"New" Lamps

My fabulous aunt & uncle gave me a wedding present - two lamps.  They're different and kinda weird, which fits me, haha.  But they didn't quite fit the style of our house.  My room (when I lived in a house with friends) was vintage France - lots of black, silver, crystal, and distressing.  Our house is cute and country, with hardwood floors and various shades of brown everywhere.







I loved the shape of the lamps, though, and decided they just needed a good coat of paint.  I used Krylon's primer+paint in beige.  It took several coats - 1-1/2 cans to do both lamp stands - but they look great.


(The broom asked to be in the shot... he was feeling kinda left out.)




Of course the shades would look silly on the beige stands, so I had to something about that, too.  I stumbled upon this post from Enjoy the Simple Things (a blog I love), and I knew this was a project I had to do.  Laura Lynn goes into good detail in her post on how to do it, so I'll just give you pics of my project with a few captions.

Paint sticks, stained.

I laid out all the sticks on the shade and held them with clothespins.

 I used wood glue (instead of the hot glue that Laura Lynn used) and "clamped" it with more clothespins.  I did every other stick so that I could position the clothespins properly.

Here's the second round of glue.

Done with one!!

 << Here's the big one.

Here's the little one.>>

DIY Frenzy

Ok, so maybe "frenzy" is a bit strong.  However, there are a LOT of projects I'm dying to do.  The one I'm currently working on is turning a cheap, hand-me-down (thanks, John & Cassie!) DVD shelving unit into a... cheap, slightly cuter DVD shelf.  LOL, I know it sounds silly, but hear me out.  The DVD shelf is about 4' tall & 2' wide.  Its shape doesn't lend itself well to the space in our living room.  So with a little sanding, a little paint, four table feet, and the wonder of a 90* rotation, it will be a low shelving unit that fits nicely under a window and doubles as a side table.  It'll get its own post once it's complete.

Another thing on the brain is a hall tree.  I'll be using the front door, and there's not a place to drop my junk.  I'm thinking an old door + a small table + crown moulding & hooks = hall tree.  (Of course with some paint and baskets.)  Here are a few I've found online:

I love the old vintage
feel of this one.

I like that this one has a little bench, 
and that the table doesn't match the door.

I like the mirror on this one.  I think I have
one with similar shape somewhere...

This one is so sweet... dunno if it's the butter
cream yellow or how simple it is.

Not sure I'm gonna go with
a bench, but I like the worn out
look of this one.

                        

I also want to make some kind of hook arrangement for Alex's hats, and something similar for my long necklaces.  I also need to make an earring holder, I think with burlap.  Oh, and "paint stir stick" lampshades. And a faux headboard with a various vintage candlestick arrangement for the guest bedroom.  And flower boxes for the front porch.  And ... I'll stop here.  You get the idea... I'm crazy.

But seriously, input on the hall tree would be very much appreciated.  So long, finch followers!