), 50 cents.

Little pink glass pitcher.  50 cents too if I remember correctly. 

And I found more pale green glassware!  Someday I will actually research to see what this type of glassware is properly called.  I’m calling it my grandma’s green glassware for now.  :)
And now for my favorite thing:

Ta-da!!!!  A vintage polaroid camera--$5.  I can picture it in my future studio/craft room/office, on a shelf.  It has a really neat, almost sculptural, element to it.  Love it!! 
I’m really excited about this garage sale season! 
And no, I do not plan to post only garage-sale find posts for the rest of the spring/summer.  :)

Garage Sale-ing in the Northlands

So…garage sales have finally started in this area!  This is the 2nd weekend with warm enough weather and I am so excited to get out there and see what treasures are waiting for me. 
I have one slight problem.  I don’t want to get lots more stuff to move (see this post).  However, I have found that if I don’t go garage saling, I will have to pay waaaay more for kids clothes new or even thrifted when I actually need them.  So I think I need to go garage saling. 
Yep, I’m pretty sure I need to. 
If it happens we have a few more boxes of stuff to move, so be it.  (At least that’s what I’m telling myself now.)  :)
I hit a few sales and found lots of goodies this morning.  Around here, you have to get out right away on Thursday morning to get the best stuff.  Once in a while if I see something I like but it is way overpriced I will go back on a Saturday morning to see if they’ll come down on it.  Then I also have time to think about if I actually should have it.  Usually the answer is no. 
Garage saling with little kids is tricky.  If I take them all out at each garage sale, that means more time spent unbuckling and buckling them into their carseats—and that time can really add up.  Generally I bring a book on CD to play in the car for them and leave the car running while I dash in to the garage sale.  They eventually get tired of this and that is when the snacks come out.  Or I alternate bringing them into a garage sale (or just one of them each time) so they get a little variety.  If a sale has lots of kids toys I bring them all out so they can have a little fun playing (gently!  I hope anyway!) while I shop.  So far this approach has worked pretty well.  However, this is only the 2nd weekend of garage saling for me with three kids, so we’ll see.  I would like this to continue to be fun for everyone and not end up with kids who hate garage saling. 
On to the finds!

Frame is sturdy and 8X10 size--so as many others do, I just remove the art, spray paint the frame, and pop something new in there—all for 1.00!
Four Fire King orange mugs…have no idea if they have any monetary value but I heart their bright and happy colors so they are definitely worth the 25c each I paid for them! 
Milk glass plate and vase—I think 50c each.  Brass bowl 50c. 
 
I’m excited about this plate.  Why?  My sister gave me a condiment tray that used to belong to my late grandmother in this exact same pattern and color…so this also now reminds me of my sweet grandma.  Love!
Ignore the weird hand…I just realized my fingers pressed against the glass look kind of creepy. 
 
I’m a little ambivalent about this plate.  It is cute and the sentiment rings true but we’ll see where it ends up.  I think it was 25c?

I also got this big wad of new fabric.  It was originally from Ikea and is hearts made out of the number 2.  I already have so much fabric but I thought this could make cute graphic pillows or curtains for our daughter’s room as she grows older. 
And now…

Ok.  I realize this is not the best picture of this.  And it isn’t even all screwed together the way it should be.  But…this is a HUGE chandelier.  Are you thinking what I’m thinking??

(Amazing chandelier from Vintage Revivals)

Yep.

So it isn’t as intricate or as big as the chandelier that Mandi found…but I am envisioning it a bright color and hanging somewhere in our new house (that we haven’t found yet).  And it was only $10!!  So excited. 

Those are my fun finds from the past couple of weeks!  I got a lot of kids clothes too but those just aren’t as fun to look at…at least not without kids in them.  :)