This weekend, I worked on finishing up my guest room project (which was 75% done). I am really happy with the guest room results but I still felt that the room needed a few more accessories, like an art piece on the wall opposite the bed and a chair for guests to throw their junk on. After my usual treasure hunt in the garage, I found the most hideous, atrocious and tackiest lamp (thanks Dad!).
If I wasn't such an optimist when it comes to salvaging household items, this lamp would have ended up in the dumpster. The lamp consisted of iron green vines that led up to faded red roses and was covered in at least three layers of dust, dirt and grime. After a serious cleaning with a damp cloth, I tried to decide what to type of life this new lamp would lead. I went to Home Depot and tried to decide on a spray paint (yum, spray paint) color. Here were the options:
White high gloss - I love the effect of high gloss and I think this lamp would look awesome in white. However, white combined with the vine and flower detailing of the lamp just screamed shabby chic. Don't get me wrong. I am not a shabby chic snob and am actually a fan of this style but shabby chic doesn't have a place in the new guest room; and the lamp would definitely look out of place.
Slate Blue satin - Slate Blue satin is one of my favorite spray paint colors (most of the pieces in the new guest room are painted in this shade of blue). Honestly, part of me wanted to color the lamp in Slate Blue because I had two cans leftover from a prior project and well, I am cheap. I even gave the lamp a once-over in Slate Blue. As much as tried, I couldn't bring myself to love the lamp in Slate Blue. Instead of giving new life to the lamp, it just seemed to dull down the vines and the flowers and made it look drab.
Candy Apple Red high gloss - Winner! Winner! Chicken Dinner! I previously used this red on some other accessories in the room and loved the effect. This is a big bold color and I wasn't sure how it would show on such a big piece like the lamp. I was afraid it would look gaudy. After giving a once over on the lamp, I loved the result. The lamp not only looked cleaner but more vibrant and alive. The lamp would have a new life in the guest room as a gorgeous red art piece.
The best part about this project is that it only cost me $3.74 (I only needed one can of spray paint). Not too shabby (and I don't mean shabby chic), huh?
Here are some other pieces that I've used spray paint on in the past:
Old dining chair from Pier 1 (weird, I still have the dining chair in the garage but the rest of the set is MIA) spray painted in Slate Blue, to blend in with the rest of the room.
Crusty musty dining chair (another great flea market find) made over in white high gloss spray paint and a new chair pad in a classic marimekko pattern. Ironically, this project cost around $14 to complete (around $6 for a can of primer and a can of white high gloss and $8.00 for two yards of the fabric at a discount store). I later sold this chair for $25 at a garage sale. I felt like such an entrepreneur!
Spray paint: Painting the ugly away!
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