And ORB wins it!

Not Orb, the winner of the Kentucky Derby, though kudos are indeed due to that gorgeous horse, but ORB, aka, oil-rubbed bronze spray paint.  Where would I be without it? A brassy and miserable place, my friends. Miserable.

Recall, the den started out heresville:

Fireplace and built ins, before.

Add paint, add some accessories, and you end up around about hereseville:

Today I decided that instead of cleaning, laundering, or cooking for the week ahead – or, God forbid I start the motion I need to file tomorrow before 9 tonight – I’d spray paint that brass fireplace screen.  The fireplace is wood burning, as you can see above, but I was told by a chimneysweep that it isn’t sealed properly, so it shouldn’t be used.  Whoops.  Goose and I really enjoyed this fire while it lasted.  It’s on the list of things to fix, but until then, it gets a $5.99 treatment. Onward!

I couldn’t find my painter’s tape. I just used it when I was painting the hutch. Where did it go? I have no idea. Post it notes make a wonderful substitute! Hint, hint, 3M.  This is not the world’s most perfect spray paint.  But it doesn’t matter. This thing is not long for this world because I am hoping to ditch it for a gas insert in the next 12 months.  And this was easy and nearly instant gratification. My favorite!

The lighting here is a little funky. My magical photo editing software that was on my old computer didn’t come preinstalled on this computer, so you are stuck with the photo as it looked through my phone’s camera. Blech! But you get the idea!  Now that this thing is bronzed, it draws way less attention. Just as it should be.

 

Santa Baby, Put a Gift Under the Tree for Me

Still no new camera here in wonderland. My cheapo $20 camera seems to have failed – incredible. I got one weekend of use out of it, and it took horrific pictures.  Shame that I wasted money on that thing.  I did get the camera on my phone to behave, so I have a few camera phone pictures of the low quality that I trust you have come to expect from me to share.  Maybe Santa will provide a better camera!

Disco ball ornaments from the Target dollar bins; hot pink yarn from A.C. Moore. Legs of random pieces of furniture and accompanying shadows are optional.

Simply string the ornaments onto the yarn.  No need to knit or crochet or use ornament hangers – I don’t want you to strain yourself.  Apply thusly to a mantel and hearth that are looking good, despite being far from completed.

I swoon.  I might keep my pink tree and my disco balls up year round. They make me smile.

The water spot that showed up on my ceiling late, late, late Wednesday night, however, did not make me smile.  Plumber is coming out tomorrow, courtesy of my home warranty.  Keep your fingers crossed, please, that it is easy to figure out the problem and sort out a solution.  I want to get around to doing fun things, like spray-painting my fireplace screen and such!

Crafty Time!

This is a good example of the before color – I didn’t take a before picture. Naughty blogger!

Lamps are expensive.  My dearest friend Sarah always comments that they are something that seems to cost more than it should.  I get that – lamps are pricey.  But, unless you happy to fall into one while playing football in your family room, they don’t wear out.  They can last decades.  They can certainly outlast their trendiness!  Case in point: the brass lamps my friend Cheryl gifted me with some awesome stuff when she cleaned her mom’s beach house out.

Upon first impression, the lamps were, how do you say, not precisely my cup of tea.  They were that bright yellow brassy color that was in fashion in the 80s.  My mom says it’s coming back in, but I don’t much care.  But after that first thought passed, I remembered the power of spray paint.  DUH!  I happily skittered away with these previously loved brass wunder-lamps, ready to take them home and work my magic on them.  I didn’t actually get to work much magic until more recently, however, since I had cleaning, organizing, packing, and unpacking to do.  I still do, really, but that’s neither here nor there.

The silhouettes are lovely, classical, timeless.  I’m so happy with how this guy turned out.

Here is the sad part: this is the only daylight photo I took.  But you can see that I rocked the oil rubbed bronze spray paint out.  Here it is siting next to its favorite new book from my friends* the Petersiks over at Young House Love.  And you can see another lamp that is waiting to be given the spray paint treatment sitting next to it.  Classic lines, right?  Just the one on the left feels right now, and the one on the right feels like 25 years ago.

*The Petersiks don’t actually know me.  Calling us friends might be a stretch.

Makes me happy.  Ooh, you know what else makes me happy?  That snazzy rectangular shade.  Picked that puppy up from Target.  The lamps came with shades that are a little more like the one in the first picture.  I’m not wild about them, but I am going to see if I can breathe some new life into them by using fabric spray paint and finding them homes in the bedrooms.  Anywho, a few more pics.

This gives you a better idea of the color and shows you a spot I need to touch up. I might go back and ORB the white plastic, I don’t know yet.

Isn’t this shade great? Feels a bit mod to me, nice contrast to the classic lines of the lamp.

In conclusion, I love lamp.  🙂  Actually, I lied.  That wasn’t my conclusion.  I showed my rejuvenated lamp to my mother, and she liked it so much she is going to do some spray painting of her own.  She has been very skeptical about my spray painting adventures, but now she is on team oil rubbed bronze!  I talked to her this afternoon and she told me she was eyeing up some brass candle holders she’s had forever.  That’s the ticket! Viva la revolucion de spray paint!