Jack Be Nimble
I’m back with an easy thrift store upgrade. John and I snagged this seen-better-days brass candlestick at Goodwill for $1.99 after I convinced him that a bright and modern color would complement the traditional shape for a clean and current result in about five minutes flat.
So I spray painted that sucker with some glossy yellow paint (Rust-Oleum Painter’s Touch Gloss spray paint in Sun Yellow)…
… and ended up with a nice new (and super cheap) accessory in a fun and happy color. Here he is accompanied by his three candle friends. Anyone humming Beauty & The Beast yet? Totally reminds us of Lumiere.
Simple? Check. Cheap? Check? Anyone can do it? Check. Plus we’re planning to do a little seasonal decorating and we think this guy will come in handy for all sorts of occasions (Halloween, Thanksgiving, fall in general, etc). So stay tuned to see a few fun arrangements with our new yellow candlestick.
And speaking of quick thrift store makeovers, what have you guys been transforming on the cheap? Any other candlestick projects going on?
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How funny…..we just bought a very similar looking brass candelabra at the Goodwill for $.99. I’ve left it looking aged since we are using it for a Halloween decoration with dripping blood candles. Perhaps after Halloween we will paint ours a fun color as well.
I love the transformation! Good color choice as well. I love Goodwill, but find them so hit or miss, you know?
Hey Carolyn,
So true. We like to slide through Goodwill with limited expectations since it really is a hit or miss thing.
xo,
s
Nice! It looks great!! We just did a super cheap makeover of our porch for some autumn cheer. We even managed to make some of our own decor for $4.50!
http://www.athomealterations.com/2010/09/colors-of-autumn.html
Totally reminds me of Beauty & the Beast!
And I’m in love with yellow recently! A neighbor left this chair on their curb on trash day so I totally snagged it and painted it a fun yellow with a couple $3 sample cans from Lowe’s: http://hernandohouse.wordpress.com/2010/09/09/attack-of-the-billion-projects/
Sherry, This candlestick looks JUST like Lumiere, and I love it! What a great idea. I love quick projects like this one.
OOOh love it! Very Anthropologie-ish – awesome find!
what a great post! just bought an ugly brass lamp at a yard sale on saturday for $2. I’m still deciding what to do with it: polish it to make it look like silver? spray paint it? seeing your yellow candlestick makes me wanna grab that spraypaint! Can’t stand the ugly brass much longer!
That looks fantastic!
I JUST finished an upgrade today from old pillows. I knit on a regular basis and had these decorative pillows with old, worn down maroon covers. I took cream and taupe yarn that I already had and knit a striped cover to rematch them to our current color scheme! Free and entertaining for a few hours :-)
http://pics.livejournal.com/auraolaura/pic/00048fzt/
Trés chic! I’m loving just about anything yellow lately.
You people with your teasers!! :D I can’t wait to see your fun arrangements!! It looks awesome!!
It looks great! I love the pop of yellow and it is so versitile. I recently updated some ugly brass in a different way:
http://ourhumbleabowed.wordpress.com/2010/09/09/how-to-update-brass/
Looks great! Could you please share the spray paint brand and color? I picked up a headboard this weekend that I plan to paint a happy yellow.
Hey Marti,
We used Rust-Oleum Painter’s Touch Gloss spray paint in Sun Yellow from Home Depot. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
We just upgraded our front hall light fixture – for free! We had this stained glass ball that can hang from the ceiling and has a hole in the bottom so we just secured it over the lightbulb to make a really cool mood lighting when you first walk in the house! So easy!
I love the candlestick!! It is beauty and the beast!! You make me want to decorate for fall and Holidays!
Totally! I snagged 3 candlesticks from my local A.C.Moore that were on super clearance (1.50 a piece!) that were originally an icky glossy grey with scuffs and what have you. I spray painted them matte black and it perked them right up. Because I saved on those, I splurged on white candlesticks from Yankee Candle that drip “blood”, and I’m ready for Halloween! :)
I love this transformation! I’ve been dying to paint anything and everything, but haven’t found the right project yet. I love this – and what’s even better is that it DOES in fact scream Lumiere!
Love it! I am going to attempt this very same thing to part of a pair of fugly blue glass lamps I snagged off craigslist. Can I ask what you cleaned the surface with before painting? Alcohol? And did you use high gloss paint or spray on a clear coat after? I seem to have a problem even after cleaning with the nasty bubbling up of the paint as I spray on a clear gloss afterward. Thanks! I don’t want to screw these up! :)
Hey Cheryle,
We never use a clear coat spray since it can get complicated as you mentioned. Instead we just pick the “high gloss” finish for our spray paint and do it all in one step (no top coat or sealant necessary). And I actually just wiped down our candlestick with a moist rag to get it gleaming, so I didn’t use alcohol or vinegar or anything (although you can probably google around for a natural brass cleaning recipe if you’d like- we just get worried about those ingredients reacting poorly with the spray paint so we keep it simple. Good luck!
xo,
s
Adorable! I would have never been into this color until I saw Tori Spelling throw a yellow & white party on Tori & Dean (don’t judge – I might have been home sick that day). The crisp white with the bright daffodil yellow was OUTSTANDING! Great choice!
PS. Did the spray paint have to be special for metal?
Hey Tiffany S,
Nope, pretty much all spray paint is perfect for metal (metal takes paint really well actually) so just apply two or three thin and even coats. And you might want to use Rustoleum paint if the metal has any rust on it. Good luck!
xo,
s
I am loving the yellow color right now, especially with gray. I am working on a craigslist find right now and the most expensive part is the splurge on some Anthropologie knobs. It is amazing what spray paint can do to a piece of furniture or a found object!
This is fabulous!! Oh, the wonders of spray paint. I just spray painted our chandelier (which you can see from every room on our main floor) white and it was such an easy/cheap update. Great work! abby
Lumiere!!! Ha. Cute.
I got a round solid wood table at Goodwill for $35. It was seriously ugly. I followed your directions for painting it (sanding, priming, 2 coats semi-gloss, 1 coat varnish. I already owned all those things. I now have a drop-dead gorgeous round solid wood *white* table – plus I scored 6 already primed white chairs at a yard sale for $15, and am in the process of painting them. Total cost for like-new table + 6 chairs: $50. Happy. Love ya, YHL!
So glad you scored such a deal and good luck with the transformation! Love ya right back.
xo,
s
Totally reminds me of Lumiere! It’s looking gorgeous!
Love it!
That spraypainted cardboard is a bit scary, though.
Yes! The Habitat for Humanity Restore is the most fabulous source for ugly, brass fixtures. We bought some 90′s-tastic wall sconces there before we moved, and I hope to hang them in our current house. I just haven’t decided what color to paint them yet.
Your candelabra came out very chic!
I’ve been looking at GW for something like this to paint black for Halloween (and maybe add some black crystals/prisms to?) I saw this on Target’s website and got the idea. No luck yet!
http://tinyurl.com/33qdqj4
I also have my eye out for scroll-y picture frames to paint black like these from Horchow:
http://tinyurl.com/23vvjsc
That is totally cheerful and vibrant! Good job!
I LOVE the transformation and that candelabra would definitely run major bucks had it been bought at Anthropologie. Can I ask what color spray paint you used?
Hey Raquel,
We used Rust-Oleum Painter’s Touch Gloss spray paint in Sun Yellow from Home Depot. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Such funny timing for a Lumiere reference! When my husband and I went to the movies on Sunday afternoon one of the previews was for a one-night-only special event at the theatre…a Beauty and the Beast Sing Along! So basically I have been singing “Be Our Guest” in my head for the past 48 hours and naturally thought of Lumiere as soon as I saw the candlestick, even before I read what you wrote! Too funny! :o)
And P.S. I love the yellow! I don’t usually have the patience to sift through thrift stores, but this really makes me want to try!
What a fun color! I absolutely love it!
You totally surprised me with the bright yellow – I love!
Oh, boy, am I a fan of using spray paint to breath more life into an object. I promise you not everything in my home is spray painted!
http://goodmorningidea.blogspot.com/2010/01/key-lime-project.html
http://goodmorningidea.blogspot.com/2010/01/sunburst-mirror.html
http://goodmorningidea.blogspot.com/2010/01/red-dresser-project.html
I’m kind of a pro now!
I love this idea. I don’t think spray painting a brass candlestick would have ever crossed my mind. I love how the modern color adds an interesting twist to the classic design!
I actually bought a brass candle stick from the thrift store this weekend for $1 and painted it gloss black to go in my kitchen. I also got a brand new brass chandelier for $5 and painted it black for my kitchen.
Check out the project here: http://erinbinspired.blogspot.com/2010/09/on-weekend-projects.html
I’ll have to keep the bright color in mind for next time. I could use a yellow one for my living room. Looks great! :)
Lumiere! Love it!! It’s amazing what a little paint can do!
I recently updated some drab black candle sticks as well as these plain cream candles. It was the first time I have ever glazed anything and it went surprisingly well. BTW ~ I loved your striped bathroom, so I had to do one of my own. Thanks for the inspiration it turned out wonderfully!
I love love love this. I’ve been wanting to do a spray paint project like this in exactly that colour as I think it would pop spectacularly against our Dusted Damson paint. Now I just need something to spray and some paint – it’s a little harder to find good spray paint here in the UK>>>
Love this! Such a quick and simple change. Fun color too!
This looks great. You guys are such an inspiration. :)
Love it love it love it! How long does a can of spray paint last? How much area will one cover?
Hey Sarah,
It really depends how often you use it and what you’re spraying. Perhaps they have coverage info on the can?
xo,
s
Love the yellow!
It’s so charming! I totally want to make one!
This is a good thing for people to keep in mind if they move into a house with a dated brass chandelier in the dining room but can’t invest right away in something new. A little spray paint can work wonders!
YESSSSS! First-person Sherry reigns supreme! I LOVE IT! :)
I LOVE Goodwill for snagging vintage household items to repurpose! I adore the yellow candeabra! I think that color can carry you through anything…It would look adorable anywhere in your house…even Clara’s room…but, maybe without the candles :)
I’m always transforming something. :) I actually have some candlesticks on my to-do list to paint today. I’m painting them black though for Halloween. I love this yellow color! It looks great. And spray paint is SO easy!
I did a floor lamp for my daughter’s room recently. Looked forever for a white floor lamp but couldn’t find one. Goodwill here I come! Here’s the link – http://houseography.blogspot.com/2010/09/floor-lamp-revamp.html
Wow, what a great find and a great result! I love the way it turned out!
Awesome. Always love a good coat of spray paint. I’ve been keeping an eye out for one of these myself! Thanks for the extra motivation!
very Beauty and the Beast! love it!