Project ReStyle

When the always inspiring  Elsie introduced Project Restyle, I jumped on board immediately.

Project Restyle is a just-for-fun creative group focused on ReStyling damaged, unwanted or unusable goods into fresh, beautiful pieces.

The Guidelines Are:

1. You must use unwanted, damaged or unusable vintage or used items to ReStyle. One of the big purposes of the group is that it encourages green living and is budget friendly. You can use items from your own closet/attic that you no longer love, thrifted finds or hand-me-downs.

2. Take a Before & After photo of your ReStyled project. It’s that simple!

3. Share your creative work on your blogs and in the Flickr Group. If you don’t have a Flickr account, it’s free to join. We’ll be choosing favorites each week to share on our blogs, so you’ll want to be sure to join the fun.

4. You can create fashion, home decor or gift items. There are no limits on what types of items you can ReStyle! Be creative and make items you know you can really use!

It took me a little while to finish my first ReStyled Project because spray paint doesn’t like 25 degree weather, but on a rare warm day a few weeks ago I got right to work.

You may have noticed my little red lamp in the craft room reveal:

1. I got the lamp for $2 from The Beehive Store in Arkadelphia, an adorable thrift shop which operates on donations from the public and employs people with developmental disabilities.

2. I wrapped the socket and cord in good ol’ Press’n Seal from the kitchen and blasted the base with a couple of coats of my favorite red spray paint.

3. I grabbed some scrap fabric and attached it to a plain lampshade I had. The lampshade was actually the most expensive part of the project as I remember it cost something like $6 when I originally bought it. There’s probably a much more professional way to do it, but I was in a hurry and I’m lazy. I simply stretched the fabric around the shade and attached it with hot glue around the inside edges of the shade. Then all I did was trim the excess fabric. It’s not perfect by any means, but it works and that’s how I roll.

4. The new and improved, ReStyled if you will, now resides on the corner table in my craft room.

Not bad for an $8 makeover huh?

I already have several ideas for my next ReStyle. Be sure to check out the flickr group to see all of the other projects. There’s some pretty great stuff.

Have a great weekend!