I've had this lamp forever and always loved it - it belonged to my Mother's Mother. I'm pretty sure it's a 1960s Retro Metal Toleware Hurricane lamp, the dark green paint had started to chip, the gold leaf detail had been smudged in places and somehow in a million moves, the fire-hazard of a cord broke completely. I was just going to toss it. But as the last few years have been full of great transition for me and I was finally beginning to find some time, inspiration and energy to put into recreating myself and updating my style in my new apartment. I decided it couldn't hurt to see what was underneath the paint and try giving it a new life.
I'm not even going to lie to you, getting the paint off was a total nightmare and I thought that I was either going to asphyxiate myself with the chemicals or chuck the lamp in the trash after all. That's where YouTube always comes in handy. Turns out that nail polish remover and a toothbrush to a thorough, albeit tedious job ... hours of podcasts later, I was ready to re-assemble.
Here's where it's worth mentioning that you should always photo document the entire process, if for no other reason, so that you can remember how to put it back together ... because I literally couldn't remember what the hell it was supposed to look like or which part went where. Guessing and swearing, I got it rewired with a basic lamp kit and figured out what order the parts were supposed to go in. I sprayed it over with a simple, clear protectant gloss to preserve it from rust and put a slight sheen on the surface. A little help from my friend Billy, because electricity freaks me out (and apparently I picked the only dead lightbulb in the pack to test it), cha-ching!! Let there be light!!
Lessons learned -
Projects always take AT LEAST three times as long and twice as many trips to the hardware store than you think they will (I already knew this, but somehow I am always flabbergasted like it's new information).
YouTube is a brilliant tool where you can learn how to do or re-do pretty much anything.
Don't be afraid to call in the big guns when you're stuck in the last lap - sometimes all you need is a little company, a new light bulb and a good laugh before you can celebrate basking in the glow of a completed DIY project.