Cart Kawaii
My bright ideal: turn a boring metal cart into a super kawaii one with just a bit of color. After reading this Apartment Therapy post, I did a little googling and found Sundial Powder Coating in Sun Valley. They specialize in painting metal with a special baked on process.
I chose this iKea Flytta cart, I liked that it had 3 shelves and was the perfect fit for my space. The very nice folks at Sundial instructed me to just bring in the box, no need to assemble it (big bonus) and they are just a few minutes from the Burbank iKea. I picked out a soft "Fire King" green, they also have some special order options if you don't find the exact color you want. It's not cheap, prices start around $250 for a custom color job (there is a lot of labor costs in switching out the custom painting area) but the result is really worth it.
Powder coating is a much different process than spray painting, the paint is actually baked on, for a beautiful, glossy and durable finish. They hung my cart in parts, spraying each separately before wheeling it into the 400º oven. The turn around is fast, they assembled it for me (!) and I picked it up the next day.
I am very happy with the final color, it is just the right compliment to my Smeg but not an exact match. The finish is flawless and it wipes up easily.
I love how well my new DeLonghi coffee maker goes with it, extra compact, it also makes terrific coffee and I adore the cup warmer on the top. I'm also in love with these sweet little iKea coffee tumblers, just $5 a pop.
I could not leave my microwave without some kind of kawaii bling, so I added this owl decal I'd been wanting ever since I featured my pal Pam's house of Sweet Peach blog last year. Love it!
all photos & content © Lara Rossignol
Friday, December 9, 2011 at 6:00AM
Reader Comments (10)
OMG! That is just brilliant!
Thanks so much for this post. I have been looking for a resource like this! It looks amazing!
This is just such a great ideal! So tired of stainless! ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥!
I love this post too. Beautiful pics I have come to expect but you also have such great ideals. The little snippets I have seen of your new place have me so intrigued. Can't wait to see it all!
I love this - but it seems crazy to have a $250 paint job on a $160 trolley. Are you not worried that the trolley will slowly melt and you will just be left with a lovely powder coating shell??
Ha, I suppose that is possible, though I think the powder coating actually improves the over all quality of it. Also, the only reason I could afford it was because the cart was so cheap to start, so I guess it is all how you look at it.
The trolley looks wonderful. But I can't keep my eyes off of that awesome chevron box on the bottom shelf. Where did THAT come from?!
hi Evelyn~
That was part of the Missoni line for Target, it sold out pretty quick but you may be able to find one on eBay.
I have two tractor seat chairs that I've been wanting to powder coat since I bought them two years ago. It's good to know it can produce such amazing results! I love this! I'm sure I'll get around to it... eventually...
I Should repaint mine with gleaming colors!