Rustic Luxe - New Year's Eve

With Christmas over and the New Year sliding in soon, this is the last post of the Rustic Luxe series...

I wanted to end this creative series combining the most rustic item I could think of with the most luxurious...
I wasn't quite sure what it would be...until inspiration hit me at work one day in the lumber department...

What is more rustic than rough concrete?  And what is luxe than gold leaf?  What if I combined them together...

My inspiration came from these...

These are dobie blocks, used to hold rebar in place when pouring a concrete slab...I've played with these before - see my tutorial for my bud vase holders here - but for the holidays I was thinking of making candle holders with them...how festive for New Year's Eve...I gathered together my supplies...

Normally these blocks come in a section of 9 or 16 blocks, with divisions between them for separation.  I used a wide rigid putty knife and a sledge hammer to break the sections apart.  Once apart, I formed a holder for each candlestick by first straightening out the wire supports and then, using a metal pipe for a support, wrapped the wire around the pipe.  Once the pipe was removed, it was easy to slip in a candlestick.

I revised my idea of using gold leaf and instead went with heavy body acrylic artist paint in a deep gold color. After taping off sections on the concrete block, I used a stiff brush to apply the paint...surprising only two coats were needed to give a good solid color.

With the candlesticks completed, it was on to the rest of the tableau...

Gold splatters on a length of kraft paper for a table runner was another Rustic Luxe combo...I used a can of gold spray paint which was leaking badly...but I ended up liking the drips and drabs on the paper...the chestnut garland (first seen in the Thanksgiving dinner centerpiece and then hanging from my Christmas tree branch) makes its final appearance with its nutty texture and the glint of gold beads. A few poppy pods sprayed with a bit of silver paint fill the bud vases...

A swath of wide silk ribbon tied around a small galvanized bucket is the perfect Rustic Luxe champagne holder...

























Vintage ironstone plates and silver cocktail forks are waiting for the appetizers...
all is set for this small intimate gathering to begin...

As we close out 2015, I want to thank you for visiting my blog, leaving your comments, giving me your support...
I hope that the new year ahead holds all the promise and opportunity you desire...cheers!