Small Brass Lamp Makeover - Part 1 - The Body

The Find

One night I found a small brass lamp with a pleated shade, the kind you might see on an end table or as a night light.  I don't have a full 'before' picture because I once I got it home I was excited and started taking apart the shade (the shade makeover will be described in part 2).

Here is the lamp once I started taking it apart.  The surface was pitted and I had an urge to bring some bring color into the space rather than trying to shine up the metal.

Brass lamp dis-assembly

All of the pieces were threaded on to this central rod.

Brass lamp dis-assembly: center rod

This number is scratched on the inside of one piece, I have no idea what it means.

Number scratched inside the brass lamp

To keep track of the pieces, I used a marker to write the order and the direction it was facing as I disassembled the lamp parts.

Lamp body piece number '7', direction facing 'up'.

The Makeover

I used a few coats of glossy green spray paint to cover the metal. All spraying was done outside over the course of a nice day. I've learned the hard way not to use spray paint when it is too cold, the paint will develop what look like scales.  Also, be sure to hold down the edges of your newspaper, otherwise there will inevitably be a gust of wind to fold the paper onto your paint whilst it dries.

Glossy green spray-painted lamp body pieces

I reassembled the lamp and purchased a lamp wiring kit so that I could install totally new wiring.  This was also good practice, fun, and so so easy to do!

Reassembled lamp with new wiring, almost ready.

Conclusion

The lamp body makeover didn't take much time for each step, but with the spray painting there was a bit of back and forth, as usual. It goes something like this: shake can, spray, wait to dry, shake can, spray again, wait to dry, discover yet another spot that you missed, shake can, spray again, wait for the paint to dry, decide you are done with the painting, wait 24 hours before reassembling.

I'm pleased with the glossy emerald green finish and the classic turned wood lamp body shape.  In the corner of the final photo you can see the shade waiting for some freestyle attention!

Freestyled lamp body with glossy green paint and new wiring

Happy freestyling, and don't be afraid to paint your finds to fit your style!

Green and black makeover for a rusted metal shelf (no chocolate involved)

The Find

While out for a walk on trash night (every freestyler's favorite night of the week) I came across this old-school metal shelf.

Discarded metal shelf

Upon some examination by light-of-cellphone I determined that this was a perfectly serviceable shelf.  Also the old gray metal shelf is very lightweight which made it easy to carry back to the freestyle workshop.

The Makeover

As per usual, the course of action with this piece was as follows: clean, sand, paint, use!

The rust was pretty heavy on the top side of the shelves and one of the legs, perhaps it was in some standing water or mud.

Metal shelf: side view

Metal shelf: view of bottom shelf rust

Metal shelf: rusted bottom of leg

After doing some hand-sanding - until I felt it was good enough and I got bored with it - I wiped off the piece and was ready to start spray painting.  I used the spray paints I had on hand, glossy green and glossy black.  Since I did not fully remove all of the rust and make the surface smooth you can see the patchiness of the glossy black finish even after 2-ish coats.  Since this is not a 'forever' piece - I wanted something serviceable and not flaking rust - I'm not too concerned about the patchiness of the finish. Also, it is a shelf, so the plan is to store stuff on the shelf, not gaze at it critically.

Metal shelf after repainting in green and black

Conclusion

After the paint was nice and dry the shelf came inside to serve as storage somewhere. It found a temporary-ish place against a wall and a few minutes later was identified as the perfect spot to hold the power tool battery charger. Hmm, I see where this might be going.....

Metal shelf: starting a new storage journey holding power tools

Happy Freestyling!