Starburst ceiling rose DIY: Adding a mid-century style architectural feature to your home

....DIY 

Adding a mid-century architectural feature to your home

Adding some interest to our plain, but ropey looking ceilings has been on my agenda for a while.

So when I spotted a starburst ceiling rose on 2modern, a few weeks ago I instantly knew this was something I HAD to try myself!

What a great way to add a fun architectural element to your home, with the perfect nod to mid-century Scandinavian design!!

Unable to find the tutorial they referred to (The link to the blog "the vintage cabin" seemed not to work!!) I decided to figure it out myself, and today I want to share with you all how I did it!!

 I am not going to lie to you all: This one's not for the faint hearted, and takes a lot of work, but hopefully I have done most of the hard work for you, and this tutorial will make this DIY a bit easier!!

And the result is totally worth it....don't you think??

You will need:

A1 Grey board 3ml

Metal ruler

Pencil

Baking paper

Scalpel

Cutting mat

Porous tape (I used medical tape)

Poly filla

Flat-leafed sculpting tool/spatula

180 grit Sandpaper

Gesso Primer/ white paint

Paintbrush

The first thing to do is to measure the light fitting/ceiling rose in the ceiling where you want to put up your Starburst, and work out how big you want it to be:

Make a note of the diameter...now its time to draw up...

THE PATTERN

1.On your grey board draw up a square to the size you want your starburst. Mine was 50cm square.

Then find the middle by drawing two diagonal crossed lines and a +.

2. Next you want to draw a circle in the middle...This will be the opening for the light fitting and hence needs to be just slightly bigger (ca0.5cm) than the diameter of the ceiling cup.

You could use a compass to do this, or if you haven't got one, like me, You can draw one by free-hand: measure half of the diameter (of the ceiling cup+5ml) from the centre and marking these points off on the lines. Use these points as a guide to draw your circle...It may help to half the distance between the existing lines, and extending some lines coming from the centre through these as well...(See picture 2 in the grid above)

3.& 4. Measure out 2cm from the circle onto the diagonal and + lines, and draw two overlapping squares using the other lines coming out from the centre as guides. This will mark the beginning of the 3D effect of your starburst. And this will also tell you from where to extend the lines for the triangles you will draw next.....
(In my head this seemed easy enough to explain, but putting it all in to words is not easy, so if you have lost me at this point, I don't blame you...please use the photos as a reference, and hopefully it will all make sense...)

You basically want to end up with something that looks like this:



This will form the base of your 3D starburst.

Next up you want to copy the pattern of the triangles, 4 of each size, onto the side of the grey board:

Instead of re-measuring each triangle, I used some baking paper and traced one of the small , and one of the large triangles. (You have probably done this as a child) then turning the piece of baking paper over, I pressed the template onto the grey-board using a pencil...

Next you want to cut all the shapes out:

Use a scalpel with the metal ruler as a guide edge!

Start by scoring the centre lines (Marked in orange in the first picture above) of the triangles approximately 3/4 in to the grey card ...Take care not to cut through the card!

Then cut them carefully out, just outside the lines...

Next cut out the centre circle of the starburst base, then move on to cut out the starburst itself! (It is best to do it this way, as you don't risk damaging the pointy bits of the starburst whilst cutting out the centre)

Now you have the basic shape and all the bits you need to create your starburst ceiling rose.

The base is done, but now you will need to fold the triangles to create the 3D effect:



 

Fold were you have scored the grey card...

Use something thin and flat to fold against towards the tips of the triangles...this will help you get a neat fold !

Lay your folded triangles on top of the starburst base:

Manipulate the folds so that the triangles fit nicely onto the shape of the base.

Time to tape it all together!

Try to tape it all tightly together. Take extra care to do a neat job on the tips of the starburst.

The reason I recommend using a porous tape , is because a shiny, smooth tape will make the next step very difficult...

Filling and shaping the starburst

Using a flat-leafed spatula/sculpting tool and some fast setting poly filla (Don't be tempted to use the powdered stuff you mix up with water, as this will make the grey card go soggy)

Start by filling the creases in the folded triangles and any other gaps. Then use the filler to sculpt sharp, crisp edges.

Leave to dry, then use some fine grit sand paper to sand back the filler until smooth.

Please wear a dust mask when sanding back the filler...it is NOT good for your lungs!!

And don't go too overboard with filler...you want your finished ceiling rose to be nice and light!

You will not get away with filling just the once (unless you are a champion filler-master...)

So brush away the dust and  fill again....and sand again: use the sandpaper to help sculpt crisp edges...

Repeat this process until you are happy with the shape...

 Make sure you have protected your work surface (I used a plastic table cloth)

Push some filler onto the sides of the starburst (Photo, top right, above) and smooth it towards the work surface to ensure your starburst will sit flat...

(Instead of sanding these bits, use a scalpel to trim away any lumps and bumps when the filler has gone cheesy (:almost set hard)...)

When you are satisfied with the shape and finish of your starburst, give it a quick clean with a slightly damp sponge!

Don't worry if you have some minor imperfections in the filler finish...because next up we will paint it, and they will probably be hidden under the paint!

I used Gesso primer, but a coat of white emulsion paint will do...

Leave to dry...your new ceiling rose is now done!

Phew!

Fitting the starburst ceiling rose

This is the easy part!

Basically you are just going to stick the ceiling rose to the ceiling around your light fitting with some "no more nails"(or other instant grab high strength adhesive)!!

 

Have your flat leafed sculpting tool/spatula to hand...

Squeeze some "no-more nails" onto the back of your starburst, spread it out using your spatula, then press it onto the ceiling in position! 

Use your spatula to neaten up any excess adhesive squeezing out at the side..

 

If there are any unsightly gaps, use your spatula and fill with some poly filla

Use a damp sponge or cloth and gently wipe away any excess filla.

Leave the filler to dry, then give it all a lick of paint!

Done!!

 I love how the starburst ceiling rose has added some interest to our bedroom ceiling....and also helped neaten up the area around the light fitting, hiding imperfections in our knackered old ceiling!!

Oh! And by the way: What do you think of my new origami lampshade?? It's from Snowpuppe! Adds a pop of colour...

Now I can lay in bed and stare up in the ceiling at my new ceiling rose, proudly thinking: "I made that"!!! (and of course admire the inside of my new origami lampshade)

I have made another starburst ceiling rose for our living room, but I am getting Mr to mould it first so that I can make these to order (in lightweight resin) in my etsy shop (More on that later) for those of you that feel like this seems just that little too complicated!!

For less than £15 I have made this architectural feature for our home...A long process, but with a great result!!You can too!!

Thanks for popping by!!

xxx

June