Some of you, no, a handful of you have been reading this site since the beginning when I started spray painting all sorts of things on the average of at least once a month and frequently mentioning my affection.  I jumped on the spray paint bandwagon several years ago, cracked the whip, and cried "Faster, faster, take us to a better place!"  I have an entire category dubbed "Spray Paint, My BFF" and I reckon I’ve done my part to keep RustOleum, Valspar, and Krylon in biz.

I’ve spray painted just about everything:  plastic, glass, wood, fiberglass, mirror, metal, ribbon, laminate, etcetera.  I’ll spray paint anything that stands still, mostly because it’s  cheap-n-easy, but also because my curiosity in this wonder product knows no end.  Most especially since I’ve witnessed first hand just how many gosh darn things seem to look better when dosed with Toluene and Xylene (the chemicals in spray paint which we never mention in the light of day, but secretly adore in the private solitude of our well ventilated garages).

Spray paint, when applied correctly, possesses the magical power to transform so many dated looks into a something fresh and modern, all in the course of an afternoon.  I think if I was stranded on a deserted island, a can of spray paint just might be on my wish list, not for the giant ‘SOS’ but to give my pathetic coconut mailbox attached to my hut that extra oomph it needed.

I’m sorry, where was I?  Oh yes. Take this sweet little French style solid wood nightstand I spied while gallivanting around the local thrift store last week.  Fab lines, lovely detail, but with yellowed spotty paint and chipped gold accents.  Facelift needed.

All’s well that ends well when you have a well shaken can of spray paint with which to solve the world’s problems.  The final paint is RustOleum’s ‘Canvas White’ found at True Value Hardware.

Before:

After:

‘Shipwrecked Pitcher’ from Anthropologie

I have used spray paint in so many ways I can’t even count them anymore.  Take a tour through my home and you won’t find a room with at least one spray painted thang.  Since I often get asked questions about spray paint, I reckon I’ll just put all those FAQs in one big post.  Bear with me.  I don’t know all the answers, but that’s where you come in at the end friends.

Away we go.    

1. What surfaces can I spray paint?

What can’t  you spray paint?   Well, perhaps that’s too inclusive.  Here’s the growing list.  Plastic, metal, fiberglass, mirror, glass, wood, wicker, masonry, plaster, concrete, canvas, ceramics, MDF, laminate and particle board.

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I was tra la la-ing my way through my local Habitat for Humanity ReStore a few weeks back, admiring all the great salvage and scheming of ways to put some of it to good use.  I was there because I had spotted a few cool cabinets on Diggers List and wanted to investigate further. 

As I chatted it up with one of the managers, I couldn’t help but notice the sign just behind him. 

Do you love the exclamation point for added emphasis?  Like rejected brass light fixtures are something to get excited about?  Well actually, I kinda do get excited about them.  A lot. 

I actually like antique  brass fixtures, just not these super shiny leftovers from the early 90s.  So with a fixture like this, one that just happens to have a completely fantastic shape, I see no reason why it shouldn’t be spray painted.  White.  Pronto! 

Hello gorgeous.  Don’t you just fit right in ? 

Aaaaaand, she was free.  Fah-reeee. 

Yep.  Free.

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I’m making my way around my four year old boy’s room, slooooowly attempting to spruce it up and give it some real style.   One day when it’s all done, I’ll show you the blah before and you’ll see just how drab it was.  His room, like all kids rooms, was in serious, and I mean serious, need of storage ~  I was stepping on all those Legos in the middle of the night.  For four, he’s usually pretty good at putting those toys away, but since he had no real storage, I really couldn’t get too upset.  But something had to be done ! 

Yet again, I shopped my house for the perfect solution.  We had a tall tower made up of stackable cabinets (purchased here five years ago) that used to sit in the playroom, but since I now want to find a desk in there for homework and art projects, I decided to repurpose these honey wood cabinets for the lad’s room instead. 

Their size couldn’t be more perfect ~ they now sit right next to his closet on a narrow patch of wall space.  Problem ?   They were all scuffed up and I couldn’t visualize the the honey stain look in his room.  And if I don’t get to paint something at least once a month, I start to twitch.   

Some primer, paint, and crown molding transformed these cabinets in a weekend, and gave his room the splash of color it needed, plus the tower provides fantastic storage for all those toys, books, and collected treasures.

Before & After:

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I began this transition from baby room to big boy space several months ago, but I hit a few road blocks along the way.  One of the challenges was finding a proper dresser for my little guy ~ one that provided plenty of storage, complemented the style of his room, and was the proper scale for the wall where it sits.

For months, I’ve had my eye on the IKEA Hemnes dresser in white.  I delayed purchasing it because it’s a two hour round trip to the closest IKEA, and it’s $300 buckaroos, plus California state tax, plus assembly.  Grrrr.  Delay. Delay. Delay. 

So when I spied a listing for an Hemnes dresser on Craiglist last week for sale by a couple in my hometown for half the retail price, I scooped it up.  Only problem ~ it was black.  Not that I don’t like black furniture, but it was too dark for the little lad’s room. 

So I painted it.  Then added some blue stripey trim around the drawers just for fun. 

Before:

After:

Perfect !

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