My goal is to use as little moula as possible to make something as fabulous as possible. Case in point: my lamp project.
While taking out the trash a few months back (actually, Ben was putting the trash in the dumpster while I supervised from the car), I saw something sitting by the dumpster. My curiosity got the best of me and I jumped out to find out what this little treasure could be.
Lo and behold...it was a lamp! But not just any lamp: a free lamp. Unfortunately, my dear husband and I did not see eye to eye on this discovery...
Me: Just look at this beautiful lamp!
Ben: Why are you putting someone else's trash in our car?
Thankfully, in the end, Ben just sighed (after getting tired of hearing me shriek "please?! It's free!!" a hundred times) and let me bring home my new treasure.
Since the lamp was free, I decided to see if I could find a lampshade that was nearly as budget-friendly.
Sadly, after a month of searching (at Bed, Bath, & Beyond, J.C. Penny, Target, etc.) I could not find a single lampshade that fit both our budget and our style.
But then, just as I was about to cave and settle for a pitifully small, $17 drum shade from Target...I re-discovered Ikea's scratch-and-dent section! Much to my surprise, I found an enormous, black and white striped drum shade for just $2.75 - and there isn't even anything wrong with it! Can you believe it?! Two dollars and seventy-five cents!!! That definitely deserves three exclamation points! ;)
So, I snatched up the perfect lampshade and immediately went to work on my new-to-me lamp...
The lamp: BEFORE
The lamp: AFTER painting it with primer
My "new" lamp, with its new shade
A view of the guest room/study* with the lamp
A lovely bedside lamp for our guests**
So, have you been working on any free (or nearly free) projects?
*This room will be painted gray once I receive my free paint!
** The orange pillow cover was a recent purchase from West Elm. Ben suggested that instead of buying a pillow form, we should just fill it with the stuffing from an old "husband" (one of those pillows you rest against) we had lying around. He's pretty much a genius! :)
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10 comments:
Awesome find -- and that IKEA shade works absolutely perfectly. Alas, I seem to be better at spending rather than saving money lately, but I'm hoping once things calm down this fall I'll have more time for some craftiness!
Love the shade on that lamp- it looks great!
Love the way your lamp turned out. Isn't it nice to have the gift of "seeing the possibilities" even when others cannot. Great Job!!!
I am in the process of finishing a media cabinet that a neighbor threw away using left over paint. I will be sure and send you a link when I am done.
Wow...I love it!! What a beautiful finished product, and great find, i hadn't remembered it was a dumpster find from when you told me about it before. Great job!!!
Very cute! Congrats on your success! ;)
Two thumbs up!! I'm currently working on some more expensive and big projects, but I can't wait until I get to the little things like this. So inspiring!
Fantastic! I applaud you and your frugalty.
I love the guest room too. Your wall collage looks like a page out of a magazine
Take Care,
Lisa
Fantastic job!
I'm glad I'm not the only one who "dumpster dives". Mr. FC just shakes his head & pretends he doesn't know me...until I turn that trash into treasure (the dumpster find, not Mr. FC--HA!!).
What an amazing transformation--FAB work, my friend. A lamp like that could easily fetch a ton of $$ at a designer store!
Wanted to say thanks so much for commenting on my blog!!! Your guest bedroom looks very cool!
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