The Banker's Lamp Redo

A few months ago, I embarked on a shopping excursion via the internet. 

I'd seen a post on Instagram about Magnolia Market and that a majority of their stock came from the wholesaler, Creative Co-op. 

Not all of it, but a fair amount of their inventory comes from this source. 

Dreams of having a retail shop filled with wonderful trinkets started floating through my head. 

I saw a lamp while I was binge browsing.  

It was desk lamp with a green shade. 

The metal was gold.

I wanted it!
I was quitting my job so I did not purchase the lamp. You can find it on Amazon.  

I found a banker's lamp at the thrift store with a yummy, green shade. 

You all know how I've been crushing on green this year. 

I set it on the kitchen table. 

Bill said, "You re-bought our old lamp?" 

Indeed. 

We used to have this lamp.
Almost everyone had this lamp. 

Bill is a banker so we had an obligation to have this style of lamp on his desk. 

It was an anniversary or birthday gift to him when we were newlyweds and we had no money.
We had money but no extra money or "funny money" as we like to call it. 

The base needed a bit of an update.
Tape and paper helped keep the paint off of the yummy shade.
Oil Rubbed Bronze by Rust-Oleum is the color I used. 

It's perfect on the piano.
It adds a pop of green to that corner.

It matches the stained glass window. 

Let's talk about the piano. 

Yup. I painted it. 

Before you embark on a freak out, let me state that I've had it evaluated twice. 

The Texas heat and humidity have not been kind to this instrument. It cannot be tuned.
It sounds terrible. 

My son and I are the only ones that ever played this piano. 

He lives in New York so it doesn't get used much.

I checked with the guy at the antique mall. There is no market for vintage pianos. 

None. 

We could have given it to the thrift store but they didn't need another upright piano taking up their precious, retail space.
They have had several sitting there for a while.
No one in the family wanted it.
It was orange and it had flood damage.
It could have been stripped and re-stained to fix the damage but painting was so much easier.

So it got the "Katie Mansfield nothing is safe from the paintbrush" treatment. 

It fits in with our decor so much better than the damaged, orange wood.

Please pray for my neighbor to the west of me because now that I'm retired, I'm going to play it again. 

Hopefully, she cannot hear it through the walls because this is painful to listen to.
The dog has been in hiding. 

There it is, the unfiltered story of our piano.

The new/old lamp is adorable. 

Have a great day. 

Katie 

Katie's Complete Guide To Flocking

I figured it out and it's only taken me three years.
Go me! 

I love the look of flocked trees and flocked branches. 

Let's face it, you can't replace all of your greenery and your trees on a whim.
Our greens were getting flocked!

I read every Pinterest tutorial that I could find.

Some of them sounded unbelievably messy and I'm not even sure that we have a sifter anymore.
 I tried painting our boughs with a brush and white primer.
That took too long so I switched to white spray paint. 

We set up a plastic spray paint panic area in the garage.
Let's be clear, it wasn't me that was panicking.

Bill has had some traumatic experiences with my tendency to overspray.

It worked pretty well but the branches looked frosted not snowy.
Then I found something called Snow Tex.

It created a look that evokes snow clumped on the tips of the branches particularly if iridescent glitter is sprinkled on it while it is still wet.
I bought two little jars. They were about $4.00 each and I used every drop.  

This year however, I couldn't find Snow Tex at Hobby Lobby.
Ebay didn't have it either.
The other day I was staring at my painting supplies looking for anything that could be used to give some other branches a dusting of snow. 

Bill had a can of popcorn ceiling repair but it was all clogged up. 

When I'm in the midst of a project, going to the store is not an option. 

I'll make do rather than get dressed, fix my hair and put on makeup. 

This is Texas. 

You can't go anywhere without hair and makeup. 

It is a rule strictly enforced by the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders. 

I spied with my little eyes a tub of joint compound and thought it might work. 

It does! It is very reminiscent of the Snow Tex.
I began to suspect that the Snow Tex is actually joint compound in disguise.

I had fun freshening up some tired old branches with paint, glitter and joint compound.
It was almost like it snowed.

Finally, I have to show you these darling mugs.

We found them at Kroger the other night.
Kroger and I had been a little on the outs but now they are totally redeemed in my eyes.
They are speaking my language with these green and black buffalo checked cuties.
They also had a green blanket that somehow ended up in the shopping cart.
I've checked all my regular retailers and there is hardly any dark green to be had.
Go Kroger.
I'm done decorating the inside of the house.
I can't wait to show you.
Thanks for stopping in to see what I've been up to.
Have a blessed day.
Katie

Don't forget to link up to Monday Social #11.

Pinterest Fail

I try to make sure that we have plenty of ride-on vehicles at the school. 

The Cozy Coupe is a favorite. 

I try to pick them up when I see them at garage sales or at the thrift store. 

I found this one in my neighbor's trash. 

Even though it is horribly faded, it was in otherwise great shape.

I love Pinterest!

It has been a great source of inspiration for me. 
I'd seen similar cars on the site painted black to look like the Bat Mobile.
I brought it home and coated our car with 2 1/2 cans of spray paint designed for plastic.

Instead of the bat wings, I cut a shield stencil.

That didn't work but more spray paint covered up the mistake.  

A friend of mine was going to make me a vinyl sticker with her Silhouette. 

I'm not sure she needs to bother. 

This is what the car looks like after exactly one week of school. 

                                 

One week! 

                                  

I'm pretty confident that this will end up looking worse than it did when I started. 

It is too bad because the children love it black.

The spray paint was $6.98 a can. It took a fair amount of paint.  

A new Cozy Coupe runs around $45.00. 

A good used one from the thrift is about $15.00-$20.00.

I have found them for $8.00 at garage sales. 

(The new cars have issues with newly designed tires. 

The wheels split in the center and fall off so I prefer the older cars.)

 I'm not sure this project was worth it financially but it certainly let me know that the spray paint designed for plastic won't hold up with moderate wear and tear. 

Have you used this product?

I used it on a flower pot and it's held up fine. 

Not so the car used by dozens of preschoolers.  

Thanks for stopping by. 

Katie 

Update Fixtures With Spray Paint

I went a little crazy with spray paint when I first started blogging. 

I was afraid at first that others would be able to tell that stuff was sprayed but I had to get rid of all the bright, blingy 90s brass.

It was like a walk down memory lane once I started thinking about all the updates we made with spray paint.

Light fixtures have a lot of impact once they are painted. 

It is a great way to update a dated brass fixture.

I've painted ceiling fans.

 I waited until Bill was out of town, covered everything in plastic and went for it. 

I recommend spraying a little bit and then running out of the room for fresh air. 
This was so worth it. I've completely forgotten what it looked like before.

We did some of the outlets covers and switch plates.





The faucets in two of our bathrooms got sprayed before they were replaced. 

Spray painting this faucet because of its porcelain handles was more successful than the master bath without the porcelain handles. 

Eventually the handles on the master started to chip.
I simply gave them another coat but I wanted to eliminate the problem by putting on the porcelain handles that came with all the faucets. 
Bill threw them away. 
The lesson here? 
Never put your husband in charge of extra handles! 
#itoldyouso
He was sure we would never need them.

This was a very low cost redo using only paint but in the end we had black mold lurking behind our tub and shower so it all had to go. 
That being said, I would recommend spray painting faucets particularly if they have porcelain handles. 
See our updated master bathroom.

Door knobs?
I'd do it again except for high traffic doors like the pantry or trash closet. 

We have 28 doors. I'm sure a few mental calculations and you can get close to how much it cost to replace all the door knobs in this house. We did eventually replace them all. 
We did it in stages so it wasn't too horribly painful unless you can't remember how much it cost and you ask your husband. Then the pain he felt at spending all that money becomes your pain.

Don't forget the hinges.

The little pulls and knobs on some of my furniture pieces got a coat.

A very dated and yellowing thermostat cover received a dusting of paint.

This update had my brother thinking I had lost my mind!
Haha.

I even spray painted the refrigerator magnets. 

Yes, I did.

Let's recap: light fixtures, ceiling fans, switch plates, outlet covers, faucets, door knobs, hinges, knobs and pulls, thermostat covers and refrigerator magnets.

I had a good love affair with
 Rust-O-leum, Oil Rubbed Bronze. 
Like all good things, it had to end. 

I fell in love with white.
Katie 
Linking with,
Between Naps on the Porch 
A Stroll Thru Life 
The Scoop #155  
Savvy Southern Style   
Share a Daily Cup of Mrs. Olson  
From My Front Porch to Yours 
Feathered Nest Friday

White Lamps

I bought some cute white lamps for Rebekah's room when she was a kid. Her room was seafoam green with floral chintz curtains. It was similar to the room at the link. 

Source: Pinterest 
I put one of her old lamps in my room when I was trying to banish some of the gold. 

It's an old milk glass lamp that I got at an antique mall. I liked the white so much that I decided to try spray painting the bedside lamps.

When we got our new bed three years ago. I ran out to Walmart to get something for the nightstands. I got a set of 3 lamps for a ridiculous $49.00. I always thought they would be temporary until we found some others but I never got around to replacing them.

 I used the same thing that I used on my thrift store lamp. RustOLeum in Semigloss white. 
Instead of taping off the cords and the sockets I covered with them with tin foil.
It was so much easier than taping everything off. I knew I would need new shades but didn't want to buy them until I knew the lamps would look good.

I was pleased with the result so I again ran up to Walmart for new shades.

I found these darling shades for only $10 each. 

I love the way that white paint defines the details of the lamps. 

I love their clean lines and classic column detail.
I don't think I could have gotten one new lamp let alone 2 for $20.00 and some paint.

Bill loves the white shade. 
It's easier to read with it lighter. 

I love them. I think the room is pulled together. 
I love them so much, I am off to do some more for the dining room. 
Have a great day,
Katie
Funky Junk Interiors  

Coastal Charm  
Between Naps on the Porch  
My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia   
Savvy Southern Style