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If you’re like me, every now and then you’ll look around your house and be hit with the urge to make a little update to your decor. If it’s a 1970s shiny brass light fixture that’s annoyed you for the last time, you’re in luck. You can update your light fixture on the cheap with paint. That’s right, paint. There’s no need to go out and replace it with an expensive new fixture when your old one just has a case of the uglies. Here’s how I painted our light fixtures:

1. Hit up the hardware store for a can of spray paint in the desired color. I chose Rustoleum’s black spray paint in a flat finish.

2. Return home and remove the light fixture from the wall or ceiling. AFTER you have ensured that the power is turned off at the breaker, this is usually just a matter of unscrewing a few screws and then untwisting the wire nuts. (For more details on how to do this, see this guide from Lowe’s on replacing interior light fixtures.)

3. Remove all of the light bulbs.

4. Pack all of the wires into the socket, and cover the socket and any other areas that you shouldn’t get paint on with masking tape.

5. Wipe down the light fixture with a damp rag to remove any dust.

6. Take it outside and hang it on a shepard’s hook, if possible. If you don’t have a shepard’s hook, cover the surrounding area with newspapers and lay the fixture on the ground.

7. Get out the spray paint and paint the first coat. Let dry and repeat.

8. When it is completely dry (usually after several hours) remove the masking tape, screw the bulbs back in, reconnect the fixture and admire your work. It’s amazing what a difference a $4 can of spray paint can make.