Quick & Easy Outdoor Light Fixture Update

Something I've wanted to do for the past couple of years is update our outdoor light fixtures. We have one by the front door, one by the garage, and one in the back yard. The two on the front of the house are just plain ugly and I'll have to buy new ones if I want to update them (I know what I'm putting on my Christmas wish list....). But the one in our back yard had potential. It wouldn't be my first pick in a fixture if I was buying one, but it'll do. When I saw how Serena over at Thrift Diving updated her outdoor light, I thought, hey, I can do that too! I figured the cost of a can of spray paint was way cheaper than a new fixture, so I gave it a shot. Here's what I started with:

The fixture was worn and rusted, and the glass was filthy. Also, the lightbulb inside was dull, so when you turned the light, it didn't really do much. I took the fixture apart, removed the light bulb, and removed the glass. I taped up some newspaper so I could spray paint the base without worrying about any of the electrical (I made sure to cover up the spot where the light bulb screws in so I didn't get any paint in there). I wiped it down, and sprayed away!

I cleaned the glass inserts with windex and let everything dry. After it was dry, I put it all back together, put in a new light bulb, and ta-da! So easy! Not only does it look better and more updated, but it gives off so much more light. I guess that's what clean glass and a new light bulb will do.

Life Lately

I can definitely tell the holidays are approaching...things are getting busy. And I know I'm not alone on this. I'm sure you are all feeling the hustle and bustle that comes with this time of year. However, we've been lucky enough to sneak in some fun. A couple of weeks ago my sister-in-law scored great seats to the Detroit Red Wings game and asked us if we wanted to go with her and my brother-in-law. It was my first professional hockey game and it's the last year the Red Wings will play in their current arena, so I was excited to go. The Red Wings lost, but we had a blast!

We've also been busy trying to keep up with the falling leaves, but the fact that it's basically dark by the time we get home from work, and our weekends are packed with plans, doesn't leave us much tine to get them done. We recently bought a trailer, that has made the whole process way easier. Where we live, we don't have any woods that we can just blow our leaves into (I'm super jealous of those who can do that). And the city doesn't come pick them up, so we can't just blow them to the edge of the street. We have to physically get rid of them. Luckily, our city has a free yard waste facility that is pretty close to our house. So we've been loading up the trailer and dumping them there every chance we get. We still have several more trailer loads to take in our future, but we're getting there.

See all the leaves on the ground? This pic was taken on a Friday. We had just cleaned up ALL of the leaves on Monday. It never ends!

Last Friday I went on a little shopping trip with my mom and her friend. We went to The Found Cottage, where I picked up a super cute Christmas pillow, and Lost & Found-Treasures of Old and New, where I found quite a few vintage decor items. My favorite was an old wood sled. I can't wait to decorate it for Christmas! Also, it was only $12. I couldn't believe it. I felt like I hit the jackpot of deals haha

We have another busy weekend coming up and then it will be Thanksgiving. Time flies when you're having fun!