The before: the story of a beautiful lamp in the making....

That's right folks.... I'm tackling this worn out, diamond in the rough this weekend. So here's what she looks like today:


a little scarred and marred, a little tired and old.... but her bones are good. She has a nice solid wood base that will take a sanding quite nicely, I'm hoping.... I'm not sure if I'll strip it down completely (a messy job that I've done a few times before... but am thinking is not totally necessary with this girl; of course that too could change once I get started....)

I have a love of refinishing old and new wooden pieces.... I'm NOT; however, in love with chemical stripping; but, sometimes it's unavoidable.... Aaaanyway, hopefully next time you see this little lady she'll be dressed in her new digs and casting a soft glow upon my new guest bedroom.... The fella in my beloved THRIFT STORE says she's sure to light up a room; unfortunately when he tested her for me, I had my back turned. Go figure. Ahhh, well, a wiring job is not an impossible task either (something I've tackled with another lamp project.... pretty easy and straight forward).... which brings me to another point that I want to make:

Ladies. You don't always need a man for small refinishing and re-wiring jobs.... my dad always thought it was important for me to know how to use tools (power and manual) and to be able to do small fix-it jobs around the house. His way of thinking is that sometimes there's not always a man around (or one willing to do what you're asking) so it's best just to do it yourself. A valuable lesson/skill/what-have-you that I've learned, and now in my adulthood I've come to embrace my confidence as a quasi-pseudo-handywoman.... there's nothing like the feeling of tackling something that people would otherwise think is man's work, yourself :D And, AND! I know my husband appreciates the fact that I can help out with the fixing and remodelling instead of running off to fix a chipped fingernail (btw... who has time for painting fingernails when you have several littles chasing after you???)

Aaaanyway, I digress.... So stay tuned in the next week for the sequel of the lamp....

The after: renewed and grounded and happily living in my basement

Have a great afternoon everyone ;)