Vintage Frame Makeover!

I picked up this sexy set of pictures for $1 a piece at Goodwill.  I didn't know much about them, other than they were vintage. I did find a few on sale on Ebay...for more than I paid of course! I wasn't quite sure what I was going to do with them, but I knew I was going to repaint them.  Spray paint makes everything look pretty. ;)  Donna over at My Shabby Chateau was also lucky enough to snag a set a couple years ago and also gave them a fabulous redo.

This past week was a little rough than it has been this summer.  My 5-year-old has had a stubborn streak lately, and will argue with me over every.little.thing.  Kinda like the other day.  He got upset because his brother (who is 2) flushed the toilet after me. "But I WANTED TO FLUSH!"  Uh-huh... Now, I know I am not the only one who can't make a trip to the bathroom without their kids barging in. The total meltdown that followed because he didn't get to flush instead of his brother was almost comical. Luckily, he'd finished most of his wailing before we got into the car.

Upon nearing the store, he exclaimed, "The GREEN store?  Why are we going here?!"  I told him, "Well, remember I need to get paint today? For something for baby sister's room."  His reply: "You always buy paint. Why do you have to have a lot of paint?"  All I could do was laugh.  My husband asks me the same thing.

This tutorial can really be done with any frame--I loved that these had curved glass.  Maybe the next time you come across a really nasty, gawdy looking frame you could take it home and give it a little chance at a second life. Especially if its only a dollar. ;)

STUFF YA NEED:

• Frames
• Scrapbook paper or fabric
• Rust-oleum Universal Metallic Spray Paint (Dark Steel)
• Pen or pencil
• Scissors
• Photo, vinyl decor, stickers, etc. (your choice)

SCRUB A DUB. The first thing I did was pop open the wire catches holding the back on, and take out the glass.  I was a little miffed when I realized that hot man in blue was actually glued to the glass...so after a dunk in some hot soapy water, the first layer of paper was peeling off pretty nicely.  To get the rest of the image off, I scraped at it with a plastic spoon in between spraying it with water/vinegar mixture I usually use for cleaning.  The nice part was I didn't have any sticky glue residue left on the glass; they both cleaned up well.

LAY & TRACE. I didn't realize until I got cut one out what my mistake was...when you're laying the backs down on the reverse side of the paper, make sure the pattern is going the direction you want to hang your frames. Whoops.  ;)

PAINT. I had used Rust-oleum Universal Metallic spray paint on baby girl's dresser handles--and I really loved the realistic finish.  It doesn't look like spray paint when its done!  The color I used for these frames is called "Dark Steel."  Its a rich, metallic silver. 

GLAM IT UP. I (stupidly?) decided to cut out some vinyl images with my Silhouette Cameo. I settled on a vintage telephone and typewriter--that kinda ties in with the giant typewriter keys tutorial I made to spell baby girl's name.  After my 4th time getting these cut out and wasting more vinyl than a DJ, the size was finally perfect and and I could begin the tedious painstaking extremely joyful task of picking out the microscopic pieces. After the enjoyable time I had with this part, I rescind everything I said before about changing it later. To transfer the images to the glass, I used the "Glad Press n' Seal" method.  Me and My DIY has another using lint roller sheets I'd like to try next time.

ASSEMBLE! Put everything back together and hang it on a wall.  Is something crooked? Good.  Then you can tell it was made with love.