Dress Up Wardrobe from a Dresser

I can take no credit for thinking this up - saw it on Pinterest.  One $20 craig's list dresser later, a little paint, new knobs, and finally, finally the pile of costumes is off the floor where it had exploded out of a little suitcase and threatened to become sentient and carry off the children.  A bonus is trying to instill in the children that when you put things away and can see them, dress up is far easier and much more fun!

Milk Jug Makeover

 

A yard sale purchase for a dollar - it had been in a garden and had lots of rust.  I sprayed it with rust stopping paint (black) then two coats of our trim enamel.

 Following a tip from pinterest (of course) I used the stock market pages to transfer a design I found from a vintage milk bottle for sale on ebay.  I blew it up to letter size and didn't worry about the poor quality since I was just tracing it and it was a pretty simple graphic.  The stock market pages technique worked very well!

 I covered the tracing with red permanent marker.  After having the milk jug for two years in the rusty state, I was suddenly unable to wait the amount of time it would have taken to go get a paint pen.  The color looks great so far - not sure how it will hold up or fade yet.  But I can always trace back over it.

 I love the back of the bottle - so cheerful!

 Now we have a pretty little stand in our entry way for the flag when not flying and umbrellas, canes, etc.  I love it.

Fixing Doors

This weekend we fixed THREE doors!  Two aren't really worth showing here.  Our laundry room door has been sticking badly since we moved in.  This wet summer we assumed it was just an old door swelling and we might have to replace it.  Luckily, before we did that, I actually looked at the door as I was struggling to close it and realized that the top hinge was practically off the wall.  Tightening the screws did the trick - now you can shut that door with one finger.  Seriously, it was so bad we were using the other door most of the time.  Wish I had looked up a little sooner!

Then Mr. Sycamore banged on the kitchen door with a hammer, and now it shuts perfectly too. 
I don't know what he did but it really worked.


So here is door number three.  This is the before picture - you will notice, there isn't even a door!  Just an ugly window from the 80s in our serviceable shed.  This is the view when you park in the driveway.  Nothing, but nothing, to look at, unless you count the empty gas can I am supposed to remember to go get filled.

So we took it into our heads to turn 1/3 of the shed into a music studio for playing and recording.  We built a partition wall last summer, and we had two free windows stored in the shed when we moved in.  We bought a door and put up the framing.

And last weekend, fueled by caffeine and some nice weather, we got it all up!  There will be a small deck attached in front, and the whole shed will get board and batten siding which you can see half started around the door.  I can't tell you how it feels to have this big project in place - I know there is a lot to go - the deck, interior walls, insulation, a/c, paint, landscaping, etc.  But all that seems routine now that we figured out how to put this crazy wall together right!

Two thirds of the shed now is mine.  For gardening stuff, tools, projects, painting furniture - once I get  all the junk piled up on the "shed" side cleaned up and organized.

 Check out my ideas on Pinterest and wish me luck!

Scary Tub Update

We are on day five of curing the epoxy, so no one has used this tub yet.  But I think it is an improvement, no? 

 Really, I'm embarrassed to even post the before photo.  All I can say in my defense is that despite appearances, this tub was in fact CLEAN.  It just wasn't pretty.  One or more of the flippers had painted this scratched up tub with latex paint, which wasn't loose enough to just scrape off easily (oh, no, that would be too easy!) but was loose enough to chip off a few chips at a time during baths.  And, you know, look scuzzy, gross and disgusting.

But disgusting no more.  Still have to fix the overflow cap, and some molding on the left where the drywall is not looking so hot (and really shouldn't be drywall, but that is another story for another day).  And now the tiles look quite dingy, what with the new paint and the new-looking tub.  If anyone is interested, it was the "Bathtub Refinishing Kit for Dummies" - yes, in a package just like the books - and I would use it again (if it lasts after use).  Very easy, simple directions, and everything included. 

And, what to do to keep feet from slipping now that there isn't all that great crackled paint-y texture?
  THAT is a problem I love to have.

Bathroom Makeover - Downstairs Before

 Hmmm, well, yes.  This bathroom ... functions.  But it sure doesn't sing (not sure what a bathroom would sing if it had the ability, maybe I just shouldn't go there)

Ah.  The pile of magazines and complete lack of any storage, closed or otherwise.  No room for anything at the pedestal sink.  The space heater making this coldest uninsulated room in the house one of the warmest and most comfortable.

It could be cute, no?  Let's see what we can do with the rest of the month left to us.

The plan:  add storage - we have some unused CD shelves from Ikea that could work, and a thrift store medicine cabinet.

Add art - this bathroom has had a very glamorous visitor and needs to live up to her reputation. 

Paint or stain the grout lines (for now).  The tiles were just slapped down there by one of the flippers who didn't put any real effort into it - they are ok (for now) but the wide grout lines just make it look icky. We can do better.

Add small shelf/shelves flanking the tiny sink, for things like soap, toothbrushes, etc.

And: paint!  But of course.  Let's see if I can scare you with the color from our last house.

 Adorable toddler notwithstanding, this tiny bathroom had it all.  Storage (behind the curtain under the stairs, and in the medicine cabinet over the toilet) hardwood floors, and a miniscule salvaged wall-mount sink in the alcove to the toddler's left. 
Good times, good times.

Kitchen Color

 The Big Reveal!  Having moved into an antenna-only country area, I miss my cable home decorating shows, yes I do (the upside - all the time I used to spend watching I can now use to actually do home decorating stuff!)

 Above see my new cookbook shelf, the re-purposed kitchen cart/changing table/kitchen cart, and chalkboard from a (free!) thrift store frame and piece of plywood.  I banished the amaryllis to the basement too late last year, so this one is just about to bloom. I love having the extra workspace with that additional counter, and the extra silverware/plasticware accessibility on its shelves.

I can't say enough good things about this paint.  Thank you Soulemama for mentioning it (often) in tales of your farmhouse reno.  It is Yolo Colorhouse  in Clay .02 (avail from Amazon with free shipping for a $35 gallon).  It had no smell at all, not even a paint smell, had the consistency of custard, is practically vegan, and even the label is printed on recycled paper with soy ink.  It covered like a dream - this kitchen took 1/2 a gallon total.

 

 The door to the laundry/mudroom.  A very awkward corner.  Now a very pretty awkward corner!  At a future date we'd like to recess the giant fridge from the middle of the room into that wall (behind it is a closet)  But that is a big project for another month!

 The pantry and chalkboard list of larger projects (not in order of priority, just in order of dreaming them up)

 The new chair covers, newly organized drawers, and soon to be organized lower cupboards.  And my fabulous Christmas present - a radio/cd player/ipod dock that attaches off the shelf!  Hooray.  Now that the color is darker (and more energetic) I think I'd like to invest in an under-the-cupboard light over here.

 The awkward corner where the stairs wind up to the sewing room.  Why yes, that IS my organized tea rack!  The new dustbuster is hiding behind the cupboard there.  See what I mean about the behemoth fridge?  It is only an ordinary sized fridge but when it sticks out in the middle of an ordinary sized room it really turns into a hulking giant irritating thing.  Poor fridge.

The new vinegar and oil rack, and newly cleared windowsill (already filling up with fancy salts and measuring cups.  Well, I had the best of intentions of keeping it cleared)

So there you have it.  Half way through February, January-is-Kitchen-Month comes to a close. 

Happy Valentine's Day!

New Year's Resolutions - January Kitchen

Do you suffer, as I do, from Startitis?  Every room in my house has probably 20 little things that bug me, that wouldn't take too long to fix, but when I have 15 min to an hour "free" time I don't know where to start.  Or there are a dozen projects "in process" that I don't know which one to pick up.

When we moved here we had a 2 year old and a 6 month old, so basically all our stuff got thrown into the rooms marked on the moving boxes, unpacked at about 1AM and thrown on the shelves/in closets, and left for a day when I could hear myself think about what to make work better where.

My New Year's Resolution this year is to pick a room and spend a month working on it.  I may not get it to "finished" but I can at least tackle the problems. And when I get distracted I can answer a simple question: does this project help the room I'm working on this month?  If not, I have to go find a project that does.

And can you believe it - it's working!  I feel so much more organized.  When I look at other projects in other rooms I don't feel so bad, knowing their time will come!  I didn't get everything done in the kitchen that I wanted to, but I made such a dent and I feel so great using all the new systems or putting things away in their new places.  And for the most part, my plan was "cheap or preferably free" and we've done pretty well.

Here was my first project -  a high shelf to get my cookbooks off the counter.  I need to be able to see them to get inspired by them - but they took up so much room!  I built this, spending about $18 in lumber for a 12"x12' board.  The brackets are shaped 2x4s that match brackets on another (old) shelf in the house.  They were all glued and screwed together then the whole thing screwed into studs (once we found them) with 3" wood screws.

I was lucky that we had the other shelf to use as a model, since I really didn't like any of the brackets I found in stores - these look farmhouse practical, pretty and simple.

I moved our old changing table - which was originally an Ikea kitchen cart - back into the kitchen and I LOVE having the extra counter space.  I also moved our silverware from the drawer next to the stove - where someone is always in the way when you want a fork - to a tray on open shelves, next to the kid silverware (plasticware?).  Now the drawer is just for kitchen utensil stuff like can openers, peelers, etc.

Next up, something else simple that I've been meaning to do for 3 years - organize the "junk" drawers.  We have two large drawers along the far counters.  A few $5 organizers from Ikea later and they are SO GREAT.  I can find twist ties and rubber bands!  When I needed cup hooks I knew right where they were.

I have to admit, I do get Martha Stewart envy even though I suspect I would be more organized too if I had assistants to actually organize everything and a boatload of money  - and my own furniture line to put everything in.  So here was my Martha moment on this project.  Although you know her drawer organizers would be like in granite or sustainably harvested mahogany or something fancier than my whole house.

Next up - all those tall bottles that don't fit anywhere - I have them on my windowsill which a friend gently told me will make the olive oil rancid - yuck.  Here is the only spot they will fit and be next to the stove where I use them.

Here is the shelf in progress.  In retrospect I wish I had just oiled the boards instead of staining it walnut - at the time I thought a contrast would be nice.   I still like it, but if I did it again I wouldn't go so dark.

Here is the finished shelf!  Wow, right?!  I could only find one dowel, and I was all gung ho on the project, and I was sitting out in the shed wondering where could I find narrow sticks that I could use when I remembered - our yard is full of sticks!  So that is why I used branches on the upper shelves - so you can still see the labels and find everything.  I think they look rustic - Mr. Sycamore is skeptical.  We'll see.

My remaining projects are to paint the walls Clay .03 from Yolo Colorhouse and make a new rug.  I can't even show the grimy old rug, it is too embarrassing.

A project for next time will be to organize my large cupboard (above) like the pinterest photo (below):

 http://www.familyhandyman.com/DIY-Projects/Home-Organization/Kitchen-Storage/how-to-build-kitchen-sink-storage-trays/Step-By-Step

So I feel like my January was very very productive, and the kitchen looks great.  And almost finished (more photos after painting!)

February:  the bathrooms.

Castle Block Bag

Well, when you get a bunch of castle blocks for Christmas you certainly need a bag to hold them in.  With some stash from Grammy I put this easy applique together - just a drawstring bag.  Would have gone faster with no applique but I couldn't resist.

Coffee Cosy

Quick project to protect your hands from hot coffee cups.  I used a skein of neutral linen and some stash yarn for funky accents, made half a dozen of them for friends and teachers. 

New Year's Quilt

This was a donation to my kids' school, for auction at their fancy New Year's Eve fundraiser.  I really LOVE how it turned out - it was hard to let it go.

Last fall I asked other parents to donate old dress shirts or fabric.  With only a dozen shirts I made this, using two old cotton sheets I already had.  All I bought was the cotton batting (50% off at Joanns).  I had some piecing left over so made a stripey back - I love quilts with the back pieced too.   The pattern is available for free online at Amy Butler's site (with many others - this is called Thea's Puzzle Quilt and is about 2/3 down the page)  Finished size is 64" square, a nice lap quilt or for the foot of the bed.

 

Of course, I forgot to take any photos until I was delivering it, so we had to hold it up quickly in a dark room, hence the shadowy photos.

Christmas Card Hanging Ball Decoration Tutorial

 My mom always made these when we were kids.  She hated to throw out the pretty cards, but there's no real reason to keep them, knowing you'll get a ton more next year.
So: some way to display them.

 I put all the cards we get in an envelope and pack them away with the decorations. The following year, get them out and get cutting.  

Using a jar lid or other round object about 5" across trace circles on the cards.  You will only really see the center of the circle, so if you are tracing around a photo, try to center the faces in the center of the circle.  

Cut them all out - you will need 20 circles for each ball.  

Smaller circles make smaller balls - but the smaller they are, the harder they are for small hands to fold and tape them together.

Fold each circle in from the edge three times to make a central triangle shape.  The corners of the triangle should be at the edge of the circle, and the triangle sides should be even lengths (that's called an equilateral triangle for you math geeks out there)  Here's a photo.  I eyeball the first one, then use that as a template for the rest.  They don't need to be perfect, because the finished shape has some wiggle room (sorry, Martha!)

If your kids haven't already been helping you trace, cut and fold, definitely call them over because this is the fun part.  Start taping the triangles together by the rounded edges.  I use a piece of tape over the rounded part (the outside of the ball) and a second piece taping the backs together on the inside.  Tape five together to form a circular domed piece, then keep going.  Everywhere points meet you need to have five together.  Eventually you'll get to the final two triangles to be stuck together all around to close up the ball. 

It sounds complicated but once you start it is magical how two-dimensional circles naturally want to make this geodesic sphere.

Figure out where you want the top of the ornament to be, then get a helper to hole-punch a hanger.  I hung mine up in the entry - just using tape at the ceiling
(they are paper after all and hardly weigh anything)  

This whole project was great with kids - cutting, folding, taping, and having to be careful of something fragile they were working on (tongues hanging out of mouths - adorable!!!) 

Of course you can make these balls out of anything - old coloring sheets, toddler custom-colored-on card stock, photos.  They don't store well (ask me how I know) but they sure are a great way to reuse last year's cards and bring people to mind as you write their cards this year.

  Happy Holidays!

Yarn Wreath for the Front Door

My super talented sister made this - AND sent it to me in time to put up this year!  See, I could have handled one of those things but not both.  Isn't it so pretty?  Not only did she wrap the wreath herself, she made the red and green flowers - how cool is that.  

As you can see, Virginia is waiting for snow, which makes driving easier but holiday cheer more difficult - unless you have a gorgeous new wreath to look at on your front door, that is.  Thanks, G!

Mitred Crosses Blanket Done

  from this: 

to this.

I love it, and do you know they raised $18,000 for 

Mercy Corps in Japan?  Those crazy Mason Dixon knitty ladies. 

J loves it.  I think it really suits him.  And all from stash or free yarn.  My Ravelry notes here.

yes, it did take a ridiculously long time to actually sew it together - only because I organized it all in a bag then put the bag out of sight and forgot to work on it.  And I'll admit the sewing up seemed daunting.  But I used crochet and once I started it kind of flew by.  Cheered on by the recipient, who wouldn't crochet faster?  Still needs a wash but that can wait. 

Right now there are naps to be had and stories to be read snuggled up in it (it is warm warm warm!) 

Playset Reset

A new Fix-it Friday.

  From this - monkey bars are mom-heart-attack-inducing high, swing and rings not as much fun as climbing into the tower, which is difficult to say the least.

 To this.  Easy access to the tower, whether it be a pirate ship (arrr!) or princess castle.  

Almost instantly J had rigged up a bungy cord milk crate bouncer.  

Great plans are afoot for a snow slide.  All we need is the snow.