Repurposed: Tired to Cheerful

Anyone who knows me, knows I love color!   If you walked into my home you'd see color splashed all over the place.  The project I'm sharing with you today was simple and fun, and originally intended to be functional, but ended up being for decoration only. 

Early this spring, I began thinking about our home garden and how we would mark off each vegetable or fruit.  I wanted to brighten it up before the fruits and veggies started appearing, with handmade garden markers. 

With the garden markers in mind, I headed down to my local Goodwill and started rumaging through the silverware and utensils section.  There was absolutely no silverware in stock that day, but I did come across some mismatched wooden spoons.  After some brainstorming, I decided I could figure out something for these tired, worn out wooden spoons.  I bought them for a whole $2.50 and immediately went to work.

First I washed and dried the spoons (You never know where they've been or how dirty they are).  Then I simply painted them with a variety of craft paint I had on hand.  I painted 2 coats on each spoon, front and back and then sprayed them with a clear varnish.  Remember at this time, I was still planning on using them as garden markers.  I let them dry and in the mean time had a couple friends come by and ask what I was going to use them for - I told them about my garden idea and also added that I really liked the color and cheer they brought to the kitchen.. so I was a little sad to put them outside.  I ended up keeping them indoors.  I'm so glad I did, because they add so much spirit and cheer to my kitchen!
 

Tired, Worn Out Spoons

Cheerful New Spoons

(Note: Once spoons have been painted and clear varnish has been added, they cannot be used for food purposes.)