DIY Lamp #2

Thanks for all the comments on the outfit everyone! I'll take a picture next time I wear it once I figure out what I'm going to do and post it.

So a while ago, I posted about my experience with rehabbing a lamp I got off eBay. Well, after that one I got the bug, so I decided to try it again. I love pretty much anything Asian, so I searched for "geisha lamp". Here are the pictures from the auction:


I don't remember how much it cost...something around $100. That may sound expensive, but look at it! Isn't it gorgeous? It was one of those "I have to have it or I'll DIE" kinda things. I've never heard of someone dying from 'lack of lamp', but I'm sure it's happened. Please note that it is in one piece and in pretty solid condition except for a few places where the paint has chipped.

I think when FedEx or UPS sees a box labeled "Fragile", it means "Smash the bejebus outta me" in their language. The lamp was packaged pretty well, it just looked like it had been hit with a Mack truck. Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures of it when it first came in, but I do have pics of it after I had spackled it back together. There is a metal rod that runs down the length of the statue and that was bent right at the neck. It must have taken a LOT of force to get it to bend like that.

Here you can see where her bun was cracked (the red stuff is the Bondo that I used). Also, this is after I had removed all the existing paint that was on it. It looked like it had been gold leafed sometime in it's past life! It took forever to get that paint off though. There is so much detail in the statue I had to dig paint out of every crease.

This is her neck from the front. That gray bit you see in the middle is part of the steel rod poking through. If the statue wasn't molded to that rod her poor little head would have fallen off.

Now, this is where I wish I had taken a before photo. The back of the base was all smashed up and in about 10 or so pieces. I put it back together like a puzzle using super glue and then Bondo'd all the cracks. I think this is the part I'm most proud of.


Here is the whole statue before I applied primer and painted it.


Action shot! I think I'm applying the primer here. I know this is off topic, but I love our backyard. You would never know from this picture that I live in a subdivision.

Cheese!


Here is the finished head all painted up. I liked the color that it was, but I wanted it to have more texture. I decided on a stone finish for the statue and a cream color (like the original color) on the stand.


The non-shattered base.


Here's the whole shebang. The first photo shows the colors well, but the flash picked up all the light spots on the lamp and makes it look splotchy. This is a good shot of the detail:


It was a lot of work, but it was worth it. I think whenever we move, this bad boy is sitting in my lap for the move. I'm not going to risk it getting damaged again!

Fashion, Smashion...

I need some advice from the ladies. I bought a dress on eBay and I couldn't wait until it came in. It came in the mail....and it didn't fit. The seller sold it as is so I couldn't return it (that's eBay for ya) but I liked the way it looked so much that I just stuffed it in my closet hoping I could figure some way to wear it. It is labeled a size 12 (my size) and I guess I didn't see any length dimension on the auction but it is WAY too short. Like, it shows my hoo-ha short. I have no interest in showing everyone my lady bits, so I thought I'd try to wear it over jeans. The Steve said it looked fine, but I need a woman's opinion.

Front view:


Side view:
Part of me feels like this looks really good and is trendy, and another part of me thinks I'm crazy. Plus, I've got some wide child-bearing hips I've got to work with and I don't know if this works. What do you think?

Tagged!

I was tagged by Jen and Nicole! You are supposed to write seven facts or interesting tidbits about yourself and then tag seven other people. Since I got tagged twice, it's only fair that I list 14 things.

1. My full name is Marguerita. And, no, that wasn't my mother's favorite drink! She prefers Mudslides anyway. I think the root of it is French, but it's a traditional Greek name. I'm named after my Aunt Rita and it means pearl.

2. I built my computer from the ground up. I hate having to take my computer to a repair shop because you have no idea if they are snooping around in your stuff. I used to work in a small computer store and, while I never did it, some of the techs liked to poke around other people's computers to see what kinda of goodies they could find (music, movies, pr0n).

3. I like to draw, but I never have time for it.

4. My BFF/MOH and I have been friends since Kindergarten. She just needs to move up here now so we can hang out more often!

5. I'm left handed.

6. I have an insane amount of earrings.

7. I have two cats, Aya and Fargo. If you listen carefully, you can hear Aya meow at the end of my voicemail message.

8. I used to have a Chihuahua, named Honey, but she passed away a few years ago. It still hurts to talk about her.

9. I graduated with a degree in Architectural Engineering from UMR in '05. It's a lot like a Civil Engineering degree, only I took more building centric classes and no highway or storm water classes.

10. Despite my engineering degree, I can't do math in my head. I can solve all sorts of complex equations, but if you ask me to add in my head I'm screwed.

11. I am the third child of four. My sister is 10 years older then me and my older brother is 8 years older and my younger brother is two years younger. I'm the last one to get married.

12. My mom is a twin (fraternal, my uncle is her twin) so that increases the likelihood that I'll have twins.

13. I have an obsession with all things Japanese. For example, I have 7 books on Geisha.

14. I love to go camping. I can't wait until it gets warm again!

Whew! That was harder than I thought it was going to be! I won't tag anyone else since I think everyone I know on the blogosphere has been tagged (oh yes, I said 'blogosphere').