When I got home from the 9to5 yesterday, I went into 'mission mode." Must...get...project...done...
And I did!
I decided to join a group of my favorite bloggers in their Pinterest Challenge. It started last Tuesday evening and the challenge was to do a DIY project inspired by an image found on Pinterest. And complete the project by today. After a busy weekend, I was severely doubting my time management abilities. Luckily, yesterday I was uber productive and finished my project and I'm super excited about it!!
As a reminder, here was my Pinterest Inspiration:
My challenge to myself was to take an piece of metal wall art that we already had...
..and rework it and refresh it, so I'm not bored of it anymore.
Cutting apart those *%$#* darn plates was the toughest and most time consuming part of this. And of course once I separated them, I needed to remove the stand-offs and all the rough edges. I used wire cutters, a hack saw, and a metal file for this whole process.
In addition to just reconfiguring their layout, I introduced some paint to change it up a bit. I'm actually relatively new to spray paint, so I decided to take this opportunity to experiment with a few things (some more successful than others).
I was able to make-up try a few paint techniques. The shot in the dark was taking Vaseline and applying it to the raised portion of the design before painting. After it dried, I wiped where the Vaseline was a prayed that it worked. It didn't. Luckily I had more than enough plates so I could afford to mess up a few. If my Vaseline had maybe been less messy, it might have worked out. 
The technique did work in theory, but the end product was too much of a mess. Seeing how well (or not well) the spray paint was sticking to the plates did inspire me into another technique that did end up on the wall. After painting, when it was try to the touch but still tacky, I took a piece of sand paper and wiped/scraped away pieces of paint in one direction. The outcome was imperfect and a little quirky- somehow it worked.
As I mentioned yesterday, I had also purchased 5 plates to potentially add into the mix. 4 made it to the wall, and only 1 will be returned. I'm really excited to show you the outcome, so without further ado.
Drumroll please.....
Here's my project breakdown:
Existing metal plate art: $0
Plate hangers: $20
4 new plates: $15
Spray paint: $12
PROJECT TOTAL: $47
I think that's pretty good price for art of that size. What I find super exciting about my new plate art is that it isn't a stagnant piece. I can interchange plates if I find some at tag sales, or by season, or by my mood, or to match my outfit.
Did you do a DIY project for the Pinterest Challenge? I'd love to see it! Link to it in my comments.
I've also linked this project on these link parties: Young House Love: Pinterest Challenge Projects Joey & Lana Make a House a Home: Pinterest Challenge Time! Bower Power Blog: Pinterest Challenge Creative Blog: Get Your Craft On Savvy Southern Style: Wow us Wednesday