Kiss my brass

The doorknob and mail slot was rusty and brassy. Two bad things! Anyway to remind you, here is what it looked like before:

We removed all the offending pieces:
(Side note: 1 year ago today I could not fathom removing doorknobs and locks and putting them back in place. In fact this image would have stressed me out, but now this doesn't even phase me)

So to get back to the task at hand, my mother waved her magic wand, and we transformed the hardware to this:

We used those small acrylic craft paints you can get at any craft store. First we painted them metallic copper (which makes the metal look crazy and will get you a raised eyebrow from your husband) then we put a layer or two of dark brown paint on top of that. The copper shines through underneath and just leave a faint metal look, you see?

The key, we realized was to douse it all with spray polyurethene in satin finish. This protects the paint from wearing away, as well as gives all the pieces a nice even sheen.

(Side note: when I say "we" I really mean "mom". The woman knows her way around a craft project and a hardware store!)

It is a small project. But getting rid of that dirty old brass made a huge difference, even if I am the only one who notices: