I'm a lamp tramp

I can't help it. I guess it is all the little nooks and spots in our new house that just are screaming for some warm lamp light. I have been buying up inexpensive lamps any chance I get. And then there is painting and re-shading the lamps I already have.

There was a rubbed oil bronze blah blah blah lamp at the WalMartz that I really wanted, but even it was $49! I know in the grand scheme of snobbish decorating finery, $49 is dirt cheap for a (cheap) lamp...but in the world of a family whose main bread winner is now self employed, $49 is a lot for a WalMartz lamp!

This weekend at the "new" house, now that all the walls are painted (praise God) I went out to the barn and rummaged around in the boxes of junk we had already moved and cracked open some spray paint.

Remember this piece of work that I showed you guys a few months ago????You all agreed that it was ugly....and I have no argument there, it IS ugly. It was on clearance at Stein Mart because it was ugly. They then marked it down even lower because some of the adornment on the swirly arm had broken off. Then I had a coupon on top of that. So basically Stein Mart paid ME to take this ugly lamp.

I surgically removed the gaudy thingy on the bottom and glued a little somethin' somethin' over the broken swirly arms and then blasted the whole darn thing with cream spray paint.

Now it sits on the corner of the bar in the kitchen just where I have imagined it would.......holding a cookbook.


Or just a good book....
(I love the background clutter in this picture. It summarizes our weekend warrior house renovating so well. There is a tube of caulk....I now hate caulk and have terrible nightmares about it. A thing of disinfecting hand wipes that I am going to put in one of the barns that has a toilet...but no sink. That drives the germ-a-phobe in me crazy. Glass cleaner. And finally a supply of 6,000 BBs for a certain 9 year old boy.)


And lastly my favorite.......the sweet, sweet plate that blonde rascal made me for Mother's Day.


I picked up this...ahem...."gem" at the Goodwill store a few months ago...Cheesy? Yes, without a doubt. The shade did not even originally go with lamp, but it was still in the wrapper... and they had paired them together for $3. How could I say no?

Again with the creme spray paint. (I use the WalMartz brand spray paint....99 cents a can people, whadda ya have to lose?) Blonde rascal said that momma bunny's eyes looked angry, can you blame her... she's carrying those dang babies around in a basket for cryin' out loud. So I painted over those angry eyes really well.

I ripped the pastel plaid trim off the shade and replaced it with brown polka dot ribbon.....Exactly the touch I was looking for in the hall bathroom. For $3.99....that's what I'm talking about!