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Tiki-On-A-Budget |
woofmutt
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Mar 26, 2002
Posts: 2584
From: Seattilite Telstar
|  Posted: 2008-06-08 07:50 am Permalink
In the Trader Joe's Turning Into Tiki Joe's thread bigbrotiki posted a pile of photos from a couple California Trader Joe's. I though these two signs from the Burbank, California Trader Joe's were good inspiration for Tiki On A Budget projects:
(Both photos by bigbrotiki.)
Tikis like this could be recreated with plywood or medium density fiberboard (MDF). With a basic design drawn on the board and a jig saw it'd be pert near the same as coloring within the lines.
If you don't have a jig saw (or were lousy with coloring books) this sort of design could be made with foam board (the paper sided type). An advantage to foam board is it's light weight and can be hung easily on sheetrock walls. A disadvantage is you'd have to cover all the white foam edges. Many water based paints won't stick to foam so you may have to do a coat of primer first.
If you don't have the paint technique skills to recreate wood grain, age, or shading, solid colors (Tiki Central approved ones, of course) would work on these designs. (If you just think you don't have the skills give it a whirl anyway. You may surprise yourself and end up with one less thing to whine about.)
Contact paper with a wood grain pattern would be a simple low skills option as well.
This basic technique would also work for that fantastic Tiki bar sign you dream about but can't afford and elaborate door or room trim.
_________________
Attribution is the sincerest form of flattery.
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MadDogMike
Grand Member (3 years) 
Joined: Mar 30, 2008
Posts: 6393
From: The Anvil of the Sun
| Posted: 2008-06-21 08:29 am Permalink
It was 116 degrees on the Lanai yesterday but today I'm predicting a balmy 75 degrees. Accurite thermometer is $2.50 at WalMart, the clear cover removes easily and the face is just the right size for a CD label. I printed a new face and stuck it on, it feels cooler already. (It's actually 95 degrees and it's only 8AM)
_________________
Clay, the oldest and most divine art media;
"And now, from the clay of the ground, the Lord God formed man" Genesis 2:7
Pirate Ship Tree House
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sungod
Grand Member (7 years) 
Joined: Feb 07, 2003
Posts: 219
From: Tampa Bay/New Port Richey
| Posted: 2008-06-21 09:16 am Permalink
Joanns' 50% off on some tiki items: tiki bar sign, welcome sign, all items for a luau.
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MadDogMike
Grand Member (3 years)
Joined: Mar 30, 2008
Posts: 6393
From: The Anvil of the Sun
| Posted: 2008-07-01 2:47 pm Permalink
FAUX ROCK - I needed something to protect and hide the electrical cords to my Spitting Tiki water feature. Lowe's had faux rocks for $40 but instead I bought a $3 bag of concrete mix instead and globbed it over a piece of styrofoam. Before and after pix
 
_________________
Clay, the oldest and most divine art media;
"And now, from the clay of the ground, the Lord God formed man" Genesis 2:7
Pirate Ship Tree House
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teaKEY
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Nov 09, 2004
Posts: 3663
From: The thumb !
| Posted: 2008-07-01 2:53 pm Permalink
ROCK ON! Looks like a great rock and cleans things up a lot
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KreepyTiki
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Mar 18, 2007
Posts: 193 | Posted: 2008-07-02 12:32 am Permalink
Since it completely relates to Tiki-On-A-Budget, please check out my recent thread here:
http://www.tikiroom.com/tikicentral/bb/viewtopic.php?topic=28843&forum=18
As you'll see, I was going for a combined Bamboo-Ben/Tiki-Ti bar style makeover of my bedroom, transforming it into the 'Paradise Cove Tiki Lounge', and it took over a year to do because, A) I don't have a lot of capital to work with so it took time to save up enough to buy various things and materials both via eBay and Oceanic Arts, etc., and, B) because, to do it right and get the finished effects I dreamed of, took a lot of time in terms of planning & execution.
But I'm quite happy with the end result which, I can safely say, looks a lot more expensive than it actually was.
For example, because I live in a rented apartment, even if I COULD afford a Bamboo-Ben remodel, I would have been extremely leery of putting up that much actual thatch, matting and bamboo, etc. So I saved a ton of time and money by utilizing various tricks which, in the naturally dark lighting of my finished lounge, seems nearly undetectable in terms of being faux-tiki rather than the real deal.
And to best demonstrate what I mean, I'll post two photos here of just one corner of my lounge:
This first pic was taken with a flash and clearly shows the artificial detail of the plastic party-decoration wall-covering I utilized and then disguised by layering with actual 3-D objects -- menus (mostly photo-copied), shells, a Tiki-Torch, dried star-fish, strings of tiki-lights,etc. And this looks more believable in the photo than it did in person, where you could plainly see that the wall-covering was actually like one big painting.
But now here's the exact same corner taken WITHOUT a flash in the actual lighting of the finished space...
Slight difference, eh? And since the room is ALWAYS seen only with this special lighting, the non 3-D wall covering is no longer a real issue. Basically, the final "effect" is all that really matters -- the illusion is all! And since the illusion is pretty darn natural-looking, it basically doesn't matter matter HOW it was actually achieved, or how LITTLE it actually cost.
In other words...  -On-A-Budget triumphs again! 
Cheers! 
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The Granite Tiki
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Jul 02, 2005
Posts: 785
From: Nashua, NH
| Posted: 2008-07-02 07:18 am Permalink
Nice! I've had a roll of that wall treatment hanging around, and I use it here and there for temporary things, but I always knew it could be used in a more permanent and cool way! Great transformation, and if you ever move, I'm sure you'll still get your deposit back!
Did I see one of those plastic pineapple drink cups with the straw hole you can buy at Target, transformed into a light?
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MadDogMike
Grand Member (3 years)
Joined: Mar 30, 2008
Posts: 6393
From: The Anvil of the Sun
| Posted: 2008-07-02 08:09 am Permalink
Very nice Kreepy, very effective use of available materials. It looks a bit "full", is there room enough to actually walk around
_________________
Clay, the oldest and most divine art media;
"And now, from the clay of the ground, the Lord God formed man" Genesis 2:7
Pirate Ship Tree House
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KreepyTiki
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Mar 18, 2007
Posts: 193 | Posted: 2008-07-02 08:48 am Permalink
Yep -- that IS one of those plastic drink pineapples w. straw-hole turned into a light!
And, yep again -- there IS actually room to walk around! Though, still being my bedroom (as well as my office), the majority of floor space is taken up by the bed, bed-side tables and desk.
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The Granite Tiki
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Jul 02, 2005
Posts: 785
From: Nashua, NH
| Posted: 2008-07-02 09:28 am Permalink
"Yep -- that IS one of those plastic drink pineapples w. straw-hole turned into a light! "
I'd love to see exactly how you did it, materials used etc.
(ya know, so I can run out and do it immediately)
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KreepyTiki
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Mar 18, 2007
Posts: 193 | Posted: 2008-07-03 07:19 am Permalink
Quote:
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On 2008-07-02 09:28, The Granite Tiki wrote:
"Yep -- that IS one of those plastic drink pineapples w. straw-hole turned into a light! "
I'd love to see exactly how you did it, materials used etc.
(ya know, so I can run out and do it immediately)
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Well, Granite, if you're referring specifically to the plastic pineapple light, I can tell ya how I did that quite easily. I simply put one of those stick-up, battery-operated, one-click LED push-lights inside the pineapple and left it turned on. Then I positioned a fuschia straw in such a way that it acts as a conduit for the light (much the way fibre-optics work), and that;s really all there is to it. The tricky part is positioning the straw so it lights up.
Hope that answers your question.
Cheers!
[ This Message was edited by: KreepyTiki 2008-07-03 07:22 ]
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VampiressRN
Grand Member (5 years) 
Joined: Nov 23, 2006
Posts: 5084
From: Sin City Lincoln Hills (NorCal)
| Posted: 2008-07-03 9:33 pm Permalink
Convert your cheesy minimalistic ceiling fan
into a..........
TROPICAL BANANA PALM LEAF COOLER!!!
(I could shoot myself for not taking a picture of the fan I did in my old house...but it turned out great and was actually a selling point in my house.)
Here is what did...I purchased large silk Banana Palm Leaves and glued them onto my ceiling fan blades...some painting and whalaaa...instant tropical breeze.
REQUIREMENTS
~4 or 5 simple lightweight fan blades (off your ceiling fan)
~4 or 5 large (bigger than the fan blades) silk Banana Palm Leaves
~craft paint in various shades of green and purple
~Aleenes Tacky Glue
~Fabric Stiffener
~4 strips of heavy duty broadcloth-type fabric cut just slightly smaller than the shape of the leaves
PROCESS
Glue the fabric on the backside of the fan blades. Once that is totally dry, glue the backside of the leaves to the front of the fan blades and the fabric overhang from the back. Once all of that is dry...cover the back with several coats (dry between) of the stiffener. I used a botanical picture of a Banana Leaf and painted mine to match with the purple in the middle stem area and paint the back side green also. Once all of this is dry, I covered it all with the Aleene's Tacky Glue to give it a satiny finish. My fan housing & blade hardware was gold, which I didn't like, so I painted it a dark green to match some of the coloring in the leaves. Last thing...a fun fan pull and you are good to go. The blades are heavier so you can't place the speed on high, but the medium setting works out fine and gives you a good breeze.
_________________
FATIMA BLUSH: Oh, how reckless of me. I made you all wet.
JAMES BOND: Yes, but my martini is still dry.
[ This Message was edited by: VampiressRN 2008-07-03 21:38 ]
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MadDogMike
Grand Member (3 years)
Joined: Mar 30, 2008
Posts: 6393
From: The Anvil of the Sun
| Posted: 2008-07-04 07:50 am Permalink
Very nice, you'll have to make a new one and take pix so we can see!
_________________
Clay, the oldest and most divine art media;
"And now, from the clay of the ground, the Lord God formed man" Genesis 2:7
Pirate Ship Tree House
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Tiki Zen
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Mar 15, 2007
Posts: 352
From: Too far from the beach Bowling Green, KY
| Posted: 2008-07-11 4:31 pm Permalink
A couple of recent low-cost additions to the tiki hut:
I needed an unusually narrow table for a seating space. Leftover maple plank from another project. Prefab unfinished coffee table legs from Home Depot. Postcards that are reproductions of tiki-bar matchbook covers. Glued to the board and then finished with bartop coating.
Bamboo and reed fencing scraps turned into a garden lantern. A glass votive candle holder is suspended inside.
[ This Message was edited by: Tiki Zen 2008-07-11 16:33 ]
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Fugu
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Feb 06, 2006
Posts: 120
From: Atlanta, Georgia
| Posted: 2008-07-20 8:09 pm Permalink
The fan below is a copy of one from the Marquesas that was pictured on pg. 160 of Pacific Encounters: art and divinity in Polynesia 1760-1560 by Steven Hooper. I thought they were cool so I made my own on the cheap (Total cost was less than $12). The fan part is two round woven placemats from the World Market with a piece of cardboard sandwiched in between for support (~$6.00 total), the "bone" toggle is made out of polymer clay (white + translucent with some brown paint to make it look more like bone; total cost ~$4.00). The handle is just a stained piece of scrap wood that I cut rather poorly and sanded a lot to make it look kind of correct.
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