Trash to Treasure - Spray Painting Goodwill Finds

I'm in the process of pretty-ing up our built in bookcase, since it currently just collects random junk. I saw lots of cute silver candle holders and knick-knacks, but didn't want to spend a ton of money since I'm on a broke-college student budget... Always fun haha! I decided to do what any good crafter would do - figure out how to make some cute decor myself!

This process took me to my local Goodwill, where I found all of this. Each piece was either $0.49 or $0.99 - and my total came out to less than six bucks.

I picked up some metallic silver spray paint at Hobby Lobby for about $4 with my 40% off coupon, so this project ended up totaling about $10. I couldn't have bought ONE of those candle holders for that price!

I went to town with the spray paint to make everything match - and now you'd never know they were a hodge-podge of knick-knacks!

I'm pretty pleased with how everything turned out, and they all look so cute and tie everything together on our shelves! So simple and so inexpensive - gotta love it! Oh! And functional! This $0.49 plastic bowl looks so much better with a couple coats of spray paint and serves a great purpose - remotes are always all over the place!

Happy treasure hunting!!

- Kylie :)

DIY Scrapbook Paper Numbers & Letters

This is really quick and easy, but looks really nice once it's finished! The scrapbook paper you choose for this project really makes a difference, too. And it's really fun to mix and match coordinating colors, patterns and textures. I made these numbers for my bookshelf with our house number - fairly inexpensive project, but it's so bold and looks really great.

Materials Needed:

• Paper mache or wooden letters/numbers (I used paper mache for the numbers so that they'd be able to stand up on their own on the bookshelf.)
• Scrapbook paper
• Spray adhesive
• Scissors
• Pencil

Step One: Trace the Shape

The most important part about this step - make sure to flip the number around before you trace it so it is BACKWARDS. You'll be tracing it onto the back side of the paper, so it needs to be backwards during this step so that it looks correct when we glue the paper on the number later.

I forgot to account for that at first, as you can see below... Oops!

After you trace it, go ahead and cut it out, as precisely as possible.

Step Two: Spray Adhesive!

A little of this goes a long way! Spray a light, even amount on the number/letter itself and then place the paper on top. I found it best to adhere the paper to the bottom edge first and then work my way up - I was able to avoid air bubbles or crooked application. It also helps for the standing letters, just in case you had a little overhang from tracing, that way it's still standing on the letter, not the paper. Let it dry and that's it!

I didn't cover or paint the side of my numbers because I liked the rawness of the paper mache, and it matched the colors in my scrapbook paper choices. If you're not liking the idea of the paper mache showing though, just add a couple coats of paint before adhering the paper!

- Kylie :)

Hanging Mason Jar Vases

  

This is another fairly easy project, but a little more time consuming. I needed something on either side of a large canvas on my wall and this was the perfect solution. They're so pretty; this is my favorite blue color right now!

Materials Needed:

• Wood blocks
• Acrylic/craft paint
• Mason jars
• Hot glue gun
• Faux flowers

Step One: Paint the wood blocks.

I chose to paint mine a nice neutral color first, and then added a slightly darker color on the second coat to give it a worn, somewhat wood-like look. (I used "Suede" and "Tan," both by Craft Smart.)

Step Two: Paint the mason jars.

I used the color "Caribbean Blue" from Delta Ceramcoat, which is a nice, vintage-y blue. SO PRETTY, I'm obsessed right now. Anywayyyy, I did a couple layers, but you want a nice worn look, so don't try to cover it too perfectly; ideally you should see the brush strokes and some of the glass underneath. Don't worry about painting the rim of the jar (we're just gonna cover it up later.)

Step Three: Hot glue!

 

Once the paint on the wood blocks and the mason jars is completely dry, use the hot glue gun to glue the back, flat side of the mason jar to the center of the wood block. I placed the bottom of my mason jar a little lower than the bottom of the wood to leave room for the flowers above later. It should look something like this:

 

Step 4: Adding the ring.

If you like it then you should put a ring on it... because then it looks 10 times better. Take the lid and separate the seal from the ring. Set the seal aside for another project or toss it. Twist the ring only back on to the mason jar.

Add flowers and you're done!

- Kylie :)

Clothespin "Frames"

I found these adorable little clothespins in a pack of 10 at TJ Maxx and honestly, I purchased them impulsively because I just couldn't pass them up. I figured I could come up with some project I could use them on, and this was the result! This is such a simple, quick project, and the finished product is so cute!

Materials Needed:

• Wood blocks (I got my scraps from a friend that does woodwork, but you could probably use something from any craft store or go to Home Depot and have them cut something to the exact size you want. Mine are about 5x7in.)
• Acrylic/craft paint
• Hot glue gun
• Mini-clothespins

As I mentioned, I got my clothespins in a pack at TJ Maxx, but you could get a bag of plain ones at any craft store in the wood craft section and cover them with a scrapbook paper of your choice! That lets you customize them to your exact preference anyway and the possibilities would be endless!

This project is SO simple.

Step One: Paint the blocks.

 

I found that I needed a couple coats, especially since I was covering something that already had been painted previously. The yellow one in particular required 4 or 5 coats.

Step Two: Glue the clothespins.

 

After your paint is fully dry, carefully use your hot glue gun to glue the back of the clothespin to the top center of your wood block. Let the glue cool and set before adding your photos. I had extra clothespins, so I glued magnets to the back of some for our refrigerator and tacks to the others for my bulletin board too. They were just too cute to leave in my craft bin!

And that's it! Super fast and super easy! I hung up a couple of mine using Command strips, but I left another leaning against the wall on my nightstand. Either way, they're a nice pop of color in any room!

- Kylie :)