Blinded by the light - $15 Hallway light transformation

I hope everyone had a fantastic weekend. We, here in Southern Ontario, celebrated our Thanksgiving with amazing summer like weather. It was fantastic! Not only did we get to go outside and clean up the garden before it get cold, we got to enjoy our local craft fairs without there being rain or mud.

Since I have not been well for the past while, I missed my mother's and sister's birthdays. This is not a huge deal as I see them all the time, but I hate not celebrating it. So, my mom and I went out last week for lunch and an afternoon of thrifting. It was loads of fun and I scored a few fantastic deals.

My mom has an odd staircase lighting situation. It is quite normal to have a light generally where hers is, but the exact placement is off. the light sits above the upper part of the stairs as opposed to the lowe half. She has purchased numerous lights to fit in the spot and nothing seemed to work. Chandeliers hang down too far and you run the risk of hitting your head on them, while flush and semi-flush mounts are too small and don't fill the space well.

Well in our thrifting travels, I found an amazing semi-flush light that had great potential for the bargain basement price of $15. My mom immediately fell in love with it the shape and size of the light but feared attempting to redo it. Since I have mastered the art of spray painting, I decided this could be my gift to her as her belated birthday gift. I know...I am a really big spender.

Here is the before in its tarnished brass state (don't you love the octagon shape and etched glass):

 Here is the after in all its ORB glory:

Here is what I did. Before I purchased the light, I made sure all the glass was in good condition and that it could be removed. I love to spray paint, I hate to tape things!

 All the glass for this light could be removed by taking off two decorative screw covers located at the top and bottom of each piece of glass. So easy, I didn't even need any tools.

After it was all apart, I used painters tape to prevent spray paint from venturing where it should not be, like the electrical wires and where the bulbs screw into.

I gave the entire thing a quick cleaning and then I took all the metal pieces, including the decorative screws, into the garage to my formal spray painting location. Do you like it? What a fancy set up...a large piece of cardboard on the ground. Can you guess what my favorite color of spray is?

I primed all the pieces with white primer. Normally I would use grey primer but I ran out after my last project and I wanted to get this started. I am not a patient person. I then waited about 2.5 minutes and pulled out my favorite Krylon Oil Rubbed Bronze spray paint. I did probably four or five really light coats to prevent any dripping. Here is what the first coat looked like:

I only wait a few minutes between each coat, so it really doesn't take too long.  After I let it dry for a few hours, I flipped it over and did the spots I missed on the underside.

Question for everyone out there reading this: It did take a full can to do this, only because my spray paint can got stuck while spraying. Have you ever had a can of Krylon spray paint get stuck before? I have never had the nozzle get stuck. I turned the can upside down to see if it would stop it but it just emptied out. I could maybe expect it from an old can, but this was brand new. I couldn't figure it out. Thank goodness I always have another can on hand.

After letting it dry for a full day, I reassembled the lamp and was amazed at how beautiful it was. It weighed a lot with all the glass, so my husband cursed me the entire time he was risking his life leaning over my mother's staircase trying to hang it. But it is now hanging and it looks perfect.

 

 

What do you think? Not bad for $15 and a can of spray paint! Would you be happy with this as a Birthday gift?

Now I just need to find something for my sister :)

Stephanie

P.S. Have you ever had a can of Krylon spray paint get stuck spraying before?
Linking to some great parties including: Story of A2Z, Thrifty Home