first project!

i did my first project for the blog last week! when my mom and i went "junking" during spring break, i got lots of great stuff for the new place, one of which being this lamp. i love quirky lamps (lamps in general are great because really, who likes overhead lighting?). but it is difficult to find a new one that is cheap and not boring. however, i will be the first to admit that this lamp was not looking too good when i found it. the shade alone could give you nightmares. but the base just needed a little help, and the wiring was in working condition, plus i think it is actually antique.

and on that note, if you are of the opinion that antiques shouldn't be painted or otherwise tampered with, well, some of the things i do may upset you, so read on with discretion. although be assured if something was a valuable piece or otherwise significant, i would never paint it hot pink.

to start off i cleaned all the dust off and gave the metal parts a good rub down with some steel wool. i knew i wanted to keep the clear glass, so i taped it up. if you are trying this on your own lamp, be warned - this was the most difficult step, mostly because of the shape of my lamp. but you

really want to take your time to do this part right.

after taping everything up, i sprayed the parts i wanted to paint with a spray primer and let it dry. i ended up using some regular paint that i had and a sponge brush, but you could use spray paint if you wanted to

(although my lamp had small nooks and crannies that it would have been difficult to spray paint).

i was fortunate to find a great lampshade on sale at target (why are lampshades so pricey anyway??) that has a cool damask pattern on the inside that shows through when the bulb is on.

i think the project was a success. i did have to do a little cleaning up of the paint after i removed the tape, but luckily glass is easy to clean paint off of. i might wrap the cord in some colored electrical tape.