Hoop, there it is. File this under my weirdest “Dude, Get On That Already” challenge to date. Much like many of our other DGOTA adventures, this mini update involves something that sat around bugging me way too long + a trusty ol’ can of spray paint. But this time it’s not an animal. I know. Total shocker.
John actually laughed at me for this little tweak (and I’m fully expecting you guys to as well), but they say it’s the little things that make ya happy… and seeing a bright red and blue plastic hoop against the back wall of our carport every. single. time. we pulled into the driveway (it was so bright you could see it from the curb) did not a happy momma make. And I know it’s dumb, but I worried the neighbors may have thought it was junky and tacky to have a big colorful hoop in plain sight 24/7 (they all do such a nice job to keep their yards looking nice, and many have kids but their toys are tucked away by evening). So because I’m what my dad likes to call “a strange bird” (seriously, I’ve been weird since before it was cool – wait, it’s still not cool?), I’ll share my odd little DIYed hoop-redeeming solution. Just promise not to compare me to Monica from Friends (I don’t fold my underwear, I swear).
First of all, this basketball hoop is super important.
Why? Because it makes Clara a happy girl. And a happy girl = a happy momma. So I devised a way to:
- keep the hoop right there in the carport (after trying several locations it’s the best spot for it)
- keep it just as functional (don’t need to explain this one, right?)
- make it simmah-down-now from the curb (in the slightly altered words of Jay-Z: we got 99 bright toys I love, but this hoop ain’t one)
That plan? A can of ORB spray paint. I mean, would you expect anything less from me at this point? I’m definitely not one of those people who thinks all kids toys should be neutral or white or should match the living room. Clara has a ton of brightly colored toys and I’m even the gal who painted her hand-me-down highchair bright yellow, made her a happy little dollhouse with cheerful furniture to match, and painted her formerly neutral wooden crayon truck sky blue…
… but after four months of rounding the block and seeing that red ring of fury on that bright blue stem, I realized there had to be a solution that worked for Clara, the hoop, and the mom. I love that bright colors help with development, but I just decided that one item out of many (this girl’s got toys for days!) that’s not a bright color is OK since I’ve never sprayed anything else of hers a muted color (and have actually added color to muted things, like her high chair and her crayon truck… so hopefully it all balances out). And come to think of it, her very favorite “toys” are rocks and sticks, so ORB fits right into that color scheme.
Sadly I didn’t get a good shot of the basketball hoop in all of it’s primary color glory before my paint-fest (bad blogger, no Oreos for you) but I actually made this photoshopped rendering for ya. How nuts am I? Wait, don’t answer that.
In the “real photo” category, you can actually see it peering around the back of the table in this post. See, it’s even brighter in real life than the one in the rendering. Haha.
And you can see how he looked all naked and ready for a new suit in the back yard (I removed the net part for the spraying phase so it wouldn’t get all gunked up).
The thing was visible from space, I tell ya… and then it wasn’t.
Thank you ORB. For those wondering what I used or if it works on plastic, Rustoleum Universal All-Surface spray paint is made to work on plastic and hold up outdoors – it even has a built-in primer for a better hold (I used the oil-rubbed bronze color of course). Total cost: $0, since I already had half of a can leftover from another ORB adventure. And in the time department, it took under twenty minutes to knock this baby out. Fast and free. Why didn’t I do this four months ago?
Just as I suspected, Hooper is a total looker with his new finish. As for why I went with oil-rubbed bronze spray paint, it ties into the carport light and a few other dark accents around the outside of our house and hides more dirt than something lighter/brighter might. No more “Loook! I’m a little plastic hoop! Check me out!” – just chill aloofness and that “I’m cool enough to fall back and do mah thing without demanding everyone’s attention” vibe. And the contrasting white net makes it easy for Clara to slam dunk (it’s not all flat and dark, so she can still clearly see the basket).
Small personal projects like these are my favorite. They might seem completely crazy to someone else (or maybe everyone else, haha) but they really have the power to make your day. It’s kind of like how I’m a terrible baker and you probably couldn’t pay me to attempt a three layer cake but my BFF does that stuff FOR FUN (really?! for fun?!). To each his own (picture me raising a can of spray paint as if to say “cheers”).
So in summary: Mommy likes. And happily, Clara and Daddy like it too. See how he’s hardly visible from halfway down the driveway now? Life is good.
Way better than this, right? And there are still dozens of bright toys in our midst (seriously, you should see our living room right now).
The cutest part is that Clara apparently has a thing for ORB like her momma. She has even taken to calling it her “so so shiny hoop.” Love that girl. And of course she has a whole bunch of multicolored balls that go with it (they tuck away into that storage container next to it) so it’s not a sad little drab thing when it’s in action. Everybody wins.
Except for Burger. He can’t play basketball. Poor guy.
What small-slash-quirky-but-somehow-woefully-overdue updates have you guys been tackling (or planning to tackle)? Do you all think I’m crazy? Anyone else painting something outside? Or do you have a dog who plays basketball? That would be the most impressive of all.
Jasanna says
haha i love it! I always hated those primary-colored toys that simply must clash with everything. I hated them as a kid. That’s saying something. :) My question is, when you spraypaint, ….how do you not get keeled over by the smell? Do you goggle up and put on a breathing mask like Darth Vader or do you just breathe as little as possible. :) Obviously I haven’t mastered this yet. :)
http://www.munchtalk.net/
YoungHouseLove says
I love wearing a mask and doing it outside on a not windy day. I have one of those crazy gas mask type masks that we got for around $30 a while back from Home Depot. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Casey says
I don’t fold my own underwear, but I always fold my boyfriend’s when I do laundry. He thinks I’m crazy.
And on the topic of little-personal projects that make you sigh contentedly…
Our bedroom sadly only has two working outlets, so we’re extension cord crazy…and it’s driving ME crazy! Yesterday (while taking a break from folding underwear), I busted out the drill and a big fat bit and made holes in the back of our nightstands so the cord tangle mess can be tucked away out of sight. SUCH a relief! And, again, my boyfriend thinks I’m crazy for it, but it makes me happy!
YoungHouseLove says
I love projects like that! So satisfying.
xo,
s
nicola says
Sorry buy I hate it when people insist their kids toys must be tasteful.
YoungHouseLove says
No worries, check out the post where I chat about how much I love bright toys. They definitely don’t all have to match at all! Haha. I just made one change to one toy of about a million because it was the only one that bugged me :)
xo,
s
Emily says
Sherry, you are so cute and right up my alley…wanna be besties? Lol
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, done deal.
xo,
s
Leslie says
I completely understand this and will probably do the same thing to half of my kids’ toys someday. My project for this weekend is actually to ORB my Kitchenaid mixer – it’s red, which doesn’t match anything else in my turquoise/lemongrass/white kitchen, and it’s driving me completely crazy!
Debbie @ Pink Texas Chick says
On the subject of underwear. I fold my husband’s underwear as well as my son’s and my daughter’s. Mine? I toss them in my drawer not even half-arse folded. Who’s the weird one now? :)
Oh and this weekend I’m spray painting my son’s old toddler trike a hot pink for little sister to officially call her own. :)
YoungHouseLove says
Aw that’s such a cute project! I love it!
xo,
s
Lilah says
I actually wanted to thank you profusely for naming the ORB stuff so that I can find it. My DGOTA project is adding some places to hang towels in my bathroom. I want the stuff I am puttin gin to match the fixtures, but couldn’t find a single spray paint color that matched it. I pinned a technique for oil rubbed bronze that looks the same but requires 3 (yikes!!! THREE) types of paint. This will save so much time that I have my three mile grin on just thinking about it.
YoungHouseLove says
Aw, you’re welcome! And good luck!
xo,
s
Paige @ Little Nostalgia says
My underwear drawer is one of the most organized spaces in the whole house. I can’t imagine NOT folding! How do you do it?!
My next spray painting project is a shelf I use to wrangle my garden supplies. I’m thinking cobalt blue.
YoungHouseLove says
I just have a bin where I toss stuff (and another one next to it for socks. Compartments make me feel organized. Haha.
xo,
s
JEN C says
I acquired a seriously faded Little Tikes wagon and Pinterest inspired me to spray paint it. I saw lots of those Little Coupes spray painted and they looked great. 4 cans of spray paint and 2 cans of clear coat later……it didn’t stick. I called Rustoleum and they pointed out the very little print on the can “does not work on Little Tikes.” The guy said it’s because Little Tikes adds a chemical to their plastic to prevent spray paint from sticking. I used it twice and the paint rubbed off on my hand, scratched off where it hit the ground, and flecked off where my daughters shoes rubbed on the base. Now it sits in my backyard mocking me…..what to do with it now??????
YoungHouseLove says
Oh so that makes sense of the comments asking about that little disclaimer! It stuck to our so I was stumped. Must not have been coated in that stuff. As for yours, can you sand it smooth? If so, maybe you can try another type of spray primer and paint? Hope it helps!
xo,
s
JoW says
Haha. #firstworldproblems
Claire @ Claire K Creations says
Uh oh, I fold my underwear does that mean I’ve crossed the threshold? The new colour on the hoop also makes my heart sing AND I bake AND spray paint things for fun. Don’t worry Sherry there are people a lot more crazy than you out there!
YoungHouseLove says
Haha thanks Claire!
xo,
s
Julie says
Sherry, I couldn’t agree with you more – you’re not alone in this line of thinking. But of course I’m the one who organizes my closet based on color and has a bookshelf divided into genres. My rationale has always been 1) it looks nice and 2) it saves me time in the long-run. Both wins in my opinion!
angelie says
You inspired us! My husband just revamped to benches! They look great! Thanks again!
Alba says
The hoop is SOOOO cute! It looks modern and new. When my kids were little (like your daughter), none of us moms would have thought to paint the primary colored hoop! My kids are 16 and 20 now, just for reference. Impressive!
Jennifer says
Well if your crazy for doing this, then so am I. I actually did this to one of those fisher price kid easels last Christmas. It was free (from a friend), but I thought the primary colors did not go with my girl’s room. After spray painting it white, the tray a barn red, and a fresh spray paint of chalk board paint (the one that comes on it isn’t so chalk friendly), it was a brand new Christmas present!
Kaity says
… You mean folding your underwear isn’t normal?
Laura says
This post totally inspired me because my kids would LOVE a basket ball hoop, but I’ve never offered to get them one simply because I couldn’t stand looking at it every day in my backyard. Then I saw one very similar to Clara, except a bit bigger and it can go 6 feet high, at Goodwill for $10 and I *almost* bought it. Fast forward two days later and I’m filled with regret. I called them, and sure enough, it’s already gone. I immediately searched craigslist and found one exactly the same for only $5 (!) and it’s just a few blocks from my house!! It was meant to be. NOW, my question, is about your process. Clean it, spray it, and wait how long? Does it have to cure before the kiddos can play with it? I’m nervous because it does seem risky spray painting plastic. Thanks!!!!
YoungHouseLove says
That’s so sweet! I’d wipe it down to clean it and then use the same stuff we used (since some other colors/brands might not stick/hold as well) and then let it fully cure for at least 24 hours. If you check the can it might have more specific instructions. Hope it helpS!
xo,
s
Bernadette @ B3HD says
Gotta say I was skeptical at first, but it actually turned out practical, functional and kinda nice. I get the whole “bright colors for stimulation” thing, but sometimes, a little neutral goes a long way (smile).