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For a vintage lover like me, brass accents are essential and brass candlesticks are one of my all-time favorites! But, they can be difficult to come by and costly when you do find them.

I have been wanting to try out this DIY brass technique for some time, and I recently found a set of heavy, silver-toned candlesticks at Goodwill. They were originally priced $8.99, but with the sale that day, they ended up costing me $1.62 for the set, making them the perfect DIY thrift-flip!

Process:

I started by cleaning the candlesticks with a damp cloth, being sure to dry them thoroughly afterwards. I then took them outside, and coated them completely with a matte black spray-paint I had on hand. Once the candlesticks were totally dry, I brought them inside to start antiquing.

I applied a small amount of Rub’n Buff in the color Antique Gold onto my craft paper. I then dipped a dry 1/2 inch soft-bristle brush into the product, being careful to get only a thin amount of the product onto the brush. I then dabbed the product onto the candlestick, using the same dry brush to buff the product in. I wanted an antiqued, tarnished look for these candlesticks. To achieve this, I did not completely coat the candlesticks with the Antique Gold. Instead, I used the product sparingly, building it up in some of the flatter areas, and leaving other areas with little to no Antique Gold color (especially along the bottom edge of the base, and in the cracks along the stem). This allowed for the candlesticks to have the more tarnished look I desired.

Overall, I was very pleased with how this project turned out and I’m excited to try this technique again soon. Happy DIY-ing!

Materials:

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