I love going to the thrift store. There is one so close to my house that it’s dangerous. I could go there every day!
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There are so many treasures to be found at the thrift store. They don’t really look like treasures, but with a little bit of work you can make it one.
Lamps are one of my favorite things to buy from the thrift store. They are cheap there! With a coat of paint and a new lamp shade you can have a treasure for way less money than buying a new one.
There was a lamp from Crate & Barrel that I loved. One thing I didn’t love was the price.
As much as I liked the lamp I wasn’t about to drop $400 on it. Instead, I let that lamp be my inspiration. What I really liked was the “deep bronze patina finish” of the lamp. So I headed over to Lowes to grab some spray paint.
I used Rust-Oleum Hammered Dark Bronze
I’m getting a little ahead of myself. The first thing I actually bought was the lamp. $9.99 from the thrift store.
Isn’t she pretty!?
The first thing I needed to do was clean the lamp really well. There were a lot of areas that dust could easily collect. Once it was clean I taped up the areas I didn’t want paint getting, mainly the light bulb area and the cord.
Next I took the lamp outside to spray paint it. I laid down some cardboard and put the lamp on it, far away from anything that paint could get on.
I did the first coat and it covered the lamp really well. I let it dry for 1 hour then added a second coat, just to be safe.
I picked up a new lamp shade from Target for $15. The total cost of this lamp was $30. That’s $370 cheaper than the inspiration lamp!!
I love the way the lamp turned out!
