When I moved into this house I found out the blind on the living room window had all three of it’s pull strings that raise and lower it were broken. I wasn’t surprised because the six foot wide blind is a beast to pull up. After finding out a new blind would cost a minimum of $100 I went to Joann and bought blind cord for $7 and re-threaded the pull cords. Easy fix. That was 8 months ago. Last week I had to blinds open and went to tilt them up when it got dark out. The piece that … Read more…
I’ve been living in an area that has made me more security conscious — didn’t know when I moved here that it’s a high crime area and can’t wait to move again. Anyway — I’ve discovered some low-cost interesting ideas. I watched the video at Super Grip Lock where they mentioned bump keys. Bump keys? A quick search led me all too quickly to YouTube where an ass jerk young man explained in-depth how easy bump keys are to make and use and how most home owners are too stupid to know about them. Just peachy. Glad to know we’re educating our criminals. … Read more…
Since one of the complaints about the Super Grip Lock was that it was too small I will preface these instructions with the fact my deadbolt and doorknob are not far apart. It’s about 5 1/2″ center to center. If your deadbolt is much farther, just cut longer pieces of Velcro to fit your door. The last time I checked Joann sells 1 yard packets 3/4″ Velcro for $.99. Wherever you get it, a yard is more than enough. Constructing the security strap My deadbolt turn knobs are like an arrow — a flat end and a pointed ended. The … Read more…
This isn’t so much about the project, but the product that I used and was very pleased with. I have a lamp base made by my grandfather. It’s oak that he had turned on a lathe and then finished with lacquer. I didn’t like the way the lacquer yellowed so I regrettably sprayed it with a textured granite paint years ago. Researching on the internet told me that type of paint is extremely difficult to remove. I haven’t used paint stripper or remover for quite a few years so I had no idea what to try. I really wanted the texture … Read more…
This post isn’t so much about my lamps as it is about the paint. I love Rustoleum Oiled Bronze Spray Paint! The can said it was good on wood, metal, plastic, and masonry. So far I’ve tried it on metal lamps, plastic coasters and a switch plate and ceramic knobs I have two good quality brass lamps that were in desperate need of an update. I toyed with the idea of using brushed nickel spray paint since that turned out so well on the ceiling fan, but decided it would be too light a color. Then it hit me an oiled … Read more…
I recently read a post explaining the chemistry behind this process — how the tannin of the tea would combine with the oxidation of vinegar/steel wool mixture and provide an aging stain for new wood. I was doubtful. Since the ingredients were all on hand and economical I decided to run a test to see if it would do anything. Brewing the mixtures I made a small amount of tea with 4 tea bags and let them steep for a couple of hours. I got a small chunk of 0000 steel wool and dropped it in about 1/2 of apple … Read more…
Problem List (starting at the top and working down): popcorn ceilings – I decided to leave the popcorn for someone else to scrape cheap, cheap, cheap gold paint – I’ve complained about the paint in multiple posts. Glad it’s gone. ancient light fixture – moved a pendant light from living room. Pendant light in center of living room??? ugly brass ceiling fan – I spray paint brushed nickel with black blades popcorn on soffit – scraped, primed, and painted like walls old-fashioned trim board over sink – removed (and I don’t miss it…) cheap plug in flourescent light over sink … Read more…
I wanted something made out of wood for the shelf on my new kitchen island so I found a box I liked on Houzz in their ideabooks — simple plan and materials. I purchased a 1″ x 6″ x 8′ board and a dowel. Cutting the end corners provided nice little scraps for propping up things when I’m painting them. I had a 1″ paddle bit for the holes. I also bought 3′ of heavy sisal rope thinking that might make a cool handle if I could knot it. I wanted the wood to end up looking like barn siding and … Read more…
In all my picture taking of what I’ve done to the kitchen, I have carefully avoided one thing — the ceiling fan. You can see why. It was like an ugly albatross hanging there. I was dead set against spending money on a new one and when I’d look at it I’d mentally mumble something along the lines of “The next people who own the house can do something about that…” But it bugged me that it had absolutely nothing to do with anything I’d done to the rest of the kitchen. So I looked online to see if anyone … Read more…
When I completed all the work on the kitchen I felt it looked empty and was screaming for an island. The big issue for me is that I didn’t want to invest a whole lot of money in it. I shopped around and figured out it would cost between a minimum of $200-300 to get a size that would compliment the kitchen. I checked thrift shops and flea markets and couldn’t find anything that would work, so back to the drawing board — literally. The design Since this would be my first building project ever, I based my island design … Read more…
