Remodelando la Casa

Adirondack Chair Fixed

2013-06-17T09:01:00.000-04:00

Adirondack Chair Fixed

Coming back home from one of my recent trips to the flea market, I found this orange Adirondack chair on the side of the road. I was glad my husband was the one giving me company that day, my daughter would've been embarrassed to see me picking it up an putting it in the van! :)

It looked good but it didn't stay straight, as you can see.

This next picture tells you why. The back of the chair was no longer attached to the back bar, which is also the mechanism to make it movable, to make it lean back or forward. So, time to fix it!
First, that "back bar" was removed, but saved for use later on in the process.

All the boards on the back of the chair where the screws came in, were worn out, but the middle board was the one with the most damage.
A piece of wood was cut to the boards width, to replace the lower part on that centered board.

The damaged part was removed using a jig saw.

The replacement piece of wood was painted and attached using wood glue and pocket hole joinery.

The back bar was then screwed on each side to the seat support (legs), and screws were also driven through each hole, trying to keep them off from the already drilled spots on each of the boards on the back of the chair.

This is how it looks now. Is not perfect, but I guess the chair can function this way for some more years.

Since the back mechanism was already fixed (not movable), now it was also the time to make the front leg mechanism to stay still. Three screws on each side took care of that.

All the screws on the chair were also tighten. This is how it looks now.

And this is how it looks when you place a nice pillow on it ... Like no repair was ever made! :)

For a full tutorial on how to make the thumbprint Starfish and Seahorse pillows click right HERE.

Linked party at:

My uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Coastal Charm, A Stroll Thru Life, Savvy Southern Style, The Shabby Creek Cottage, Farm House Porch, French Country Cottage, Common Ground, Thrifty Decor Chick , Between Naps on the Porch, Funky Junk Interiors, DIY Show Off, It's Overflowing, HOH, Home Stories A to Z, Stone Gable, Creatively Living, Jennifer Rizo, Tatertotandjello, The 36th Avenue, Our home away from home, Dwellings - The heart of your home, The everyday Home

Mount Vernon - 2

2013-06-13T13:57:00.000-04:00

Mount Vernon - 2

This is the second and final part of the Mount Vernon tour, home of the first president of the United States, George Washington.

The first part of the tour was mainly about the Mansion, you can click HERE to begin the tour there.

For this, the second part, I want to leave you with pictures of most of the buildings that conform the estate. First, let's begin with the Overseer's Quarters, that first house on the right in the picture below, the mansion is on the left side.

Inside the Overseer's Quarters, in other words the person in charge or running the day to day tasks of the estate during George Washington's extended absences.

The Spinning Room is located on the back of the Overseer's Quarters house.

The Salt House.

The Greenhouse.

The upper garden, one of the most noteworthy Colonial Revival gardens in America, the greenhouse is on the left side on the top left picture below.

This reconstructed building below, holds the Slave quarters and the Shoemaker's Shop.

The Women's Sleeping room is on one end and the Men's is on the other end of the building.

The Shoemaker's Shop is right in the middle.

The Interpretive Center/ Meet Lady Washington -place was closed for the day. Just the outside is very charming.

A few steps away is the Blacksmith Shop...

Where my companion got so interested in the blacksmith's work.

Continuing on the other side of the mansion, the Storehouse / Clerk's Quarters is just steps away from the kitchen.

Close by is the Smoke house and the Paint Cellar.

Continuing down the road, you'll find the Wash House.

Coach House

And the Stable.

The Tomb was a place we didn't want to miss. George Washington died here at Mount Vernon on December 14, 1799. His wife Martha and other family members are interred there too.

The Slave Memorial and Burial Ground, a cemetery for slaves and free blacks who worked for the Washington family is marked by a memorial honoring their lives and contributions.

All around, beautiful views!

The Wharf.

And Finally, the group of students I was glad to chaperon!

XOXO-

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Mount Vernon - 1

2013-06-09T14:23:00.002-04:00

Mount Vernon Part 1

It's been really busy around here with all of the end of the school year activities going on with my kids, concerts for both of my kids, driving my high schooler during exam weeks, but perhaps, the one with the busiest schedule is my fifth grader who is having field day, patrol picnic, fifth grade picnic, field trip, and next week promotion day! Well, besides all that, yesterday we were also visiting his new school, his new middle school, where he was able to meet the Treasurer of the United States Mrs. Rosie Gumataotao Rios and Mr. Roberto Clemente Jr.

Needles to say, he was pretty excited about this whole experience, but he was also really happy that Mrs. Rios gave him a signed one dollar bill. :)

Well, back to this post today, as soon as I knew Mount Vernon was the field trip destination I gave my name to be considered as a chaperon, and I was glad to be chosen!

Now, let me tell you... I don't know what in the world I was thinking for not visiting this place before! Living in the Washington D.C. area and not knowing Mount Vernon? No excuse at all!

The George Washington Estate it's huge, beautiful and the weather that day couldn't be any better!

This first post it's about the Mansion, pictures of the interior of the Mansion are not allowed, but you can visit their web-site HERE where you can have a virtual tour.

A close up of the mansion.

The Mansion tour begins at the structure on the left, which is the servant's hall.

Inside the servant's hall:

The kitchen (picture below), is located on the right side of the mansion.

The back of the house is just as magnificent as the front.

I love all the architectural elements it has.

The cupola is one of my favorites.

This long row of Windsor chairs calls anyone's attention.

They are all connected.

You can sit there and enjoy the view.

And what a view! The Potomac river in all its glory.

This Palladian window is located on the northern side of the mansion.

One of the things I deeply enjoyed was witnessing so many giant old trees like this one.

This Tulip-Poplar (circa 1766), got my group's interest! Two pictures were put together to capture its beauty. Isn't it amazing?!

Here with my son, having a great time!

Lots more on my second and final Mount Vernon post, HERE.

XOXO-

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Patriotic Wooden Stars

2013-06-07T18:58:00.000-04:00

Patriotic Wooden Stars

This is one more of those easy patriotic projects you can put together in about an hour and enjoy for a very long time.

For this project, four wooden stars, these is the wood that was used:
16' Lattice (¼" x 1-3/8")
16' Parting Bead (½" x ¾")
*The total amount spend on those 32' of wood was $10.18, around 30 cents per foot. The wood was bought at a lumber center, where you have to buy at least 8' of material, but prices are good when you buy in bulk.

Lattice was used for the two big stars, ten pieces of wood were cut at 19" in length.
The parting bead for the small stars was cut at 14".

Once all the pieces are cut, you can go ahead and paint them.

Each star consist of FIVE pieces of wood. Assembling them is easy using a hot glue gun.

On the small stars, because of the thickness of the wood, you might need to force the wood to stick together by clamping it.

Your stars are ready, but as a final touch jute was wrapped on some of the ends.

This is how they look on the shallow shelves in my dining room.

Again, one easy project that you can customized to your own needs. I might be using them for Christmas time, perhaps removing the jute.

Some more easy patriotic projects you can check:

Banner Wreath Table Runner

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Flea Market Time

2013-06-03T09:02:00.000-04:00

As usual, the first Saturday of every month is flea market time at the closest train station's parking lot, like five long blocks away from our home. I almost forgot that it was already the first Saturday of a new month, but my daughter was happy to remind me and give me good company.

We were kind of late and the weather was gorgeously HOT, some vendors were already departing! But oh well, many more were still there.

After looking for a while I stopped at this particular vendor's place because he had lots of boxes full of stuff marked $0.50! Really? Fifty cents! Let's see what I can find.... is what I thought!

Sure enough these three silver bowls where scattered in those boxes! They looked like big rusted but majestic cereal bowls! Again, fifty cents! I got three because that's a good number for pictures an it's an odd number and blah blah blah.

Then in another box I found this shiny piece, it sure had to be a holder because of the hook, but I couldn't tell what was the sign? or letter?

When I turned it over, I liked it even more.....
Pottery Barn!

Ha, I'm going to keep it, but let's see if I can find some more!

Yeah, it was in the next box...
The letter C

Of course stocking holders! It must read.... Christmas!

Two boxes down I found the letter A and I kept on looking at least for one more letter because we are four, our mantel needs at least four stockings!

All those boxes were getting pretty messed up! In the end I did find the final letter I wanted! They are heavy, perhaps I can cover the letters with something else! Total there: $4 including an old clear bottle I didn't take a picture of.

Then, turning around the corner I saw the chandelier! I was looking for something like this and there on the floor it was... My bedroom chandelier!

When I asked for the price, the lady said the $80 price had been slashed down to $50 and that was final! I counted all I had and no, I only had forty dollars flat! I offered her all that I had and told her to check my bag and pockets! :) That was all I had and I really wanted to have it! A bit hesitant because she had payed way more than that for it.... because they were real crystals.... because it was made in Italy (I even thought about my blogging friend Daniela at that moment :), finally she agreed to let it go!

My daughter wanted to continue looking around, but with no money left I simply wanted to just run out of there!

Once home I began taking pictures. I'm not crazy in love with those candlesticks, perhaps they can be painted.

But I love the little crystals...

And the bottom crystal ball.

After taking the photos I search for Pottery Barn Christmas stockings and I found and E-bay listing for my new set, the only problem:
I AM missing a letter... The letter E!

Let me tell you.....
I went back to find the missing E!

After all is just five blocks away! Well, they were already putting things back in their truck, I told them I finally found out it had to read PEACE, and I was missing another E!

I couldn't find it :(

They promised to look for it and save it for next month's market in case they find it.

I'm crossing my fingers so I can reunite the whole set next month!

Oh I didn't tell you! The whole set is listed on E-bay for $175.

Wish me good luck! ;)

Linked party at:
My uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Coastal Charm, A Stroll Thru Life, Savvy Southern Style, The Shabby Creek Cottage, Farm House Porch, French Country Cottage, Common Ground, Thrifty Decor Chick , Between Naps on the Porch, Funky Junk Interiors, DIY Show Off, It's Overflowing, HOH, Home Stories A to Z, Stone Gable, Creatively Living, Jennifer Rizo, Tatertotandjello, The 36th Avenue, Our home away from home, Dwellings - The heart of your home

Patriotic Table Runner

2013-05-31T08:19:00.001-04:00

Patriotic Table Runner

This is a very easy project you can accomplish in about an hour. I spent a good amount of time looking for supplies, I don't have a set space for my crafts, they are all around the house! So, even with that wasted time it was around an hour.

Drop cloth material was used for this project, you can also use burlap. Cut it to your table's needs. The final measurement for mine was 96" x 17", I made it that long so I can even use it when adding one extra leaf to the table.

Using a sewing machine go all around the drop cloth making a double-turn hem. Take advantage of the already hemmed sides on the drop cloth. I only hemmed two sides.

For painting the stripes, I was inspired by this PB burlap hanging flag.

Pottery Barn

Use painter's tape to create the lines. It doesn't have to be perfect, you can totally eye-ball those lines.

Once the tape is in place you can begin painting the stripes.

Yes, Sharpies ARE allowed if you're running out of fabric paint! :) It goes even faster!

When the painting is finished you can remove the tape, let the paint dry and your table runner is done.

Ready to take center stage on the table.

Some more red, white and blue accessories...

And it's time to celebrate!

Easy, right?

The metal bucket was one the few things I got at Luckett's Spring Market, it was $10.

Linked party at:
My uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Coastal Charm, A Stroll Thru Life, Savvy Southern Style, The Shabby Creek Cottage, Farm House Porch, French Country Cottage, Common Ground, Thrifty Decor Chick , Between Naps on the Porch, Funky Junk Interiors, DIY Show Off, It's Overflowing, HOH, Home Stories A to Z, Stone Gable, Creatively Living, Jennifer Rizo, Tatertotandjello, The 36th Avenue, Our home away from home, Dwellings - The heart of your home, Too much time on my hands,

PB Knock-off Patriotic Banner

2013-05-26T09:19:00.002-04:00

PB Knock-Off Patriotic Banner

Last week I was working on a few projects for my dining room, it is all done and ready for all the Patriotic celebrations ahead of us.

When I saw the PB patriotic banner it was instant love! I wanted to replicate it with things I already had around the house. So, for me this project was pretty much free.

The first thing I checked was my pile of fabric remnants. A piece of white cotton fabric was used.
-A loooong rectangle, 10" wide was cut.
-On one side of the rectangle small marks were done every four inches.
-On the other side the first mark was done at two inches from the beginning and then every 4".
-The marks were traced and then cut out

The triangles were sewn to a long piece of ribbon, wrapping their top edge to the ribbon, one after the other until the banner was completed. I used 17 triangles.

All the triangles were spray painted a light coat of Rust-oleum Heirloom white, to give them an aged look.

Every other triangle was then taped as shown in the picture below, to create the stripes.

The other triangles were covered to prevent them from being painted.

A light coat of red spray paint was applied, I was going for a light faded look.

Once the paint has dried you can work on the other triangles. Attach the star stickers, cover the triangles you don't want to paint and begin painting over the stickers with the blue paint.

Using the sticky side of a piece of tape give the edges that frayed look.

The patriotic banner is now ready to be displayed...

Wherever you want to celebrate!

I'll be back soon with more projects for this room.

Have a great Memorial Day!

Linked party at:
My uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Coastal Charm, A Stroll Thru Life, Savvy Southern Style, The Shabby Creek Cottage, Farm House Porch, French Country Cottage, Common Ground, Thrifty Decor Chick , Between Naps on the Porch, Funky Junk Interiors, DIY Show Off, It's Overflowing, HOH, Home Stories A to Z, Stone Gable, Creatively Living, Jennifer Rizo, Tatertotandjello, The 36th Avenue, Our home away from home, Dwellings - The heart of your home

Lucketts Spring Market - Part 2

2013-05-25T08:23:00.001-04:00

Lucketts Spring Market - Part 2

Hi everyone!

The other day I shared with you some pictures of the Hometalk - Lucketts meet up, most of them were inspiration for the outdoors. Well, this time I'm going to leave you with pictures of what was inside.

That's my daughter in the background. She was looking at something I would totally pick! We didn't like the price though, around 150 each corbel.

There were lots of olive baskets, so popular right now. Still a bit pricey for my budget.

As you can see, lots of wonderful stuff. Have a Happy Memorial Day!

Linked party at:
Tuesday’s Treasures at My uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Nifty Thrifty Tuesday at Coastal Charm, Table Top Tuesday at A Stroll Thru Life, Wow us Wednesdays at Savvy Southern Style, Transformation Thursday at The Shabby Creek Cottage,Cowgirl Up at Farm House Porch, Feather Nest Friday at French Country Cottage, Vintage Inspiration Friday at Common Ground, Before and After Party at Thrifty Decor Chick , Metamorphosis Monday at Between Naps on the Porch, Saturday Nite Special at Funky Junk Interiors, DIY Project Parade at DIY Show Off, Overflowing with Creativity at It's Overflowing, Hooking up with HOH, Tutorials and tips at Home Stories A to Z, Tutorial Tips and Tidbits at Stone Gable, Monday Funday at Creatively Living, Creative Friday Link Party at Jennifer Rizo, Wrap Up Party at Tatertotandjello, The 36th Avenue, Tuesdays at our home at Our home away from home, Amaze me Monday at Dwellings - The heart of your home

Hometalk - Lucketts Meet Up - Part 1

2013-05-21T10:43:00.000-04:00

Hometalk - Lucketts Meet Up - Part 1

I'm so glad to have attended the Hometalk - Lucketts meet up! I already knew from my previous visit to Lucketts, this place is always packed with awesome stuff! Well this time, the awesomeness was doubled, there were lots of vendors! And that wasn't all, the best part: meeting wonderful bloggers that I've been following for a long time!

For this first post I'm going to leave you with pictures of great stuff for the outdoors. It might give you ideas you can implement in your own outdoor spaces.

Here, we were arriving, my daughter was very happy about the whole trip, my husband was in charge of the pictures.

I love those gigantic bird houses by the tickets booth

I was pretty excited to meet Funky Junk - Donna. She kept herself pretty busy building things and in this case showing my daughter how to use a drill.

I also met Karen - The Graphics Fairy and Miriam Illions @ Hometalk, two lovely ladies! I completely forgot to take pictures while meeting them and who knows where my private photographer was! :)

I was also glad to meet Jocie @ Opc - The better Half

It was disappointing not meeting with my blogging friend Megan @ Our Pinteresting Family :( I knew there were lots of bloggers right there, but it was difficult to notice who was who when you only know them from the little pictures on their profiles!

We came out with just a few things and very happy for a well-spent day!

For the second part, click HERE

XOXO-

Linked party at:
Tuesday’s Treasures at My uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Nifty Thrifty Tuesday at Coastal Charm, Table Top Tuesday at A Stroll Thru Life, Wow us Wednesdays at Savvy Southern Style, Transformation Thursday at The Shabby Creek Cottage,Cowgirl Up at Farm House Porch, Feather Nest Friday at French Country Cottage, Vintage Inspiration Friday at Common Ground, Before and After Party at Thrifty Decor Chick , Metamorphosis Monday at Between Naps on the Porch, Saturday Nite Special at Funky Junk Interiors, DIY Project Parade at DIY Show Off, Overflowing with Creativity at It's Overflowing, Hooking up with HOH, Tutorials and tips at Home Stories A to Z, Tutorial Tips and Tidbits at Stone Gable, Monday Funday at Creatively Living, Creative Friday Link Party at Jennifer Rizo, Wrap Up Party at Tatertotandjello, The 36th Avenue, Tuesdays at our home at Our home away from home, Amaze me Monday at Dwellings - The heart of your home

Father's Day Art

2013-05-20T03:43:00.000-04:00

Father's Day Art

Do you have a collection of scrap pieces of wood lingering inside your garage? Maybe they are not yours but your husband's. Well, even better, that way you can help him organized his space and give him something that would remind him of all those projects he has completed!

I had this box full of little pieces of wood I didn't want to throw away, but the pile was getting bigger and bigger! So, I picked the smallest pieces and decided to create something out of them.

Three boards were also picked to serve as "frames". This was the fun part, finding those little pieces to form letters. Then, filling up those "frames" with the remaining pieces of wood, it's like putting together a puzzle, no need to do extra cuts, just use them the way they are.

If your husband is the one who made all those cuts, he is going to remember where most of those pieces came from.

For instance, those dark pieces of wood on the corners, cut at 45°, where left overs from building a caddy/toolbox.
That piece of MDF with a hole in it, was left when trying to build a fireplace cover for the bedroom built in.
The piece of molding below the A is a remnant from the shelves in the dining room.
Those little white blocks on the first D came from the bar in the laundry room.

Well, it's like a "history of projects" art :)

Once you are happy with the design, take the letters away and nail the remaining pieces, you can also hot glue them in place.

Spray paint the "frames" without the letters. I used this nice Espresso color.

The letter pieces were also spray painted separately. After the paint dried, they were attached to the frames.

For some bling, go ahead and look in that box full of all sort of things most husbands have! Yeah, that's not mine, that's my husband's! You're going to be surprised when you find those pins or that little something you were looking for! Yes... it might be right. in. there!

Well, I got my stuff back and these pretty things to add to the master piece!

Here they all ready to be displayed in his working area.

Here is another Father's Day project. It might be a subtle way to send him the message to finish that tile project! :)

Linked party at:
Tuesday’s Treasures at My uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Nifty Thrifty Tuesday at Coastal Charm, Table Top Tuesday at A Stroll Thru Life, Wow us Wednesdays at Savvy Southern Style, Transformation Thursday at The Shabby Creek Cottage,Cowgirl Up at Farm House Porch, Feather Nest Friday at French Country Cottage, Vintage Inspiration Friday at Common Ground, Before and After Party at Thrifty Decor Chick , Metamorphosis Monday at Between Naps on the Porch, Saturday Nite Special at Funky Junk Interiors, DIY Project Parade at DIY Show Off, Overflowing with Creativity at It's Overflowing, Hooking up with HOH, Tutorials and tips at Home Stories A to Z, Tutorial Tips and Tidbits at Stone Gable, Monday Funday at Creatively Living, Creative Friday Link Party at Jennifer Rizo, Wrap Up Party at Tatertotandjello, The 36th Avenue, Tuesdays at our home at Our home away from home, Amaze me Monday at Dwellings - The heart of your home

Bedroom Wallpaper Dilemma and a Winner

2013-05-16T09:22:00.000-04:00

Bedroom Wallpaper Dilemma

Shopten25

Hey Everyone!

I've been busy working in so many things but in the end I haven't finished anything! It looks like I've been doing nothing at all!

Today I want to talk about my bedroom. I began the year full steam ahead renovating it, the ugly, stained ceiling got fixed, painted, and wooden beams were added, fuff it was quite a job! I still remember being stuck up there in the attic!

Then storage problems were solved by building a bookcase/fireplace unit, another big project.

Finally, the windows got trimmed too, and I even painted around them with that pretty blue color, it looked like the room was finished, but no, far from that!

This is how it looks right now! I simply painted around the windows because that was my first contributors writer post for Pretty Handy Girl, I couldn't send her the pictures of the pretty trimmed windows with that "poop" color on the walls! So, that's the only part I painted.

Since I'd been out of the bedroom during all that work, tired of sleeping on a tiny bed for more than a month, I just brought my bed back and forgot about this room for a while.

I could have painted the whole room after finishing with the bookcases, but I want something different for that back wall, I want to make that wall the room's focal point.

That "something" is wallpaper and it's being a problem because I haven't found a wallpaper within my budget that I like. For some reason I really really want to have a textured paper and here I'm going to show you the ones that I've been considering.

The first picture in this post is kind of my dream come true paper, because I like its movement, I'm such a straight lines, geometric shapes kind of person, that it's like pushing aside from lines and embracing swirls, the problem is I haven't even found if that's a wallpaper!

This next picture is more like the usual me... geometric shapes! I like it but I'm not crazy about it.

Houzz

This is different, lots of movement, but still not quite what I really want.

Eden

I told you, I keep on gravitating towards geometric shapes!

Cole and Son

Here again.

Grandinroad

This white brick wallpaper is another one I really like, even though is, again, a geometric pattern, the fact that they are bricks make it a more natural selection.

Wallpaperdirect

I've looked at regular wallpapers too, like the one below, but then I probably can paint those designs and save me the $70/roll they cost.

Burkedecor

That's been my dilemma and that's why that room is still a mess. I'd like to hear from you! I'm working towards a "white room", which one do you recommend?

The winner of the Mohawk Home rug up to 5' x 8' size and under $150 value on site is:

DEBRA MEADOWS SMITH

Thanks!

Linked party at:
Tuesday’s Treasures at My uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Nifty Thrifty Tuesday at Coastal Charm, Table Top Tuesday at A Stroll Thru Life, Wow us Wednesdays at Savvy Southern Style, Transformation Thursday at The Shabby Creek Cottage,Cowgirl Up at Farm House Porch, Feather Nest Friday at French Country Cottage, Vintage Inspiration Friday at Common Ground, Before and After Party at Thrifty Decor Chick , Metamorphosis Monday at Between Naps on the Porch, Saturday Nite Special at Funky Junk Interiors, DIY Project Parade at DIY Show Off, Overflowing with Creativity at It's Overflowing, Hooking up with HOH, Tutorials and tips at Home Stories A to Z, Tutorial Tips and Tidbits at Stone Gable, Monday Funday at Creatively Living, Creative Friday Link Party at Jennifer Rizo, Wrap Up Party at Tatertotandjello, The 36th Avenue, Tuesdays at our home at Our home away from home, Amaze me Monday at Dwellings - The heart of your home

Happy Mother's Day

2013-05-12T12:42:00.000-04:00

Happy Mother's Day

Just because you're....

Hard working

Nurturing

Loving

Responsible

Resourceful

Caring

Warming

Understanding

Motivating

Kind

Awesome!

How to Make your Curtains Longer

2013-05-10T08:15:00.001-04:00

How to Make your Curtains Longer

Thank you so much for your generous comments on the dining room reveal! We are really enjoying this room. Since I changed it, we've been having all our dinners there, so far we had use it more than we did all last year, it's like being in a different home!

One of the new things for this room were the curtains, I bought two sets of Ikea - Merete Curtains $24.99/pair.

Even though they are 98" long, they were still short by 3"! I didn't like that :( They had to be fixed.

This post is about how to make your curtains longer when they are a bit too short for your windows. Remember, my sewing skills are pretty lame, if a true seamstress sees my work he or she is going to cringe big time, but hey, it works for me and I think nobody is going to come and check up close how this looks.

So, in case you need to the same, and don't have the curtain police around, this is what you have to do:

Calculate how much material you need too add by first hanging the curtains. Then, measure from the very end of the curtains all the way to the floor, and that will be your number.

This next picture shows how the extra piece of fabric is going to be attached at the last ½" of the curtain, that will bring the total panel ½" up from the floor which is good anyways, you don't want your curtains touching the floor.

Find the fabric you want to use, the width should be the same as the one in your curtains plus 1"(for seams).

For it's height I doubled my measurement 3½" x 2 = 7" and added 1"(seams) for a total of 8".

Here is why. Each strip of fabric gets folded ½" on each side

Then the whole strip of fabric gets folded lengthwise.

The curtain panel is then placed, aligned with the ½" seam, placing it in the middle of the strip of fabric (sandwiching it).

Pin it in place and sew it. Close both ends too.

The front and back are going to look finished. Do you see those lines? They are far from straight, but well, you're the only one who knows!

That's it, ready to be hung up again.

In place.

Hugs,

Revamp your Kitchen with The Home Depot

2013-05-06T07:00:00.000-04:00

Revamp your Kitchen with The Home Depot

We've been enjoying our "new" kitchen for almost two years now, it wasn't a very easy DIY project but it was done and we are still thrilled with the results. There were many many hours invested trying to transform it from plain and boring to modern and bright.

I've told you many times how painting those kitchen cabinets with brushes and rollers was such a tedious job!

That's in part why I'm here talking about The Home Depot. Do you know cabinet replacement is not the only thing they offer? Nope, they also offer cabinet refacing and refinishing too! If you, unlike me, don't want to mess up with paint, primers, brushes and rollers, The Home Depot gives you those three great options to choose from.

But that's not all, while working on our kitchen, our trips to The Home Depot increased, we bought there nails, tools, primer, wood, many of the backsplash supplies, ducting for the range hood, even the door knobs!

The part we struggled the most was the electrical, luckily the Master Electrician at our closest Home Depot was a great source of information too.

I want you to check out the video below and see why The Home Depot is my go-to place for home improvement!

It will be a nice way to give your kitchen a new face.

Dining Room Reveal and a Giveaway

2013-05-01T07:00:00.000-04:00

Dining Room Reveal and a Giveaway

Hello Friends,

I'm super excited about this post today! The dining room was transformed and I didn't even plan on changing it!

It all began with the two painted chairs. They got a new coat of paint and of course new covers. The problem was when they met the other "ladies" in the dining room, they didn't fit in quite well. Don't you agree?

That's when the big change came, yes, with paint! Off with the mellow yellow, in with this beach-blue color.

And it kept on growing! The blue walls were not enough. Some shelves were installed to fill those empty spaces!

And because I've seen these wonderful shelves with such pretty corbels, I wanted my little shelves to also have corbels... at least some little ones!

The shelves were filled up.

The old mirror was brought in again.

The cheap art was transferred onto the other wall, new curtains frame the window.

Chairs from the kitchen table area were brought in.

Well, so many changes came just because a pair of chairs got painted! But the thing I wanted to change the MOST was the red rug.

See how it didn't go with anything in this room. Not even with the rug in the adjacent living room.

Luckly Mohawk Home came to the rescue!

Among so many beautiful choices I picked

Mohawk Home Simpatico Biscuit/Starch 8 ft x 10 ft Area Rug

And I'm loving it!

The rug was something the room was in dear need of change. The subtle colors in the new rug blend pretty well with the furniture, light fixture, and the color on the walls.

I used it on top of a rug pad I already had and it feels pretty soft. There hasn't been any pilling yet and I hope it continues like that.

The chairs look waaay better with the new rug.

And the whole room looks brighter and more cheerful!

I am very happy with how this room turned out, but I am super excited to partner with Mohawk Home to give a lucky winner a Mohawk Home rug up to 5' x 8' size and under $150 value on site.

Mohawk is committed to designing quality flooring products that match your distinct way of life, most importantly Mohawk rugs are made in the USA! Check out this video:

You can also connect with Mohawk Home on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Hometalk, You Tube, or on Mohawk Homescapes blog.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

p.s. Join me over at Pretty Handy Girl for a fun project just in time for mother's day.

Linked party at:
Tuesday’s Treasures at My uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Nifty Thrifty Tuesday at Coastal Charm, Table Top Tuesday at A Stroll Thru Life, Wow us Wednesdays at Savvy Southern Style, Transformation Thursday at The Shabby Creek Cottage,Cowgirl Up at Farm House Porch, Feather Nest Friday at French Country Cottage, Vintage Inspiration Friday at Common Ground, Before and After Party at Thrifty Decor Chick , Metamorphosis Monday at Between Naps on the Porch, Saturday Nite Special at Funky Junk Interiors, DIY Project Parade at DIY Show Off, Overflowing with Creativity at It's Overflowing, Hooking up with HOH, Tutorials and tips at Home Stories A to Z, Tutorial Tips and Tidbits at Stone Gable, Monday Funday at Creatively Living, Creative Friday Link Party at Jennifer Rizo, Wrap Up Party at Tatertotandjello, The 36th Avenue, Tuesdays at our home at Our home away from home, Amaze me Monday at Dwellings - The heart of your home

30 Great Looking Storage Solutions

2013-04-30T08:12:00.000-04:00

30 Great Looking Storage Solutions

I am very happy to share with you 30 great looking storage solutions

over at Hometalk!

Do you have an untidy space in your home?

Check out these amazing ideas to transform that space from untidy

to organized and pretty at the same time.

Baskets, metal containers,

crates, jars, buckets and

many more amazing ideas were used

to create great looking

storage solutions.

Are you new to Hometalk?

Here is why you should check it out:

Hometalk is the place where homeowners, designers,

contractors, professionals and bloggers hang out

to share projects, ask questions and help each other

on everything related to

home improvement.

Visit the Hometalk home page or their

Facebook page and

be prepared to get inspired

with the thousands of photos and projects

that Hometalk has in store for you.

Shallow Open Shelves in Dining Room

2013-04-29T05:00:00.000-04:00

Shallow Open Shelves in Dining Room

My last post was about a trip to an antique store where I liked so many things, but undoubtedly the one thing that got me the most was a set of amazing shelves with gigantic corbels, you can check them out right HERE.

Since I painted those two chairs in the dining room, I've been sprucing up the room a little bit, you can see how the "new" chairs don't fit quite well in the room, and now with the new idea of easy shelves, I found the perfect spots to install some of them. Well, they were not going to be as big or with those beautiful corbels as the ones I saw.

But they will visually fill up those spaces. I took my measurements, drawing lines on the places were I like them to be, and most importantly marking pretty well the STUDS LOCATION.

I don't have too much room in there, the shelves had to be very shallow. The material I used was remnants of 1 x 4 used to trim the windows (left picture below), I also use the aprons that were taken off from the window skirts the builder had installed on those windows (right picture below).

This is how they were going to be installed.

Pocket holes were driven to each 1 x 4 board-shelf, making sure they were aligned to the location of the studs on the wall. I didn't want to see hardware around the shelves.

I had aprons for six shelves, but I was thinking of installing ten. So, for two shelves another remnant piece of molding was used and for the final two shelves I decided to create some corbels (hmm still thinking about the pretty ones in that store), the only thing was my corbels were going to be very small.

Again, the material was 1 x 4, making a rough drawing of the corbels on it, and cutting the shape out with a jigsaw, two at a time.

All the material was ready, but before installing them, and knowing my measurements pretty well, I decided to first give the whole room a new coat of paint. Using left over paint from other projects a new shade was created.

The room was painted, at first it looked too "bluish", but I stuck to it, anyways I didn't want to paint again.

The shelves were nailed together - shelf and apron- with 1¼" nails, before installing them on the wall.

Then, the shelves were attached to the studs on the wall.

Using 2½" pocket-hole screws to reach well into those studs.

The top two shelves were attached to the wall driving the screws from the top, for the three lower shelves the screws were driven on the bottom of the shelves to conceal the holes, as you can see in the picture below.

These shelves are shallow, only 3½" deep, I'm not going to use them to store heavy items, their use is mostly decorative to fill that empty space. If I change my mind I simply unscrew them and they are off. I didn't use glue, not even caulking around them to cover the gaps.

The only thing needed was to shop around the house for items to be displayed on them.

Remember the LOVE sign? HERE is the tutorial on how to do it. One of the kitchen cupboards got a very welcome free space after taking some items from there too.

Now the blue walls don't look that "bluish", those empty spaces are filled and I'm loving it. Join me next time for a mini dining room reveal.

Thanks,

Linked party at:
Tuesday’s Treasures at My uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Nifty Thrifty Tuesday at Coastal Charm, Table Top Tuesday at A Stroll Thru Life, Wow us Wednesdays at Savvy Southern Style, Transformation Thursday at The Shabby Creek Cottage,Cowgirl Up at Farm House Porch, Feather Nest Friday at French Country Cottage, Vintage Inspiration Friday at Common Ground, Before and After Party at Thrifty Decor Chick , Metamorphosis Monday at Between Naps on the Porch, Saturday Nite Special at Funky Junk Interiors, DIY Project Parade at DIY Show Off, Overflowing with Creativity at It's Overflowing, Hooking up with HOH, Tutorials and tips at Home Stories A to Z, Tutorial Tips and Tidbits at Stone Gable, Monday Funday at Creatively Living, Creative Friday Link Party at Jennifer Rizo, Wrap Up Party at Tatertotandjello, The 36th Avenue, Tuesdays at our home at Our home away from home, Amaze me Monday at Dwellings - The heart of your home

A Vintage Sample

2013-04-22T05:00:00.000-04:00

A Vintage Sample

Hi everyone,

The weekend was so gorgeous! A bit cold but we had lots and lots of sunshine, beautiful! On Saturday we went to Ellicot City, MD to an instrument/music fair and got a new ugraded flute for our daughter. Sunday, with my Sil and her Sil Carol we visited this awesome place: Old Lucketts Store and believe me it was love at first sight! Wherever we went beauty was right there.

Here is a small sample of what I could capture in the small time we were in there.

This days I'm loving chairs, all the ones I saw were simply beautiful.

There isn't a single thing I wouldn't like about this room, the table, chairs, silver accessories, everything is so pretty! Look at that tree branch on the ceiling!

Those super size moss balls draw lots of attention.

I'm telling you, lots of chairs, all of them, lovely.

This chandelier got my attention, I'm looking for a chandy for my bedroom, perhaps too shabby?

This bottle drying rack chandelier was another cute one.

I love the clock plates in this arrangements, perfect for a new year's eve party.

A cupboard full of goodies.

Don't you love that pillow?

Hmmm look at those pillows on that bed, so fluffy.

I'm already looking for a big empty wall where I can install shelves like this ones. Well, I have to find the corbels first.

Outside they also have awesome stuff.

We didn't have that much time to look around, we didn't buy a thing in this place, maybe next time.
After lunch in a good restaurant in Frederick, MD, Carol asked me to pose in front of one of the many church steeples in the area. This was at the top of the parking lot.

Some more snaps I took while there.

A very beautiful day. Thanks Pili and Carol, I had lots of fun, we have to do this again!

A quick update.

Thanks to Megan Vaughn, My Pinteresting Family, now I know there is going to be a Hometalk Meetup at Lucketts and I'm going to be there! Woo Hooo this is so exciting! I'm going to meet many talented bloggers like Donna @ Funky Junk Interiors, Karen @ The Graphics Fairy, Miss Mustard Seed, Miriam @ Hometalk and I know many many more.

Are you coming to the Hometalk Meetup at Lucketts Market on May 19th? I want to meet you too!

Recovering Chair Seats

2013-04-18T13:15:00.000-04:00

Recovering Chair Seats

Thank you so much for your nice comments on the previous post about painting the chairs. I'm going to enjoy these "new chairs" for a while. I haven't bought more paint yet, as many of you pointed out, it is highly addictive, I can't wait to finish the remaining chairs!

But this post is all about the cushion, as you can see, the old cushion didn't cut it that well with the new painted chair.

I loved that old fabric, but it was now time for a change. Recovering a chair seat is one of those easy projects that give you lots satisfaction, it kind of gives you a new chair.

First things first, removing the old material, beginning with the cushion underlining material. Let me tell you, getting those staples out of there was not that easy.

I was even thinking of leaving the old fabric in place, most of those staples were really deep into the wood, but afraid that two layers of fabric didn't allow the seat to fit in the chair, made me go ahead and remove every single one of them.

A very pointy knife was my solution to loosen up those staples, then with a staple remover they were pulled out. Sometimes they break, if that happens remove both pieces with pliers.

While removing the material I paid close attention to how those corners had been worked. Lots of pictures were taken for me to follow.

It looks pretty easy, one pleat on the top corner and then the other one coming from the bottom corner, stapling them as you work.

Many of you loved the new fabric, well, let me introduce you to it: Target -New Medallion- Shower Curtain. I love it too! Price wise it was a more reasonable alternative to cover all six chairs.

The main design was centered on the seat. Once you turn it, the stapling begins.

You can use a manual, electric or pneumatic stapler, but for this project I used my new pneumatic stapler. Once again let me remind you of how working with the proper tools makes everything go so smoothly!

I used to work with an electric stapler but most of the time the staples didn't go all the way in, other times they got tangled inside the machine, it was so frustrating. This new machine was about $35 with two sets of staples included, way more cheaper than what I paid for the electric one and it works wonders.
Perhaps you don't have an air compressor, but this new stapler and the pair of nail guns I have are at the top of my favorite tools, it would be a good investment to have these tools if you're a serious DIY'er.

OK the stapling began, front and back first, pulling the fabric nice and taut, then the sides.

When all the sides are done you can work on the corners. As I showed you previously, my best technique was: "Monkey see, monkey do" :)

The excess fabric was trimmed off and the underlining material was stapled back in place.

Every chair is different, I guess is a matter of look at what you have and try to copy-cat it the best way you can.

Have a great day!

Linked party at:
Tuesday’s Treasures at My uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Nifty Thrifty Tuesday at Coastal Charm, Table Top Tuesday at A Stroll Thru Life, Wow us Wednesdays at Savvy Southern Style, Transformation Thursday at The Shabby Creek Cottage,Cowgirl Up at Farm House Porch, Feather Nest Friday at French Country Cottage, Vintage Inspiration Friday at Common Ground, Before and After Party at Thrifty Decor Chick , Metamorphosis Monday at Between Naps on the Porch, Saturday Nite Special at Funky Junk Interiors, DIY Project Parade at DIY Show Off, Overflowing with Creativity at It's Overflowing, Hooking up with HOH, Tutorials and tips at Home Stories A to Z, Tutorial Tips and Tidbits at Stone Gable, Monday Funday at Creatively Living, Creative Friday Link Party at Jennifer Rizo, Wrap Up Party at Tatertotandjello, The 36th Avenue, Tuesdays at our home at Our home away from home, Amaze me Monday at Dwellings - The heart of your home

My First Experience with Chalk Paint - Chippendale Chair

2013-04-15T04:30:00.000-04:00

My First Experience with Chalk Paint - Chippendale Chair

The time finally arrived. After witnessing so many transformations around blog land, my time came. I couldn't hold it any longer, I had to give it a try!

Maybe it was my sister-in-law's fault. She was the one who needed paint to transform some pieces of furniture. She was the one who invited me to go paint shopping. Ha, I couldn't get out of that store without something in my hands!

At the time I was thinking of painting a pair of kitchen stools that are in need of a new coat of paint, but no, my eyes went instead toward these girls: My Chippendale chairs, of course, I have lots of those! 12 to be exact. Why? you might ask. Well let me tell you a story.

As soon as we started our family we wanted to fill our future house with good quality furniture. I went to many stores trying to find the perfect dining room set, and after many trips I finally found it! Beautiful Chippendale chairs that cried out loud to me: "high end" :) We bought six chairs but no table, NO. Just the chairs got all our budget! We had to wait to buy the table.

By the way, these are NOT those "high end" chairs we bought at that time.

Time passed, we moved into our new house and still no table! That's when we discovered Craiglist, there, I found a similar table to the one I kept on dreaming about, but it was waaaay cheaper than the one at the store, and that wasn't all! It came with SIX Chippendale chairs and a rug. What a deal, we got the whole package!

These are those CL Chippendale chairs.

They are a bit bulkier than the first ones I bought, but in general they are OK. Lately I've been thinking about selling them, we don't need that many chairs. But heck! They became the perfect project after having ASCP in my hands!
One of them had a damaged arm, that was one more reason to paint them.

First, it had to be fixed. That nail was pulled out, both sides were sanded, and after applying glue, a couple of new nails were driven to hold the arm in place. The gaps and nail holes were then filled with calking

The other end of the arm received a similar fix. Lots of glue, some nails and clamps was all needed to make it strong once again.

So, the painting began. No sanding or prepping, that is really nice!

After one coat, this is how it looked. For my liking, it was not ready, it needed another coat!

That's when I began thinking I should've bought more paint, a SAMPLE might not be enough! Well, remember I wanted to paint two simple stools not two chairs with so many details! As usual, my project got bigger than what I first thought.

This was the remaining after applying one coat to one chair.

ASCP - Paris Grey

That chair got a second coat, and the other chair its first coat of paint. Only one sample (4fl Ounces /118 ml), covered a lot!

Here you can see the difference from one to two coats.

But, unfortunately, it was NOT enough for both chairs! After three coats (two coats on one chair and one coat on the other), the remaining paint was very thick. I added a tablespoon of water, mixing it very well. Adding the water almost allowed me to give the second chair the final coat, but no. All the back on that chair was left with only one coat. :( I need to buy some more.

It looks like I didn't waste a bit! :D

Then the distressing part arrived. Using regular sand paper (280 grid), I did a light sanding, nothing too heavy.

They were all ready for the wax. These chairs have so much detail that it would've been hard to do it without using the proper brush. It is so good to work with the proper tools!

Very thin amounts of wax were applied in uniform coats.

You can see the difference from a simply painted to a painted and waxed surface.

After the wax dried, both chairs were buffed with a regular cotton cloth and oh boy, I'm happy with the results!

A new cover for those cushions and my not so "high end" chairs got in the spotlight!

Now the question is... Should I sell them?

I like those distressed edges.

Perhaps I'm going to enjoy them for a while.

Besides, I still need to finish the back on one of these and paint four more!

If you're thinking about transforming a piece of furniture with chalk paint here are some great posts from blogging friends that have done this not once but several times.

Kim at Savvy Southern Style, this post was about her Kitchen Cabinets Tutorial, but that's just one of the many transformations she has tackled around her home, you will be amazed.

I also love the paint transformations and tutorials from Yvonne at Stone Gable. Creating a Color Wash Effect is one of my favorite tutorials from her.

One very well documented first experience with Annie Sloan is from Jenna at Sas Interiors. A really good starting point.

I'm definitely happy with the experience, my next project is already on a waiting list. What's your next project? Are you still waiting to give it a try?

The -How to recover a chair seat- post is right HERE

To see how they look in my "new" dining room click HERE

Linked party at:
Tuesday’s Treasures at My uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Nifty Thrifty Tuesday at Coastal Charm, Table Top Tuesday at A Stroll Thru Life, Wow us Wednesdays at Savvy Southern Style, Transformation Thursday at The Shabby Creek Cottage,Cowgirl Up at Farm House Porch, Feather Nest Friday at French Country Cottage, Vintage Inspiration Friday at Common Ground, Before and After Party at Thrifty Decor Chick , Metamorphosis Monday at Between Naps on the Porch, Saturday Nite Special at Funky Junk Interiors, DIY Project Parade at DIY Show Off, Home Sweet Home at The charm of Home, Overflowing with Creativity at It's Overflowing, Hooking up with HOH, Tutorials and tips at Home Stories A to Z, Tutorial Tips and Tidbits at Stone Gable, Monday Funday at Creatively Living, Creative Friday Link Party at Jennifer Rizo, Wrap Up Party at Tatertotandjello, The 36th Avenue, Tuesdays at our home at Our home away from home, Amaze me Monday at Dwellings - The heart of your home

At The Flea Market

2013-04-10T09:05:00.003-04:00

At the Flea Market

Last weekend, as I told you before, the weather was gorgeous. It was a bit cold early in the morning when we (the hubs and me), headed to our community flea market. We usually walk, but this time we drove to get there. It was the first one to be held this year, so I was pretty excited to walk around looking for those special finds!

There were not as many vendors as usual but nonetheless we managed to come back home with some treasures.

My husband liked these binoculars, he was looking for vintage cameras, but there were none. I love the binoculars leather case and my kids thought they were very "cool". The price $5.

I'm growing my stash of silver pieces, the one with the rounded shape and little feet is my favorite so far. It's price $3.
A little research on the other one gave me an Ebay copy cat: "The White Horse Scotch Pewter Jug Liquor Pitcher" it sells there for $35, more than what we payed for all of our finds. My pitcher was only $2.

Two silver vases, not crazy about the color but they might come in handy for photo sessions! $2 each.

A set of picture frames that were not in great condition.

But I liked their summer feel, hmmm maybe because of the dolphin :) Well, for only a dollar for both of them, what's not to like!

The first find of the day was this basket/tray, I loved the chunky feel, the materials, at first I didn't like the color.

But it worked perfectly during my new family room wall reveal. I might paint it though. The price $2.

Last but not least a pair of router bits. The biggest expense, $10 for both! If I get them at the store the price will be way higher than that.

Something else that we came home with was this vibrant chair, it was picked from the curb! I need to check what kind of damage it has and if it's something is worth fixing, just looking at it makes me smile.

Those were all our finds. We were thinking on spending only $20, we ended up paying $28. The router bits were the ones who set us backwards, but hey I know it's a good buy!

How about you?! Have you attended a flea market this year, are my prices comparable with the ones in your area? What's your greatest find so far?

I can't wait to attend next month's flea market!

Hugs,

Linked party at:
Tuesday’s Treasures at My uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Nifty Thrifty Tuesday at Coastal Charm, Table Top Tuesday at A Stroll Thru Life, Wow us Wednesdays at Savvy Southern Style, Transformation Thursday at The Shabby Creek Cottage,Cowgirl Up at Farm House Porch, Feather Nest Friday at French Country Cottage, Vintage Inspiration Friday at Common Ground, Before and After Party at Thrifty Decor Chick , Metamorphosis Monday at Between Naps on the Porch, Saturday Nite Special at Funky Junk Interiors, DIY Project Parade at DIY Show Off, Home Sweet Home at The charm of Home, Overflowing with Creativity at It's Overflowing, Hooking up with HOH, Tutorials and tips at Home Stories A to Z, Tutorial Tips and Tidbits at Stone Gable, Monday Funday at Creatively Living, Creative Friday Link Party at Jennifer Rizo, Wrap Up Party at Tatertotandjello, The 36th Avenue, Tuesdays at our home at Our home away from home, Amaze me Monday at Dwellings - The heart of your home

Geometric Designs Wall Art

2013-04-08T16:05:00.000-04:00

Geometric Designs Wall Art

The warmer weather is finally arriving! This past weekend was really gorgeous, we just had to stay outdoors and enjoy all the beauty of Spring time.

Well, I also managed to work on this project, changing the wall art in the family room.
For Christmas time I wrapped some canvasses with fabric and placed the Ho Ho Ho felt words on top and that was it!

For Valentine's Day the letters were changed for Xo Xo Xo, hah easy change! But after Valentine's Day this is how they have been.

It was on my to do list, but nothing came up until I saw these pretty designs! Yeah, those are Kleenex tissues. I love those designs and the colors. That was my inspiration.

I took a picture of each package, worked the designs with my new printer and ...

hello beautiful!

I got the four designs on the tissues plus one extra. You can download the designs I used, they are not of great quality but the 8x10 size works pretty good. Hoping they are not trade mark designs ;)

Green Pink Yellow Blue Orange

Then the prints were attached to the canvasses with Mod Podge, but not before painting the old designs, attaching painters tape all around the canvasses to create a "white frame", and cutting the paper to size.

Since the canvasses are not a hard surface, many creases appeared while applying the Mod Podge.

Not that noticeable when it dries though. The tape was taken off and onto the wall they went.

The dark green design was a piece of fabric I already had, a last minute decision to include that one in the gallery to better fill the space.

The new gallery ties in nicely with the art above the fireplace.

And I love how those bright colors give the room a happier atmosphere!

More Spring projects coming!

Linked party at:
Tuesday’s Treasures at My uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Nifty Thrifty Tuesday at Coastal Charm, Table Top Tuesday at A Stroll Thru Life, Wow us Wednesdays at Savvy Southern Style, Transformation Thursday at The Shabby Creek Cottage,Cowgirl Up at Farm House Porch, Feather Nest Friday at French Country Cottage, Vintage Inspiration Friday at Common Ground, Before and After Party at Thrifty Decor Chick , Metamorphosis Monday at Between Naps on the Porch, Saturday Nite Special at Funky Junk Interiors, DIY Project Parade at DIY Show Off, Home Sweet Home at The charm of Home, Overflowing with Creativity at It's Overflowing, Hooking up with HOH, Tutorials and tips at Home Stories A to Z, Tutorial Tips and Tidbits at Stone Gable, Monday Funday at Creatively Living, Creative Friday Link Party at Jennifer Rizo, Wrap Up Party at Tatertotandjello, Diy by Design, The 36th Avenue, Tuesdays at our home at Our home away from home

Good News

2013-04-03T08:18:00.000-04:00

Today I'm still as excited as the first time I read an e-mail from Brittany -Pretty Handy Girl
where she invited me to join the team of Pretty Handy Guys and Gals!

It is an honor be one of her new contributor writers!

I'll be joining Jeff Patterson -Home Repair Tutor; Jacque Knowlton and Matt Knowlton - The DIY Village and Jaime Costiglio - That's My Letter

Every Wednesday one of us will be sharing a project tutorial.

Today I'm presenting my first post:

A fairly easy way on How to Install Window Trim

I would love for you to stop by, say hi to Brittany,
and while there get empowered
by all the amazing tutorials, tips,

and handy information Pretty Handy Girl has in store for you.

DIY Bookcases for Bedroom - Final Reveal

2013-04-02T19:46:00.000-04:00

DIY Bookcases for Bedroom - Final Reveal

This is the third and final part of a series for building Bookcases in my bedroom. For the first part click HERE.

At the end of the second post, this is how the bookcases looked.

The electric fireplace had arrived and it was hung onto two 2x4's in the middle of the two bookcases. It was time to make it look pretty.

I wanted to enclose the fireplace, so out of MDF a front face was cut, the inside cut-out was the perfect fit for the fireplace but it didn't work! It was so tight fitting that it was impossible to hang the fireplace. I wanted to be able to take the fireplace off the wall at any given moment, like if the lights for the flames burn out, it needs to be taken down so they could be changed. This style didn't allow that. It was more like a permanent solution that I didn't want.

One extra problem I encountered was the flat trim I had previously attached at the front sides of the bookcases. Whatever I was trying to fit in between both bookcases didn't get in! I took it off, it was a pain on the neck to get rid of it. The glue had hardened pretty well, every time I managed to pray away an extra piece I promise myself to never put trim on the outside, before building the inside. I think I learned that lesson!

Since the first plan for a "flat-front enclosed fireplace" didn't work, my next move was to build a small cubbie below the fireplace and a simple mantel above it.

This is how the cubbie was done:

This is the mantel.

On top of the mantel a chunky shelf was drilled in place.

The back was painted chalkboard black. I also painted a 1/4" plywood to fit inside the cubbie. If I change my mind I can take it off and is white again.

Finally, 1/2" MDF was cut in 3" stripes to give the overmantel a nice design and to cover the gaps on the sides and the electrical hole at the top (that top part was screwed in place to have easy access later on).
All the small moldings were the final touch.

Then I was in a paint marathon! I used Kilz 2 Latex to prime the whole unit. Behr Swiss Coffee - Semi-gloss finish was used as the top coat.

And they were DONE!

Some accessories.

Remember the post about wood cuttings? They were coming here.

This is how it evolved.

Until now.

The windows got all trimmed out too, you can read all about it on my first contributor writer's post at Pretty Handy Girl.

Linked party at:
Tuesday’s Treasures at My uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Nifty Thrifty Tuesday at Coastal Charm, Table Top Tuesday at A Stroll Thru Life, Wow us Wednesdays at Savvy Southern Style, Transformation Thursday at The Shabby Creek Cottage,Cowgirl Up at Farm House Porch, Feather Nest Friday at French Country Cottage, Vintage Inspiration Friday at Common Ground, Before and After Party at Thrifty Decor Chick , Metamorphosis Monday at Between Naps on the Porch, Saturday Nite Special at Funky Junk Interiors, DIY Project Parade at DIY Show Off, Home Sweet Home at The charm of Home, Overflowing with Creativity at It's Overflowing, Hooking up with HOH, Tutorials and tips at Home Stories A to Z, Tutorial Tips and Tidbits at Stone Gable, Monday Funday at Creatively Living, Creative Friday Link Party at Jennifer Rizo, Wrap Up Party at Tatertotandjello, Diy by Design, The 36th Avenue, Tuesdays at our home at Our home away from home

Wood Cuttings

2013-03-29T13:21:00.000-04:00

Wood Cuttings

One project I'm working on required me to go beyond my backyard to the wooden area and grab my material, yes, tree branches of different thickness. they laid in the garage floor for some weeks until I was ready to cut them.

For the project, I needed the cuts to be 6" long. I began with the thinnest branches and had no trouble cutting them with the miter saw. It was very easy when the branches were straight, the twisted or curved ones were harder to hold and the saw kicked back when trying to cut through some of them.

It was time and I think is always a good idea to CLAMP THE WOOD! The small clamps I had were fine holding the thin branches.

For the thick branches I didn't take risks! The hand saw was my tool.

The material was cut and it was ready to come inside the house.

But first, it went into the oven to kill any insects that they might have. There are no great instructions out there on how to do this, some people freeze the wood, some others warm it up!

I read somewhere, to place them in the oven at 110° - 130° F for six hours. I was going to follow those instructions, but Alas! my oven doesn't take 110° or 130° degrees! It begins warming up at 170°F! So, that's the temperature I used for four hours, since I had to crank it up.

I didn't see suspicious things -critters- on the logs, but its good to be extra cautious.

While they are ready, let me show you some amazing projects from around the web with branches and logs and cuttings from them!

Birch-Log Coffee Table

Better Homes and Gardens

Natural Wood Statement Necklace

The Scrap Shoppe Blog

Wall Art

Better Homes and Gardens

Tree Branch Table

Man Made Diy

Wood Round Wall Tutorial

Home Stories A to Z

Aren't they lovely?

The ones I cut were used on this project click HERE.

Linked party at:
Tuesday’s Treasures at My uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Nifty Thrifty Tuesday at Coastal Charm, Table Top Tuesday at A Stroll Thru Life, Wow us Wednesdays at Savvy Southern Style, Transformation Thursday at The Shabby Creek Cottage,Cowgirl Up at Farm House Porch, Feather Nest Friday at French Country Cottage, Vintage Inspiration Friday at Common Ground, Before and After Party at Thrifty Decor Chick , Metamorphosis Monday at Between Naps on the Porch, Saturday Nite Special at Funky Junk Interiors, DIY Project Parade at DIY Show Off, Home Sweet Home at The charm of Home, Overflowing with Creativity at It's Overflowing, Hooking up with HOH, Tutorials and tips at Home Stories A to Z, Tutorial Tips and Tidbits at Stone Gable, Monday Funday at Creatively Living, Creative Friday Link Party at Jennifer Rizo, Wrap Up Party at Tatertotandjello, Diy by Design, The 36th Avenue, Tuesdays at our home at Our home away from home