Posted
March 2, 2010 by
erin under
Tutorial I’ve been following this blog for a while and just LOVE it! It’s put together by Ana and called Knock Off Wood. She takes things she sees in stores like Pottery Barn, West Elm, Land of Nod, and other stores, and makes the plans and a shopping list of supplies so you can make your own pieces for WAY less! Here are some examples of her plans and finished project! Be sure to go over and check out her awesome site!
This hutch as seen in Canadian House and Home was the inspiration for the plans for the hutch below!
This is what the finished piece will look like, go here to see the full list of instructions, supplies and everything else you need to get started!
These are some of my favorite shelves from Pottery Barn Kids, but at a hefty price tag of $900, not always affordable!
Ana shares the plans and finished shelves with us…and the best part is that she spent only $60! She’s a genius!!
Worried about not being able to build these pieces? Check out her newly created Flickr Gallery to see what people just like you have been building with her plans! I can’t wait to get back into a house so I have a garage to build some new furniture in!
Enjoy!
Tags: DIY, furniture, Tutorial
Posted
February 2, 2010 by
erin under
DIY At CHA last week Deb and I saw some amazing things! I have tons of pictures of cute booths, exhibits, and projects. This project was at the Hambly Screen Prints booth:
Want to know how to make it? Buy a paper lantern from any local store. You can probably find these at a party store, IKEA, or a World Market type store. Purchase your favorite clear overlay sheets (they are hand screened transparencies) and cut to fit each side of the light. Adhere the top with a clear adhesive and you’re good to go! How easy is that? I think it would be fun and easy to change out for different seasons as well. Imagine a spiderweb overlay for Halloween, or a different pattern for the holidays.
*If you don’t have room for a full sized hanging lantern, try this desktop one from World Market:
Tags: DIY, lamp, lantern, Tutorial
Posted
January 20, 2010 by
erin under
Inspiration We’re starting to see lots of peacocks! I love the colors of peacock feathers…a nice iridescent green and nice shades of blue! A gorgeous color palette all by itself! Here’s a few home decor items I’ve seen lately with peacock elements to them.
{Tutorial for Leather and Feather Napkin Rings here}
{Thomas Paul Peacock Pillow}
{Peacock Kitchen ware from Bailey Doesn’t Bark}
Tags: DIY, peacock
Posted
November 17, 2009 by
erin under
DIY You’ve seen all the DIY shows that have home owners laying and installing their own tile floors. Would you like to do the same? (It’s actually not too difficult. I’ve done a few tile projects myself. I would give it a rating of medium difficulty!) One of the biggest challenges you’ll have is choosing out which tile you’d like! There are many millions of different tiles out there so how do you decide which one is best for your space? They’ll all be classified with terms such as ceramic, porcelain, natural stone, through-body color, recycled glass, terrazzo, etc… Let me see if I can help you! Over the next week I’ll provide a quick run-down of the different types and the pros and cons of each.
First on the list is ceramic tile. Most residential applications (as opposed to commercial buildings) will use ceramic tile. Ceramic tile is made from, well, ceramic. It has been heat treated to make it extremely durable and usually has a glazed finish on top. If you ever see what’s called through-body color ceramic tiles, it just means that the color you see on top of the tile actually goes all the way through the tile. Why is this important? Because if you chip it the glaze might chip off, but the tile underneath will be the same color and therefore, much harder to tell if it’s been damaged.
You can find ceramic tile at prices ranging from $1.50 a square foot up to $10 a square foot (and sometimes more). The maintenance is great! Just sweep and mop occasionally, there’s no special treatments that ceramic will need. It will stand up to virtually all traffic in and out of your home. Some ceramic tile is made to be decorative and will only be recommended for wall use. The tile display board that the samples are on will tell you whether it’s recommended for your floor, walls, or both.
Here are some great ceramic tiles I like:
1. Angela Adams Manfred Deco from Ann Sacks Tile. This would make a great accent tile for a back splash in your kitchen or on the walls in your bathroom. This one would not work well on floors.
2 . Fayette Tile from Dal Tile. This would work great on a large entry way or kitchen, either on the floors or walls.
3. Mizu Tile from Walker-Zanger. This would work well on the walls, but too glossy for the floor.
4. Dual Chains from Stone Impressions. This would work well on walls. Then you can choose a solid field tile for your floor.
I hope that this series will help you! Next up tomorrow is Porcelain Tile. Let me know in the comments if you have any questions you’d like answered or included in the next post!
Tags: DIY, tile
Posted
November 12, 2009 by
erin under
DIY An easy way to freshen your kitchen is to change out the hardware. It’s also relatively easy to do, even for the novice DIY’er. Just grab the new hardware and a screwdriver and you’re ready to go. You’ll just need to unscrew the old hardware and screw on the new hardware! Try one of these for an extra special look:
1. Cabinet Knobs from SA Baxter
2. Hand-painted Mod Dots from Etsy Seller Mitsel8 (You know I had to have something colorful!)
3. Modernist and Paradigm knobs from The Hardware Hut
* There’s not a “right” way to decide if you want knobs or pulls, or both. Do what you like and what works best for you and don’t be afraid to mix and match your hardware. Pick a knob and pull you like that coordinate and use them both!
Tags: cabinet hardware, DIY
