Two Fun Little Mini-Makeovers

One day while on a quick lil' perusing Goodwill trip I came across this vintagey tissue box cover.  I immediately thought, "Yeck, how tacky is that?"  But then I put on my superpower goggles (you know the kind, most of you have them too, the kind that lets you see what this could look like once you're done with it).  So, I looked a little closer.  If you could see past the glare of that shiny brass finish, it really did have some beautiful detailing.  I wasn't really sure at the time what I would do with it, because even fixed up, it wasn't really my style.  But for $1.99, I decided to experiment.

 

It sat around my house for a week or so and every time I passed it I tried to picture it fixed up a different way.  Painted white and distressed, painted the all-so-popular aqua blue, etc.  Finally one day it hit me.  This would be perfect for my mom!  For as long as I can remember she has always had 1 or 2 boxes of tissues sitting around.  And it worked out perfect because her birthday was coming up! 

So I decided to paint it black to match her living room decor, which is a French Country theme.  I ended up using ORB (oil rubbed bronze) and it turned out gorgeous!  It picked up the brassy highlights underneath, but overall still had the black finish.  BUT.........being all black, all the beatiful detailing was just lost.  You couldn't even see it, it just blended in.  I had read on someone's blog (so sorry, I can't remember who's it was or I'd give you credit) about using Rub-n-Buff to bring out the details in things.  So I bought a tube of the antique gold and set to work.  (My advice if you ever use this stuff, practice first!  I used TOO much the first time around and had to repaint the whole thing.  A little goes a long way!)

I love how it turned out!

The Rub-n-Buff picked up the details perfectly, made them stand out and be noticed, without looking overly "beat up" and roughed up.



 

This shot got a little over exposed, but you can still see some of the beautiful detailing along the top.



I was excited, but a little nervous, as I packaged it up for Mom.  I thought she'd like it, but wasn't for sure.  I included a little note with the "before" pictures and asked for her honest opinion.  Turns out she LOVED it!  Had been looking for just such a thing for quite awhile, but never could find one she was satisfied with.  Made my day to hear that!

So...on to the 2nd mini-makeover.  I found this little container at the dollar store and knew exactly what I would do with it and where to put it.  It's home was to be in the upstairs bathroom.

I gave it a couple of coats of ivory spray paint, roughed it up, added a lil' antiquing glaze, and then waited..........and waited.......and waited some more to find just the right flowers for a good price (cuz I'm cheap like that).  I'm not a big fan of fake flowers, so they have to look just right.  All the ones I liked were the uber-expensive ones, of course (the most realistic looking ones).  Even with a 40% off coupon at places like JoAnn's and Hobby Lobby, they were still much more than I wanted to pay.  FINALLY, one Saturday when the Hubster kept the kids and I was shopping alone (seriously...alone...wow!) I went to JoAnn's.  All their floral stuff was 50% off that day AND I had a 20% off coupon that was good even on sale items!!  Score!  So I got two bunches of these cute little guys for $4!

The truth is, even after I bought them, they sat on the bathroom counter for like a week and a half before I did anything with them.  But...eventually I got tired of moving them out of my way and did something about it.



I like it, not bad for $5, and it added a nice little touch of femininity without being overboard.   What do you think?  Have you done any fun little makeovers lately?  Are you cheap like me and would rather wait until the container is rusted for real before buying expensive flowers?  Or would you have just taken the hit, dove in, and finished it right away?


Gonna link up here:  DIY by Design, Restored it Wednesday - Restore Interiors, FJI Saturday Nite Special