Dollar Tree Chalkboard and Lamp
What do you do with a hundred large wine goblets and different shaped silver trays? Why you ask do I have that many of anything? I am a wedding reception designer, I buy a lot from the Dollar Tree, yep everything is a buck! If you are like everyone else in middle class land these days you want to stretch everything. I have used these trays with candles, with floating candles, filled with flower petals, I have perched the goblets on them with floating candles. I have photos of a couple of ways I have used these goblets, anyway I digress. This is about the trays right now, cheap metal trays and here they are, I decided I was turning them into small chalkboards.
Paints
Here is my paint. Its all actually left overs from one project or another.
Paint
I started with the back first, I have absolutely no patience for paint drying, so I figure if it isn't all the way dried then the back wouldn't matter. So spray away, don't you just love the length of that table, big family is all I can say, and it is wonderful.
So here is the front, I used a hammered bronze, fire engine red, olive green, ivory and black, if you notice I missed the centers of the trays, there is a reason, that is where I glued chalkboard paper and why waste the time and paint right? My next step was to measure and cut the paper and glue it into the centers of the trays. Now I bet you are wondering, chalkboard paper? I just took some heavy cardstock and painted it with chalkboard paint, easy peasy and of course didn't photograph that! I will get better about that I promise. Now are we ready for the finished product along with the lamp I made with the wine goblet?
Quick, Cheap and Easy Lamp
Here it is, this is just how simple this project is. I downloaded a miniature lamshade years ago thinking of making shades for my dinning room light and fan, guess what, if you don't have the guts they won't work. I have had this pattern forever and after going to a wedding where these were grouped on tables on tiny wine glasses it gave me an idea. I enlarged the pattern and put it on the bigger glasses and you actually get a nice size lamp. I have used several things to light these like of course the little tea lites and then there are your battery operated lights, I like them the best because there are some you can buy that change color or give you different color options. For a wedding? Yes they are lovely and the battery operated lights last longer than tea lites and you can really customize them. Now if you are using these for the holidays you can do several things to personalize them, I have a cricut and use my celebrate with a flourish cartridge and decorate with that glitter paints and little jewels, you can use a simple printed cardstock or even cut out fabric and starch it, the possibilities are really endless. I almost forgot you can buy stickers for anything these days and use those or even use stamps.