DIY: Adding Crystals To Sconces

Okay, I admit I wanted mini vintage crystal chandeliers for our bedroom in the new house. I wanted two! With each one hanging down beside the bed. But, my hubby, John can't look at light bulbs without shades and to put shades on those beautiful chandeliers would be a crime. So, I went on a search to the local antique junk shop and the thrift store's too. And here's a DIY of what I came up with. A vintage look without those hefty price tags!
Here's what you will need:
*2 matching sconces
*White spray paint
*Chandelier Crystals (I will let you know where I found these at later in the blog)
*Crystal Beads
*Illusion Cord (Um, just the plastic cord you can use to make a bracelet out of)

So, I found these 2 sconces at Goodwill Thrift Store. They were black cast iron and had Williamsburg, VA written on the back. Williamsburg? How'd they get to Harrisonburg? But, hey, I need some mystery in my life!

A lovely coat of white spray paint. Heads up Dollar Store's have Spray Paint for $1.00! Some gloss to coat it and Voile here's an after photo of the sconces with the paint on them.

Now where do you find those chandelier crystals. Why Gallery74 of course! Here's a link! http://www.gallery74.com/

Next, the crystal beads that you see in the photo came from Micheal's. Now, add a chandelier crystal to the illusion cord, add the beads in a design that you will love. I just added 2 small beads and a large one on top of my crystal. Tie the illusion cord to the sconce in a knot. It's like making a bracelet, but without the clasp. Make sure you stick the ends of the illusion cord back down into the last bead. It can go wherever you want to place it. I chose to go simple. And then your done!

Now here's the fun part! Sconces were 95 cents each at the thrift store, Strings of beads from Micheal's were $1.99 (Clearance), and the Chandelier crystals were $11.89 for a pack of 10. So, for a total of $15.78, I got the look I wanted without the expensive price tag. Spray paints were free courtesy of my hubby John!

Tables: Before and After

I can remember back to the last time I had living room tables. We had just moved into this house and they were brand new and cheap. They are what my hubby, John, calls MDF (Medium Density Fiberboard) Sawdust basically with laminate. I wrote a blog about decoupaging the top of them and making the table tops into photo tables for memories. I really didn't think about how the tables would (as cheap as they were)make it through 2 babies and one on the way. Well, they didn't last long and out to the trash they went. A waste of money.

Now that we are fixing to move into an older home I wanted to find some, in my own words, really good wood tables that wouldn't fall apart at the first step of a toddler's foot...Is there even a table that can handle a toddler?

All the stores around here carry cheap wood. We had been to the antique stores to look and found nothing. So, when my John called one day and said he had found a living room suit with end tables at a thrift store. I wasn't very surprised. I thought, "Okay, what do we need another living room suit for?"

But, we decided that he could get the couches and chair for his work shop at the house, when all his friends come over to visit. And I get the end tables.

The only problem I had with them was they were green and scratched up. And that started the wheels in motion. "How about some sanding and painting to match my living room furniture?", I thought. Well here's some photo's of what I spent 2 weeks doing... This is a close up of what the tables looked like before and the sander of course!

I have to admit, I took these tables apart to sand and paint them. They were loose anyways, so it gave me a reason to tighten them up. I had to move the painting inside because of the mosquito's outside.

I used a color called, Parchment, because I wanted to go for a antique look. I used about 2 layers on the top and about 5 layers on the legs. John finally told me after I got halfway into the project that I should of primed them first...Here's a before and after of the tables. Tables cost me $12.00 a piece and $28.00 for the paint. So, for $52.00 I got some fabulous wood tables to make all into my own!