I need your help! Since all of you are so crafty and creative I thought you could help me out with a few ideas for my latest estate sale find.
I paid about $7 for all three of these…great deal, right? Well, I was so excited to get them and I had big plans for painting or decorating them to look REALLY cool, but now I’m not exactly sure what to do!
Thoughts? Ideas? Any creative help would be appreciated! I want something extra cute to use in my craft area to hold all my jewelry supplies.
If I use your idea I’ll send you a little surprise package! 🙂
Thanks!!!
~Kim
Hi, Kim!
I think they would look great covered in vintage wallpaper….
or you could do the eggshell mosaic technique…..by glueing on a bunch of crushed eggshells and painting over it for a cool mosaic-look.
Have fun!
I have seen them painted and decoupaged and then turned into a custom shadow box. Each drawer, door, opening had a different “Design” in it to have it be an interactive “shadow box”
You can adhere fabric or paper or whatever with Modge Podge!
These are awesome. Lucky find. I see some great decorative paper covering them, maybe some distress ink, definitely a vintage look would work. Can’t wait to see what you do with them.
Personally, I have a couple of vintage jewelry boxes in my craftroom. I think they are great just as they are. If I were going to do something it would be something with them it would be a Marie Antionette theme.
Glue (vintage) buttons on. The bottom one looks very similar to one I have that was my grandma’s, except mine only has one bottom drawer!
I think they are awesome just the way they are!!! Love them!!!
Decoupage with old maps, postcards, stamps, envelopes – a travel sort of theme, as I get a bit of a steamer trunk feel (this would be awesome combined with some new antique-looking handles/knobs).
Alternatively, a paint finish that would look like either wood or leather to go for a travel trunk type of feel – this could be combined with some of the above (postcards, stamps) to look like the pictures of old trunks with the destination stamps/labels on them.
(I think the reason I went immediately for the old steamer trunk/travel theme is b/c it would remind me of found treasures, either from trips or from an old chest in Grandma’s attic. That kind of thing.)
Decoupage could be fun, or covering with fabric, or woven ribbons/trims – i also imagine giving them a “treasure chest” feel by studding them with upholstery tacks, if there’s enough thickness for the tacks to bite into…
I would love to see the wooden one sanded down, glue on a few dried flowers, and lacquered. I love wood as is, and it would be a shame to paint it.
The middle-sized pinkinsh one I think would look great with some chalkboard paint. On the top and sides, leaving a border in a different color (green maybe?) around the chalkboard paint on each surface.
The little one screams for a muted bedazzling – shades of grey?
Decoupage. There are so many cool retro and vintage looking papers, the sky is the limit!
Kim, I actually saw this post today about a DIY jewelry box – maybe this would be a fun choice!
http://www.thejoycottage.com/2011/06/diy-jewelry-box.html
I just wanted to say that you got a steal! I bought one identical to the cream colored one on the bottom a few months a go for $40! I had to have it 🙂 It is in excellent condition and still has the key.
Anyway I did a wooden one awhile back (decoupaged) in an art nouveau bohemian theme with birds and butterflies, lace, and buttons. It turned out awesome!
I would use little wooden spools from the craft store for the drawer pulls!
Also just learned about chalk paint on a blog the other day possibly Better After! Great look and less prep time on the boxes!
Well, my suggestion is to either leave them alone since they are pretty nifty just they way they are. OR, use a leather stain on each to get an even more vintage look to them! If that makes sense…!
Have fun!
What about covering them with vintage floral sheets? Or even old retro womens magazines from the 50’s?
Kim I love them and can see them covered in some great pattern pieces and pattern sleeves. I would use the front pf the pattern envelope in the middle on top. Just my idea.
Well, I love the red one, as is. I think the yellowish one on the bottom, would be great with vines & flowers, it looks kind of springtime-ish to me. The one in the middle is kind of a blank canvas. I’m not too attached to its current color & the details are minimal. It would be great painted black with tropical flowers/birds, kind of a tropical rain forest look. I’m sure whatever you do with them, they will turn out great!
Oh how cool – the bottom one is calling out to me as that is the color I recently painted my sewing room. I would be careful with all those hinges and slim drawers with adhering anything with too much “depth” to it – if you were adding sewing notions in there I would say tissue paper patterns would be awesome. It is hard to tell what the composition of the top one is. I think I would vote for painting them and then using the sandpaper on the edges to do a slightly distressed look – and somehow making sure all the hinges/ pulls are coordinating (silver Tester paint perhaps???) to tie the 3 pieces together.
I would paint them white, glaze them, distress them and number them…….When I opened this post the first thing I thought of was trunks by 508, here is her blog post http://fiveoeight.com/no-12-likes-his-name/
What great finds! I can’t wait to see what you do to transform them.
You could find some neat images, or use some printed sayings or quotes…then use Lazertran Image Transfer Paper to transfer them to the boxes
You could decoupage them with jewelry themed scrap booking paper or wrapping paper. You could also decorate them with your jewelry beads since that is what you will be putting in them. If you separate your beads by color or shapes you could put the beads on the outside that are on the inside so you don’t even have to open the box to know whats in it..
very fun finds! my first thought was to cover with lovely papers and then write words/verses with a nice black sharpie (I love words 🙂 But then I just saw this easy idea from anna joy and thought of you – http://www.thejoycottage.com/2011/06/diy-jewelry-box.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+TheJoyCottage+%28The+Joy+Cottage%29&utm_content=Google+Reader
let us know what you decide on!
Isn’t this Kim talking? Spray paint in bright happy colors, of course!
https://www.everythingetsy.com/2010/05/a-splash-of-color-my-backyard/
I painted some very similar to these last year: http://blog.embellishedbayou.com/2009/07/transformation-thursday-diy.html
I also like the idea of adorning them with vintage buttons or jewelry. Can’t wait to see what you decide!
I’m a paper addict 🙂 I was thinking adhering kozo or washi paper with Asian Themed patterns onto the boxes with matching designs. Then screen printing / labelling your intended storage, ie) tools, beads, etc.
$7. what a steal! On the larger one with the drawers, I think it would be fun to rubber stamp a quote or words on the drawer fronts. It’ll be fun to see your upcycled work 🙂
Although I do not care for painting over beautiful wood… I did come across the following linked blog. Love what they’ve done w these …
http://happydayvintage.blogspot.com/2011/03/upcycled-thursdays-jewelry-boxes.html
is the bottom one wood?If yes, I want it….just what I was looking for! I’d paint it a dark color and then white/cream on top and sand it away for a shabby chic-ish look. Great finds!
I would:
1. Take off the knobs and change them out with something funky that makes them look totally different
2. Paint them in colors you love
3. Use scrapbook papers to line the insides!!
Good Luck, looking forward to seeing the finished project.
i’m pretty partial to the top & bottom piece as is! if they are a bit dingy in person, try gently scrubbing with a magic eraser? (test first so you don’t scrub off the finish!) wooden appliques would be pretty on the middle one, glue them on and paint over. http://shop.hobbylobby.com/crafts/small-wood/small-wood/ you got a steal, for sure!! love them!
I would leave the top one as is because I love red and it looks like it’s in great shape!
I also have one about the same size as the one in the middle. One of my cats decided it would be a great place to perch and scratch up, so I found out mine is really just thick cardboard. I have been thinking of covering it with a contact-type paper. I know that print shops (like FedEx Office) have a sticky back vinyl, so you could make whatever design/photo you want. As far as I know it only can be done on the over-sized printers and can be a bit pricey.
I love the large one as is! The middle one I would decoupage with origami paper or tissue paper cut in a flower shape overlapping each other.
The little one begs to be-dazzled!
Well, you have several good options. A couple of things that struck me when I saw them…vintage dictionary/encyclopedia pages! If you cover them with the papers and seal them you can add a few paper flowers or other interesting embellishments. Also, Tim Holtz Tissue tape is WONDERFUL for such things and Graphic 45 makes good papers with really neat designs you could use, too!
I love to paper, sand, and distress little boxes! I have a few of them in my Etsy store. Enjoy your project!!!
http://www.etsy.com/shop/simplyapplesnspice
I am almost hyperventilating thinking you will paint or change them! I would keep them exactly the way they are! Open them up and put vintage jewelry in them to display. Some pearls or rhinestones draped over a drawer…old clip on earrings in the top…etc! Please don’t alter them! They are perfect just as they are! OLD…like me! haha! ♥
I agree that I would leave them as is…at least the top two. In fact, you can just go ahead and send me the middle purplish one. : ) Great finds!
Brandi
.-= Brandi´s last blog .."Promise Me That You’ll Be Standing Up Straight…" =-.
Great finds Kim! If you ask me I’d go for a distressed look with a little bling, somewhat like this: http://www.brit.co/weathered-wooden-box. Can’t wait to see what you did with them!