Whew! Finally Friday and now we're one week away from the Chelsea's Garage sale next Saturday, June 7! When I saw this pin by Mandi of Vintage Revivals, I was instantly inspired to make some unique, hanging lights for our garage during the sale, (I'm a picky pinner, but if you follow me on Pinterest you'll likely find me attempting many of my pins here)! Illuminating a garage is tricky and I'm always looking for new ideas that are quick and inexpensive, but still complimenting the unique and beautiful gems that will be available on sale day.
While throwing my version of this light fixture together I didn't intend to feature the final product. But it turned out so much cuter than I thought! It was a super easy, ridiculously cheap project; totally worth sharing.
First, I just want you guys to know that I understand so many of you are starting with absolutely nothing. It's incredibly touching to receive emails from those of you who are just getting out on your own for the first time, or are starting fresh, whatever the reason. It is absolutely a pleasure to share and inspire unique design ideas that truly are inexpensive and easy for the average person with a real life budget and not a lot of time to DIY. This post is most definitely dedicated to you, for what it's worth. :)
So here's a budget friendly, time friendly hanging light idea that doesn't skimp on style, (staged in our guest 'nook', see full room tour here)!
What you need:
-Embroidery hoop, (found in the $2 range at Michaels, JoAnns, and Walmart
-Pendant light cord, (the kind that plugs into the wall is easiest, less than $10 from most hardware stores)
-Beaded necklace, (free if you have one you want to sacrifice - optional for this project)
-Gold spray paint, ($3 at most hardware or craft stores - also optional for this project)
Instructions:
Spray paint the light cord, (spray the whole thing, unlike me. I was at the end of my can of gold spray paint and it sputtered out with 1/3 of the cord left, as you can see). You'll have to do this in several steps, letting one side dry, then rolling it over and spraying the other side. Wrap the necklace around the neck of the light socket and tie and tuck into place. Tie the cord around the embroidery hoop about 5" above the neck of the socket. Screw in a white light bulb. And voila! You're done! How you want to hang this is completely up to you - you can either hang a simple command hook on your wall, (they have metallic ones now!), and loop the cord over the hook and plug into the closest outlet. Or you can screw a hook into your ceiling, hang the cord from there, then tap in some wall staples to hold the cord into place along the ceiling and down the wall. (Tasteful) exposed cords are in, baby! Especially bright or metallic cords. I'm totally embracing this trend.
I've got a couple of these made already to hang around the garage on sale day. Are you stopping by, local friends? Please do! My sister-in-law, Cate, and I have been refinishing up a STORM and will have gorgeous pieces available for browsing and taking home. You'll find dressers, buffets, desks, coffee tables, accent tables, accent chairs, benches, lighting, rugs, and various homemade home decor accents. If you follow CG on facebook you may get a few more sneak peeks over the next week ;) So save that date, June 7, grab some friends, and come on over for a fun time!
Chelsea's Garage sale
Saturday, June 7
9am-3pm
Herndon, VA, (email chelseasgarage@gmail.com for the address)
Have yourselves a wonderful weekend!
~Chelsea
This post was published under Chelsea's Garage, now affectionately known as StyleMutt.