Tuesday, March 24, 2009

WFMW—Dollar Store Decor

IMG_2396

Last week I was at Dollar Tree and I spotted these two little birds. They were the only two I saw. I’m not sure what possessed me to pick them up and put them in my cart, because…well, let’s face it, they are hideous. They look cheap and ugly. Actually, they are quite photogenic, because they look worse in person than they do in this picture.

My original idea was to give them the look of stone, using gray primer spray paint and some dry-brushing with white and gray acrylics (similar to the technique I used on this finial).

That very afternoon I was just doing a little online browsing, and completely by accident, came across these at Ballard Designs.

birds

My vision immediately changed, and I pulled out the bronze spray paint instead. After a good coat and a little dry-brushing with very light gray acrylic, my ugly ducklings became this.IMG_2458

Ballard’s sell for $25 for the pair. I think my $2 version is just as nice. Dollar Tree Works For Me! Visit We are THAT Family for more ideas.

I'm also linking up with Thrifty Decor Chick's Spray Paint party.

33 comments:

jennybek said...

I love these little buddies. I can just picture some nestled in among my books.
I love decor on the cheap!

bridget {bake at 350} said...

Oh my gosh...I think I am heading to the dollar store tomorrow. :) I never would have thought to paint something from there.

Lisa @ Fern Creek Cottage said...

Great job! Nobody will guess they are from the dollar store. Cute!

Kirsty said...

Oh so cute! Great job. I recently saw a blog where someone had found some super scary dollar store bunnies and spray painted them white (like the ones in the Pottery Barn catalogue for a bunch of money) and they ended up quite stylish and adorable.

Kirsty said...

PS I think your pair are much cuter then the $25 ones :)

Megan said...

bronze birdies, i would have never thought of that but i love them! i love your blog! you have so many great ideas.

Unknown said...

Holly, what a wonderful transformation! Love it!

Sheryl

Unknown said...

Very cute little birds. I wouldn't have thought to paint something like this either.

Tee said...

Just discovered your blog today and love it! My favs so far are the scrabble tiles, the RL bag, and these birdies! I agree with Kirsty - yours are better than Ballards. Seems like their stuff is always overpriced.

Thrifty Decor Chick said...

I loooove the color and that is fantastic that Ballard had the exact same ones!! I love it!

Corrie at "Cents"able Momma said...

How cute...I love your site...I've added it to my Reader.

Mo said...

Luv 'em, luv 'em, luv 'em!! Great find - great job!

Sonya --Dime Store Thrift said...

I LOVE what you did with the birds, nicely done!

Jennifer (Niffer) said...

What a fantastic post! I love it! I'll have to keep my eye out for something with hidden potential!

Jerralea said...

I love this idea! I would have never thought of it on my own.

Heather@justdoingmybest said...

Great idea! That opens up a world of possibilities.

Niki Jolene said...

OMG! I love the idea of painting stuff from Dollar Tree. I often see things and think they'd be cute if it weren't for the horrific paint jobs.

Clever!

:)

Anonymous said...

Genius!

mub said...

These are darling, they look really classy too!

Anonymous said...

They are cute!

Anonymous said...

Spray paint is wonderful! They certainly look a million times better! Very cute!

Manuela

Anonymous said...

Haha! I painted mine white. They really were ugly little guys before their makeover. I like them in a dark color.

Anonymous said...

I love birds! Yours are amazing! Great job.

Wendy said...

Man, I was just at Dollar Tree! Looks like I'm going to have to head back over the bridge and see if I can find any treasures I can paint. Cute idea!

Raise Them Up said...

They turned out really cute! Chalk one up to Dollar Tree! Like Niki, I've seen lots of stuff that would be cute if it were not for the paint job. This is a great idea!

Clean and Classic Interiors said...

What a GREAT idea! Those birds just needed a fresh coat of paint! I want some for my porch!

La said...

I definitely like yours better! So so cute!

Anonymous said...

You are the second blogger I have seen use these exact same birds. Hers were white and I loved them, but I love yours too. Dang, now I'm going to have a hard time deciding which ones I should copy!

Trudi said...

Too funny, I have those same birds waiting to be painted white. They look great bronze also.

Anonymous said...

Came here via the $5 challenge- your shelf looks great and these birds- they are fabulous! THey look better than Ballards!!

blessings
mary

momof3girls said...

I am in love with your ideas!!! How creative !!!! I am going to have to change how I look at things in the store from now on!!

Rina said...

Oh wow, these are beautiful! I would have never thought of that!

Anonymous said...

personally, I like yours better than the Ballard's