Homely to Haunted {take 1}

Two words:  Deseret Industries.  

I LOVE that place.  

I'm almost embarrassed to say that the first place I make a beeline for is the knick-knack aisle.  You know...the aisle with all the random pieces of...stuff...that did not have a home in any other section of the store.  Believe it or not, this is the best place to find what I call little treasures.   Some days I will dejectedly come home from DI with nothing; other days I will feel like a pirate with a hoard such as this:

(Don't panic...this pile cost me less than $18.  Not too shabby if I do say so myself.  And I guarantee you will see most, if not all, of these beauties in future episodes of "Homely to Haunted")

But I digress.

The purpose of this and future "Homely to Haunted" posts is to feature the transformation of little homely treasures into valuable Halloween decor.   

Our first victims are four of these candlesticks found at the aforementioned hoarder's heaven:

They were just screaming to reach their full potential!

As lovely as the whole "Grecian urn" kind of decorating is, they were destined to become something greater.

And so I gave them a little help...and turned them into these.

Wa-la! Worthy of a place of honor in any haunted mansion (most particularly...mine).

I found many a tutorial in blogland that uses the technique of brushing paint onto the surface of an item and then wiping off the excess to get the desired effect.  Using a paint brush to apply black paint (and get into those tiny nooks and crannies) is ideal...but when you find there is not a paint brush to be found (ahem), you can just use a paper towel.  Wipe off with an old towel or rag to get those great little scratches.

It is a bit messy, but actually quite satisfying.  Good thing acrylic paint washes off your hands easily.

And then of course I had to test it out on the shelf on which it will reside during haunting season. 

And squint my eyes and imagine what it will look like with all the other Halloween decor around it...

...I can almost see it...

And the transformation is finished.

Three pretty maids all in a row.

So do me proud, and don't pass up those little homely treasures!