Saturday, December 13, 2008

Pink Sugarplum Reindeer (DIY)...

... and visions of sugarplums danced in my head..."


(enlarge photos to see glitter effect)
Pink frosted sugarplum reindeer that is!


These little 'dears' are the latest addition to my cottage Christmas decor...


Can you ever have too much pink for Christmas? I don't think so!


Just look how they sparkle and glitter with freshly fallen 'snow' on their backs... But they didn't start out this way.


I found them this spring in a junktique store (while searching for these Staffordshire dogs!). They were so inexpensive that I had to get them. I loved their graceful lines and although I thought they looked beautiful as brass statues, I couldn't stop thinking about how fantastic they'd look painted in a soft cottage color...


... so I applied a nice coat of all purpose sealer to them (so the paint would adhere to the brass)...


... and after they were dry, it was time to paint them. (I originally painted them pale pink but then changed my mind and mixed a few colors together to come up with my favorite shade of peachy-pink!)


It took about 2-3 coats to completely cover the brass.


When they were dry, it was time to brush on a high gloss craft varnish.


And when that was dry, it was time to give them some pizzazzzzzzzzz!!!


Working in sections, I brushed on another layer of varnish and while it was wet, I sprinkled each area with glitter, then tapped the reindeer to remove the excess (I used waxed paper so I could fold it and pour all that excess glitter back into the container.)


After the varnish and glitter dried, it was time to add some Diamond Dust to the top of their heads and backs (I think it makes them look as though they have a dusting of snow on their heads and backs!). Again, this was done by applying varnish to the top of the heads and backs and then spooning Diamond Dust over the wet varnish. And again, I tapped the deer to remove excess Diamond Dust and then poured it back into the container. (Diamond Dust is actually ground glass so I don't ever handle it with my bare hands!)


Voila! Sparkly cottage reindeer! This whole process can be used on most any type of surface, so if you happen to find a wood, glass, ceramic, paper mache, brass, etc. deer (or Santa, Snowman, angel or whatever!) that you love, but you're not crazy about the finish or color, then by all means - seal it, paint it, varnish it, and glitter it! (Avoid picking up your finished projects where you've applied diamond dust glass glitter - ouch! I always pick these guys up by their legs or antlers since the diamond dust is just on their backs and the top of their heads.)

Now be sure to head over to Beverly's How Sweet the Sound to see her Pink Saturday item and to find a list of all the other pink loving bloggers who are sharing some of their PINKS today!!!



And thank you so much for all of your get well wishes for our Spotty. We are so thankful that he seems to be doing much better! I'm sure he'll be up to posing for the blog again in no time!!



Donna

24 comments:

Anonymous said...

What a beautiful job you did with those reindeer ....I love them . I love that I get such wonderful imaginative ideas from people like you here in blogland !
Happy Holidays !
Sue

Lady of the Mote said...

your cottage reindeer are lovely!

Deb said...

These little pink sparkly reindeer are fabulous Donna ~ what a great transformation!

Kim's Cottage said...

Oh, those are so precious! They look so sweet in pink. You did a fantastic job! And they are perfect there, grazing in their bottlebrush tree forest. Too too cute!

Happy Pink Saturday!


K-

Bargain Decorating with Laurie said...

So pretty. I would never have thought to paint brass. They turned out lovely. laurie

ksarra said...

After I sent the comment, I got an error message. Hope it went through.

Just A Girl said...

What sweet little dear and a great shade of pink. It looks like you have an amazing work space.
Happy pink Saturday.

Cori G.

Glennis said...

So pretty! You're right about the beautiful lines they have. Have a great Pink SAturday!

Free Art Printables said...

Love those reindeer! They are so cute!

SmilingSally said...

Good job! Happy Pink Saturday!

Anonymous said...

Dear Donna~ Only "every so often" do I click on a blog & am immediately so glad I did! I am totally ENRAPTURED w/ your pink, diamond-dusted deer~~~ AND the bottlebrush forest~~~ ANNNND your new FP, etc. Am SOOOO glad you shared the process, too. I am not much a a DIY gal (no "confidence!), but I flagged this as a "fav" so I can come back and TRY to do something like this later, when time permits. Tt brings back some family memories so VERY PRECIOUS and DEAR (excuse the pun!) to my heart! Thank you again, & blessings to you & your family for a wonderful Christmas! Warmly, Linda (RMS "Mom...")

Unknown said...

Love your reindeer! I'd love to find a reindeer with wiry antlers to hang chandelier crystals from. WOuldn't that be soooo fun!?!

Anonymous said...

I DIDN'T REALIZE YOU MADE THEM.AM I IMPRESSED WOWOWOW.BEAUTIFUL........ANN

said...

Deer are so elegant. Good job on yours!

Kris said...

Lovely reindeer. What a fantastic makeover.

Kris

Seams to Sew and Quilt said...

Very elegant looking. Happy Pink Saturday.

Anonymous said...

You are so danged creative!! I have a little pair of deer like those that my mom gave me years ago! You certainly Perked those babies up!!!! Good Pink Job! Dana

Unknown said...

Donna,
Your mantle DID turn out awesome and so chic!!! Pretty reindeer too and PINK no less!!1
Merry Christmas
Lorena

Anonymous said...

Just lovely.... your reindeer are the perfect touch to your cottage Christmas...
HUgs
Linda

Sondra Behne' said...

Oh... you are so like me....I paint every thing pink. Haven't done reindeers yet...I better get busy.

Great job, keep up the good work
Sondra

Kathleen said...

Thank you for stopping by my blog on Pink Saturday to say HI. I adore the deer. I have to remember that items can be altered, painted and more..thanks for the painting know how! Kathleen

Shirley said...

They are gorgeous! What a great idea.

Anonymous said...

Donna, as you can see, I am still catching up from last Saturday.

You did a phenomenal job with these reindeer. I really love them.

Anonymous said...

Yo soy mexicana y mi nombre es Mary, hoy entre por primera vez en tu Blog y estoy sorprendida, me encanta tu creatividad, los renos estan precios, muchas gracias por compartir la forma en que los hiciste. Aun cuando ya pasaron las fiestas, yo creo que aun es tiempo de decirte "Feliz Año 2009" y que Dios te bendiga. mi correo es mapily_cef@yahoo.com.mx