Weekend Pajama Party: Burlap Rose Lampshade

I have such a love/hate relationship with burlap!

I LOVE the look but HATE the mess!

I decided to "forgive-and-forget" for this lamp update and love, love, LOVE the way it all came together. I've had a set of lamps for about 7 years that I haven't used since I moved into my new house a few years ago and revamped my style. Anyway, I got ambitious on my 4 day weekend {the perks of being a teacher} and this is how it came together.

What I Used:
3 yards of natural colored burlap
hot glue/gun
repurposed lamp and shade
Krylon spray paint in Blue Ocean Breeze

Here's the "before" of the lamp. 

It's not too shabby, just a little too traditional for my house these days.

 First, I covered the cord and lamp structure with tin foil and spray painted it one of my favorite accent colors...Blue Ocean Breeze.

That was the easy part! 

Then, onto the burlap roses. 

I started by cutting 46-inch strips of burlap--this was the bolt width. 

{Click HERE for a tip on cutting burlap in straight lines.}

The strips varied in widths from 1 & 3/4 inches to about 2 & 1/2 inches.  I was able to make 3 roses out of each long strip of burlap. 

{Click HERE for directions on how to make the burlap roses.}

My lamp shade is about 11 inches tall and has a 36 inch diameter at its widest spot.  I made about 80 roses to cover it. 

If you want to make fewer roses {I recommend this!} I suggest cutting wider strips of burlap and making larger roses.

Gluing the roses on is the best part!

You'll need to cut off the "stems" of the roses so they will glue flat.

Another suggestion is to glue the roses around the top and bottom edges of the lampshade first. 

Then glue the remaining roses in.

I was so happy giddy when I glued in the last roses and put the lamp together. 

This project was totally worth the time and mess.  Plus, since I already had the lamp and spray paint, this project cost me less than 10 bucks! 

Even if you don't tackle burlap roses, I hope this project inspires you to repurpose something you love, but haven't used lately, to make your world a cuter place too!

Have fun!

~Cindy Jane

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Speckled Butterfly Easter Eggs

It's not too late to make these beautiful eggs for your Easter dinner place settings or as a spring decoration.  They were inspired by a Martha Stewart creation but she used oversized paper egg boxes and hollowed chicken eggs.  I couldn't find the boxes and the idea of hollowing out eggs sounded like a giant mess waiting to happen. 

Luckily, I found an easier and cleaner way for about 50 cents an egg. 

Thank you Dollar Store!

Materials:
jumbo sized plastic eggs
cream spray paint
brown craft paint/toothbrush
butterfly cardstock

I found these jumbo sized eggs at The Dollar Store and they were the perfect size. :)

 I was worried the color would be too bright to cover, but I primed the eggs, then added a few coats of spray paint and it did the trick. 

***Do not use a prime and paint spray paint combo or the paint will run down.***

I put some light brown craft paint on an old toothbrush and speckled the eggs.

 Then I cut out some butterflies and Mod Podged them on.

Here's another option instead of speckling the eggs with paint.  I used a brown ink pad and sponge on this one.  I like the aged look the ink gives it.

I think they look really cute in these bowls with Spanish moss as a make-shift bird's nest. I added some simple name cards and my Easter dinner place settings are done.

 Happy Easter!

~ Cindy Jane

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