I am hesitant to call today's project a Thrifty Thursday project. Although it is certainly made with thrift store items--canisters and pot lids to be exact, it is more of a craft or project kind of a post that uses thrift store finds.
No matter what I call the post, I love this project turned out and I will definitely be making more (especially after working out the kinks). Be sure to read to the end of this post to see what I will do differently when making these in the future. The project idea started with my wanting large. decorative, gold bells for my Christmas porch decor.
These were popular last year. But at $20+ a pop for the BIG bells, I decided I would figure out a way to make something similar. I perused the thrift store for possible items to make the bells and landed on canisters and random pot lids to recreate the decorative bells.
I found lids that fit on the top of the canister bottom. I wanted lids that had a handle and were metal, not glass. I sanded the bottom of the canister and the rim of the pot lid and then cleaned them with white vinegar. Using super glue, I attached the lid to the canister bottom. They are stuck together firmly and the super glue held really well. I then spray painted the canisters with flat black paint. The manufactured bells have a rough texture so to recreate that I added baking soda to black paint and painted the canisters inside and out. I used a one to one ratio of paint and baking soda. I then painted the canisters with gold paint. When that was dry I dabbed on some brown, burnt orange, and maroon colored paint, dabbing it off if it got too heavy. I then painted one more coat of gold craft paint and sprayed then with a clear coat when the paint was dry. To make the tongue or the clapper of the bell, I cut some of the blade portion off from two butter knives. I used tin snips to cut them and then the vice grip to bend and finally break them. I sanded the sharp edges and then painted the knives the same as the bell. Attaching the knives became a frustrating task and I will do it differently next time. After trying a few other methods. I ended up wrapping wire around the knife handle and then poking it through and securing it in a cardboard piece I cut to fit snuggle inside the bell. I hot glued the cardboard inside.
Some rope tied through the pot lid handle and I think my bells rival the manufactured version. My version cost about $3.50 per bell and I love them hanging from my porch lights with a little greenery and a rosehip garland. I will be making more for all of my outdoor lights. I think I might make some ginormous bells from the popcorn tins that are always at the thrift stores.
What I would do differently. I think I would skip the black baking soda paint and paint an initial coat of gold baking soda paint over the flat black spray paint. I would use a little less baking soda to make it a bit less texture. BEFORE I glue the lid to the canister bottom, I will drill two holes and string a wire loop through them to attach the knife, I will then drill through the knife handle and wire the knife to the loop inside.
Let me know if you will try this project. I am really so pleased with final product and the price to make these makes me happy.