before & after (half) of my kitchen cabinets

ok so when i did this i had absolutely NO idea that spray painting required technique. seriously. when i told my husband what i did he laughed and was like, 'duh. you should've asked me about it.' i hate it when he knows more than i do, which is rarely ;) anyway, i wanted to decorate above my kitchen cabinets. it was bothering me not having anything there...except for this HUGE white gothic looking candle my cute little husband stuck on top of one of them (unfortunately i don't have a pic of that). i browsed through google (i can't function without that website) and saw either modern, southern, or minimalist decor & didn't like it. the interior of my house gives me a very Mediterranean feel, which my husband accentuated when he bought the huge painting that hangs over one of our couches in the living room, so i thought i'd go from there. my mom had a lot of those ceramic vases (you know the old-timey-white-with-blue-design type) that she was going to throw away, so i asked her for them...and this is how my ceramic spray painting ability came about. for those out there who have NO idea, just like me, how to spray paint ceramic, i'll explain it to you: first, choose your colors. i bought mine from wal-mart. i bought white primer (which i didn't use the first time - BAD IDEA) & then the color i wanted to use (in this case, cherry red). next, find a spot where you can spray paint (away from wind or falling debris). ok so here comes the hard part (it was for me at first), after you clean the vases (wipe off the dust if they are old, there is no need to try and sand them down), spray paint the primer on. when you spray paint, you must hold the can at least 12" from the vase and spray in spurts moving from left to right or from up to down or vice versa (in other words don't spray paint too close or on one spot for too long or you'll get streaks and blobs - speaking from experience). you coat the entire vase with primer until it's white (if you are using a darker color on top there's not need to have it completely white, it's ok for some of the design to show through as long as it has been sprayed with primer). after about 10-15 minutes, you spray on whatever color you chose. make sure you spray the lower portion of it and around and in between the handles if there are any. wipe off any excess paint fromj the can- or pour it out in between sprays, because again you don't want globs or streaks. let that dry and there you have it, an almost-brand-new vase! here are the before & afters of half of my kitchen cabinets. the other half i am still working on. being 8 months preggo & having to climb ladders, shopping, or doing projects outdoors in this 120 degree weather is not exactly easy :)

BEFORE

free vases from my mom (i didn't take a before of the other vase)

i bought this frame for $2.99 at the thrift store and the painting at hobby lobby for $6.50. i took the painting out of the mat and cut a square the size of the frame from a black poster board i had lying around.

this vase used to be kakhi with brownish designs...and now it looks like this! that's the pear painting i framed. the faux ivy i bought from michaels for $7 (i used the same branch of ivy, just cut it in half for both cabinets & i still have some left over).

these are the vases pictured previously. i apologize for the quality of the picture, i took it with my phone bcz i didn't have my camera on me. the basket that sits behind my vases i bought at hobby lobby for no more than $6.

this is a close up before so you can see the basket and color of the vases better

 

Recap:

3 vases = free!

faux ivy = $7 @ Michael's

frame = $2.99 at thrift store

black poster board = "free" i've had it for a while, usually it's a $1 at dollar tree

basket = $6 at hobby lobby

i'd say not bad for my first decorating session. i still have 2 other cabinets not pictured above i am in the process of doing. i'm leaving the other two cabinets pictured above empty bcz i don't want it looking cluttered (and the ceiling is pretty close).