You Can Have a $5,000 Lucite Table for a Fifth of the Price
When my mail is delivered, you’ll find me running to discover which catalogs and home magazines have arrived. I flip through my favorites, dreaming of a day when I can afford that Grasshopper Floor Lamp or the Turner Square arm upholstered 3-piece L-shaped sectional. Just wait, Bianca Tufted Ivory Headboard; I’ve got my eye on you!
But I learned it isn’t necessary to wait for a lottery windfall to get the items I crave, when it’s the look I want and not the price tag. All it took was some imagination and Internet sleuthing to find my design dreams.
Lucite Coffee Table
I recently had my floor painted a wonderful black and white pattern that I copied from a picture of Tory Burch’s entryway in Vogue. A local painter with an artistic flair did a spectacular job. A decorator friend told me I absolutely had to have a Lucite coffee table so that the floor was visible underneath.
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It is a large space, so the dimensions had to be big. There were two problems: I couldn’t find one big enough; the large ones I found cost thousands — I’m talking $5,000 and up. There was no way I could afford to pay that for a table! I scoured eBay, 1st dibs and all the auction sites, and was frustrated. Then I decided to create my own.
Through a web search I found the names of five plastic companies and contacted them.
I sent them all a picture of a Lucite table from Wisteria as inspiration, but included my dimensions and the little tweaks I wanted which included changing the size (Wisteria’s table is 38” square feet and 15” high and I needed 48” x 52” and 16” high.) I also wanted the top of the coffee table to be acrylic as well as the base — everywhere I looked used a glass top.
I received five prices within a day—and the range was huge, from thousands to multi-thousand dollars.
Ultimately, Larry Shore of Shore Plastics in Philadelphia was the winner. We emailed a few times, hammering out the details, which were very straightforward.
Within 2 weeks I had exactly what I wanted sitting front and center in my living room all for the more-reasonable price of $750. There was a $100 delivery fee—a van delivered the table in one piece, no assembly required, to my doorstep. An investment to be sure, but it was exactly what I wanted and I did not compromise.
Art Work
When my kids were little we lived in Santa Monica and there was a beautiful store on Montana Avenue that sold artwork from famous children’s books like Eloise and Where the Wild Things Are. I always wanted some for my boys’ walls, but the price was too high.
To get the look I wanted, I head to Kinko’s and made color copies of my kids’ favorite books. I customized which pictures would work best in their room.
Then, I gathered up some of my boys’ artwork that had come home with them from school. Kids are prolific artists, and love to use as much color as possible, which looks great on walls.
I framed both the copies and my boys’ masterpieces in zippy red frames from Target, and voila! Their walls look great.
All in all, I achieved the same effect, but at a much lower cost. I was able to act as curator and customizer, and it felt great hanging work that meant something to my family on the walls.
Wicker Furniture
It’s amazing what a coat of paint will do. I coveted the zesty green or glossy black wicker furniture I saw in magazines, which was both modern and elegant. I was tired of my run-down chairs and tables that were chipped, worn and most definitely ready for a trade-in. My purchasing finger was itching when my friend suggested I forget buying new things, and instead invest in a fresh coat of paint.
Once again the effect is amazing. A can of blue Sherwin-Williams paint updated my great-grandmother’s card table and chairs and brought it into the 21st century.
I don’t consider myself a crafty person by any means but I do consider myself resourceful and that’s all it takes. The key is to outsource, crowd-source and remember to trust your instincts. You know what you want, so go for it!
Tile Photo: Inspiration for the DIY’ed version on Wisteria.com
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