metallic – A Smith of All Trades

Shiny pumpkins

November 16, 2015 Jessica Smith

My pumpkins from Dana’s shower still have life left in them, so I transitioned them from fall to winter this weekend with some Krylon metallic spray paint.

Pumpkins_silver

I went out early yesterday morning and loaded these babies up with silver spray paint. I really liked how they turned out, so I grabbed some of the mini pumpkins from inside.

Pumpkins_silverandgold

I mixed it up with the minis, using both silver and gold.

Pumpkins_Silver1

I was impressed with how shiny the Krylon paints came out and was thankful that each pumpkin only required one coat. I am the messiest spray painter, so I would have been all silver, too, if the pumpkins needed more coverage.

pumpkins_silverandgold1

Once the pumpkins dried (I left then outside to dry all day, so I can’t say how long it took, exactly) I put them all at my front door for a cute little fall/winter display.

Pumpkins_doors1

I wondered if anyone would notice, since our front “porch,” if you can even call it that, isn’t visible from the road. But I had Dana’s bridesmaids over last night and they oohed and ahhed.

Pumpkins_doors

The metallic pumpkins look so cute with my winter wreath, too! I wonder how much longer the pumpkins will hold out — with the chilly weather, I’m hoping to have these shiny beauties for a few more weeks.

… and I’m looking for more things to use the Krylon spray paint on. IT’S JUST SO SHINY. SPRAY ALL THE THINGS.

When Thanksgiving is over, I’m definitely going to have to find another use for it.

Furniture

Before & After: Child’s Desk

February 8, 2014February 6, 2014 Jessica Smith

One of the big furniture projects I recently tackled was an overhaul of a kids’s desk. I found this awesome desk at a thrift store, but boy did it need some love.

I immediately had grand visions for this desk and let me tell you, they didn’t include the mermaid blue, shabby shic look.

So I painted, painted and painted some more. Again, I used a flat white paint and mixed in some Paint Minerals. This stuff gives the paint a chalky finish to it and leaves the surface very smooth. So far, I’m really pleased with how the Paint Minerals works with the paint. You don’t need to sand or prime and it covers really well.

I wanted the book shelves on each side of the piece to pop, so I painted a metallic glaze inside each shelf and then wiped each shelf down with a rag. It created a messy-ish sort of look in each cubby that I really like.

For the top, I painted with a gray-brown chalkboard paint. Some kid is gonna love this desk.

I waxed the whole piece using Johnson Paste Wax. This was my first time using a furniture wax and it left my piece feeling so smooth to the touch.

Check out these after pictures:

Love.

I think this desk was definitely transformed for the better.

Furniture

Metalic Pedestal Side Table

July 25, 2013July 22, 2013 Jessica Smith

I’ve had this beautiful silver tray for more than a year now, holding onto it because I knew eventually I’d come up with something cool for it. Well, I finally was inspired to tackle the tray, turning it into a side table for my navy blue chair.

My coworker and I were rummaging through a local thrift store on our lunch break last week and I found (what Rachel called) a plant stand that would become the perfect base for my table.

A whole $5 later and I took that puppy home and got to work. First, I had to remove the top of the plant stand. Whoever built this screwed the top in right through the top itself. It didn’t look so hot, but whatevs.

Once the top was off, I wanted to cut the icky part of the base off of the top. It was covered in an adhesive and was rather gunky.

My hacksaw quickly did the trick.

Next up, drilling through my tray. I used a drill bit that was capable of drilling through metal to put a hole smack dab in the middle of my tray.

Then using a screw, I secured the tray to the top. In theory, I’ll eventually get a nicer screw for the top that is even less noticeable, but the one I chose you can barely see, so it works for now.

Ta da!

Except my hubby thought it was really ugly. And the more I looked at it, especially next to the chair, the more I thought it was sorta ugly, too

So then I decided to spray paint the base black. I did the best spray paint job of my life, which involved a TON of patience. A few coats later and a coat of primer and I was almost finished.

One last step — I cut a small circle of thin wood out to sit under the tray so it wouldn’t be flimsy. After painting this black, too, I secured the table back together.

Much better, huh?

It’s the perfect size for a side table, although Brian still hates it so I might relocate this table into our downstairs bathroom to hold a few decorative knickknacks and some hand lotion.

I think it’s pretty darn cute, though. And for under $10 — heck yes!

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