Happy Hour Projects

Creativity in an hour or less with Adrianne Surian

  • home
  • about adrianne
  • buy the books
    • DIY T-Shirt Crafts (2015)
    • DIY Stamped Metal Jewelry (2016)
  • videos
  • crafts
    • diy beauty projects
    • kids’ crafts
    • paper craft projects
    • polymer clay
    • sewing projects
  • jewelry
    • bracelet projects
    • earring projects
    • necklace projects
    • jewelry tools & supplies
  • metal stamping
    • beginners’ tutorial
    • video tutorial
    • project ideas
    • metal stamping supplies
  • recipes
    • cocktail recipes
    • appetizers
    • main and side dishes
    • sweets and treats
  • by season
    • birthdays
    • new year
    • valentine’s day
    • st. patrick’s day
    • easter and spring
    • mother’s day
    • patriotic
    • fall
    • halloween
    • christmas
    • thanksgiving
  • privacy

Fall is Painting Season!

10/09/2013 Adrianne Surian 7 Comments

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of FrogTape brand painter’s tape for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

If you have seen me on Instagram and Facebook lately, you will notice that now that fall has arrived, it’s suddenly painting season around my house!  As soon as the cooler weather hits, I have SO much more energy to direct toward giving our space a makeover.  Does that happen to you?  I’ve finally had the opportunity to get my studio set up this past week, so it has been lots of fun having one room in the house that I can decorate any way I want.  And that means adding fun pieces like this:

Chevron Lamp with Chalk Paint and FrogTape Shape Tape at www.happyhourprojects.com

I am on a tight budget when it comes to putting pretty touches on my craft space, though.  And when I say tight… um, I mean, it’s a good thing I’m a DIY-er and re-purposer.  I found this dusty old beauty when I was unpacking some boxes from our move in July, and I knew it would make for a fun project.  As fate would have it, the next day I had the opportunity to try out FrogTape®’s NEW Shape Tape™, and I knew exactly the look I wanted!

I am a big fan of FrogTape® already.  In Raya’s old nursery, I used it to create a painted block wall.  (Wow, I can’t believe that was 3 years ago already!)  FrogTape® has PaintBlock® technology – a polymer that gels in contact with the water in latex paint to create a barrier, sealing the edges to protect against paint bleed.  Even on our textured walls, I was thrilled with how well it worked.

Their Shape Tape™ has the same technology, but it comes in 3 pre-cut patterns for projects with a little more detail: Scallop, Wave, and Chevron.  I knew the chevron pattern would be perfect for my lamp!  So I mixed up some chalk paint and got to work.

I’m sure the pre-mixed chalk paints are amazing, but I have always mixed my own and have loved the results for slightly-distressed projects.  It’s also really cost-effective for small pieces like this, where you can use up small quantities of paint you may have leftover from other paint projects, or you can even buy sample sizes and get just the shade you’re looking for.  (For you color junkies out there, the colors I used today are Benjamin Moore’s White Dove and Elephant Gray.)

To mix up your own chalk paint, I use this ratio:

  • 1 part plaster of paris
  • 1 part warm water
  • 3 parts latex paint

Dissolve the PoP in the water, and mix the latex paint into this mixture, stirring it well.  Paint your base coat and allow it to dry.  Chalk paint shows fewer brush marks than normal latex paint, and goes on thicker.  Depending on what your next coat is going to be, you may only need one coat.  I used two.

You will need to rub on some wax at the points you plan to distress.  For me, that was each of the 4 edges, and random areas on the face of each side.  This will make the base coat show through very easily when you sand it later.

Next, I added my Shape Tape™.  You can vary the placement to create heavy lines, thin lines, staggered lines – even diamond patterns.  I chose the classic chevron pattern with equally spaced white and gray.  For the PaintBlock® technology to work, you need to apply the tape firmly and evenly.  To help with this, the tape actually has a slit liner on the back for easy positioning.

Ready for the final coat!

I painted my gray, removed the tape while it was set but not dry, and allowed my lamp to finish drying completely.  Once dry, I used a fine grit sandpaper to lightly distress it.  Then, I rubbed the whole thing with a final coat of wax to protect it.

Chevron Lamp with Chalk Paint and FrogTape Shape Tape at www.happyhourprojects.com

What do you think?  I love how it turned out, the shape tape was the perfect way to add an easy chevron pattern.  I can’t wait to try it on another project!

You can keep up to date with the latest creative ideas and inspiration by following FrogTape® on Twitter @FrogTape!

Visit Sponsor's Site

Sponsored, Tutorials chalk paint, home decor, lamp, paint

copyright policy and terms of use

I love it when you love my work! All tutorials and photos published at Happy Hour Projects are copyrighted. If you would like to feature my tutorial on your website or share it on your social media you may use one photo to feature, as long as you provide a link back to the original post.

If you feature a photo, it may not be accompanied by the project tutorial or recipe, whether in my own words as it originally appears or paraphrased by you. This also includes personal sharing on social media and Pinterest. Publishing multiple photos from a project, or including instructions with an accompanying photo are not permitted and you will be asked to remove them.

I love to share my projects, and my tutorials, recipes, and e-books are ALL free for your personal use. However, photos and ideas that are published to this site are my protected intellectual property. You may print them at home, but please do not copy or distribute them. I also allow all designs to be made and sold at fundraisers, craft fairs, etc. If you are selling a piece made from one or more of my free tutorials in your online shop, I require that you use your own, original photography, and include a link back to my website to credit me as the designer.

I hope you enjoy what you read here, and please be fair when you share!

Comments

  1. Tara says

    10/09/2013 at 6:52 pm

    How adorable! I love the chevron look, and the fact that you distressed it just sings to my heart! Well done, Adrianne!

    Reply
  2. amy says

    10/09/2013 at 6:53 pm

    Get. out. Chevron shaped tape?! I so need to get me some of this. THANK YOU for sharing!

    Reply
  3. Melanie says

    10/09/2013 at 8:25 pm

    This tape looks cool!

    Reply
  4. Marilyn says

    10/09/2013 at 10:29 pm

    Frog tape was already amazing and now it’s available in shapes! WOW!! Your lamp is gorgeous!

    Reply
  5. Crystal says

    10/10/2013 at 10:16 am

    Wow!! I can’t believe that Frog Tape came out with a chevron pattern…my favorite!! Your lamp is awesome!!

    Reply
  6. Kadie says

    10/17/2013 at 5:37 pm

    How cool that it comes in chevron now!! I don’t know what to paint yet but I know I’m going to NEED some of that soon. ;)

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Friday Finds: 10 Blogs That Rock Paint Projects says:
    11/22/2013 at 6:00 am

    […] she wants purple, green, and yellow).  I’ve also mixed up some homemade chalk paint for a recent lamp project and it’s just screaming to beautify even more things!  So naturally, I’ve been […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Hello, and welcome! I'm Adrianne, an artist, author, designer, and blogger in mid Michigan. I work from home, chase my two kids, and this once-city-girl is learning how to care for chickens and adjusting to life out in the country. I have a compulsion for daily creativity... sometimes it's jewelry-making, paper crafting, metal stamping, mixing and baking, or giving new life to recycled items. But with 2 young kids, time is short! My goal here at Happy Hour Projects is to share projects and tips that you can do in an hour or less. The ideas you find here are designed to add a little creativity in your day, no matter how much (or how little) time you have!

BUY MY BOOKS

Copyright © 2018 · Daily Dish Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in