Having recently purchased a new home, my husband and I have so many little projects going on. Some we have gotten around to completing, but most continue to be a work in progress. A good friend of mine reminded me to go “slow and steady” when it comes to decorating and renovations, so that’s exactly what I have been (attempting) to do. I did want to share one project that was fairly simple and inexpensive!

Our home is considerably more traditional than I would prefer, so we have made small changes in decor and details to give it a bit more character. One thing that had to go was the dining room lighting. The old one was just too traditional and a bit dated for my taste. I thought about just painting it and replacing the bulbs, but I wasn’t happy with the height or shape either.

 

I found a Hektar light from IKEA and although I felt the color was a bit heavy, I liked the shape. So, for roughly $70 I decided I would take a chance and paint it! I purchased some spray paint from Lowes…..a soft Valspar paint for the inside of the light and a textured copper for the exterior:

paint
I started by first taking apart the entire light fixture. This would make it easier to paint all the nooks of each piece.

Ikea Light Makeover

The trick to spray paint is to make several light and even coats. Having said that…..I will confess I am TERRIBLE at this. I always get incredibly anxious and end up rushing the paint. This project was no exception! :/

Ikea Light MakeoverIMG_2744

I painted the inside of the fixture first. I did this primarily because I have the most patience in the beginning of any project and I knew I would need it in order to not have paint drips going down the barrel of the dome.

Ikea light makeover

After the blue had dried I flipped the dome over and started the textured copper paint. You can see here that I had to paint several coats in order the get the coverage desired.

ikea light makeover

ikea light makeover

After all coats had dried thoroughly I reassembled the fixture and hung!

ikea light makeover

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All in all, I’m pretty pleased with this piece. I have been tossing around the idea of putting a brighter copper coat on and actually hammering the outside of the light. Mainly because I didn’t quite achieve the texture I wanted. The blue is also a little softer than I would have hoped for. It looks great during the day, but with the light on at night it registers somewhat beige. For what little investment this was I can’t complain though!

Jenn Davis - The Fortunate Plight