I thought I’d break up my posts on the dollhouse renovations to bring you another do-over project.

As they say, if at first you don’t succeed …

try, try again.

I painted up this vintage lunchbox back in July 2024.  Initially I wasn’t planning to paint it.  It had a nice original cobalt blue paint job.

But I ran into a little trouble with the original paint wiping off when I tried to clean it, then I tried to seal it and that didn’t go so well either, so ultimately I painted it in Dixie Belle’s Bunker Hill Blue which came pretty close to the original color.

After adding a white I.O.D. transfer to the top, I put it in my Carriage House Sale last summer.  But it didn’t sell.  So then I brought it into Reclaiming Beautiful, and it still didn’t sell.

I have to admit, the white transfer didn’t really do a lot for me.

I mean, it’s not bad.  But it’s not spectacular either.  So I’m not surprised there weren’t any takers.  And you know, I have to admit that I must have become a bit jaded over transfers because there was a time when I would have thought this transfer was quite amazing.  I think I’ve been spoiled because there are just so many fantastic transfers to choose from these days.

For example, I painted this similar lunchbox back in January.

And it sold quite quickly.

That small version of the I.O.D. Seeds transfer fit it perfectly.

And I just love the look of those florals from the I.O.D. Floral Anthology transfer.

So even though it’s the dead of winter, I decided that a floral makeover was in order for the blue lunchbox.

But first, some prep.  I had added wax over that Bunker Hill Blue paint, so I needed to do a little more prep than usual to give my new paint job a better chance of sticking.  I started by sanding off the white transfer.  Then I scrubbed the lunchbox using Dawn dish soap.  Next, I used 150 grit sandpaper to somewhat vigorously sand the entire lunchbox.  I followed that up with another rinse with hot water.

I then started with the interior of the box.  I hadn’t painted or added any sort of wax to that previously.  It also didn’t have any rust to worry about.

So, after a good cleaning I simply gave the interior of the lunchbox two coats of Dixie Belle’s Apricot followed by two coats of their flat clear coat.

Just for fun I popped a vintage blue Atlas jar in the spot where the original thermos would have been.

Next I painted the outside in Dixie Belle’s Drop Cloth.  Once dry, I used 220 grit sandpaper to distress being careful to note whether or not I thought my paint was sticking well.  It was, so then I started applying some of the beautiful rose transfers from I.O.D.’s Rose Botanical set.

Those roses are so gorgeous, and even the foliage on these transfers is stunning.

The cursive writing between the two latches is also from the Rose Botanical transfer, while the ‘Les Fleurs’ is from my fresh new stash of the Label Ephemera transfer.

I did wrap just a little bit of the florals around the sides.

I also added some wording from an old Tim Holtz rub-on in the little label holder slot.

For those of us who swear we aren’t ‘collectors’, this lunchbox tells the true story 😉

I must admit, it felt good to pull out the pink florals in the dead of winter.

I finished off the exterior of the lunchbox with some of Dixie Belle’s clear wax.

Now I don’t know exactly what one would use this vintage lunchbox for.  Certainly you could even use it for its original purpose.  But I think it would make a lovely ‘gift box’, you could fill it with seed packets, flower frogs, and vintage garden tools.

Or you could use it in your craft room to hold art supplies.  You could also use it as a sewing box, just fill it with your threads, needles, scissors, etc.

There are so many possibilities.

What would you do with it?  And what do you think of the makeover?  Leave a comment and let me know.