From trash to something pretty...

I have always enjoyed creating things--whether it's hand-sewing a fabric purse, refashioning vintage jewelry or painting a design on a cabinet, a wall
( or the floor*) of my 1920's bungalow.

Recently, however, it was pinterest that really got my creative juices flowing.
Once I started perusing the many fascinating DIY boards of my fellow pinterest-enthusiasts, I became almost obsessed with finding discarded items to improve with tassels, lace, paint, wallpaper, etc.

One of my recent projects began with 2 old hardwood chairs I found sitting out by a neighbor's trash can. After I ascertained that the chairs were, in fact, to be thrown away, I grabbed them. What a deal! Free!

I suppose that most people would probably have stripped, sanded and refinished the chairs. Not this girl!
 Based on an idea I saw on pinterest, I dug out an old lace curtain valance a friend had given me, laid it across the chair at an angle, taped it in place and spray-painted (flat white) through the lace. It made a pretty lacy doily-look design. Tip:The best type of lace for this project is one with a pattern in the lace that's more on the larger side, as the design is clearer.
 I then painted the rest of the chair white.
(I used the semi-gloss interior wall & trim house paint I had on hand.)

 It looked pretty good, but I decided it needed a pop of color, so I painted a fine line in deep turquoise around the edge of the lace design using a tiny artist's paint brush.
 I intend to eventually put a couple of coats of varnish over both chairs to keep the design from getting scratched and I would advise you to do the same. 

I was thrilled when my 'trash to treasure' chairs were featured on roadkillrescue.net a few months ago under 'Doily Design Chair'.
Having no blog at the time, I relied on the owner of that website to post it for me. I really appreciate all your help, Beckie!
Here is a picture of the lace curtain panel I used to make the spray-paint design.(notice the large design pattern)

 

Here are the chairs just after I spray painted through the lace.

 Here is a close-up shot of the chair seat. The edges blurred a bit when some of the spray got under the lace.
Tip: Be sure to securely fasten your lace to your wood, so you have a cleaner edge to your design.

Here are the finished lacy doily-design chairs...from trash to pretty nice!

*Just found out my chairs made the #1 spot for 2012 on roadkillrescue.net!!
 So cool...