by Amy | Mar 14, 2013 | Blog, The Art of Projects, the house
Did you like critical thinking problems as a kid? I did. I loved them…like isn’t even a good word for how I felt about creative, critical thinking. I still love them. Maybe that’s why I like home improvement so much.
When all is said and done, home improvement is just one big critical thinking problem. Whether the improvement you are looking at is major {a complete over-haul} or minor {improving the look of that blank wall with a little gallery}, it’s all about problems and solutions.
As with any CT puzzle, the first step is identifying the problem. I’ve identified many a problem in this house {the stairs, the floors, the built ins}. A problem I saw very early on was in the bathroom. But, in the big puzzle it really wasn’t that important. I tackled the first floor, first…since that’s what is most visible. Now I’m getting into the other parts of the house.
So here is the problem. There is a gaping shelf/cabinet thing in the wall. Perfect for storing towels. But my towel collection isn’t really worthy of being showed off {neither are my folding skills.} The solution? Well…it has to do with these painted fence posts. For now, I’ll keep you guessing. I’ll tell you this, though: I’m excited about this one. I’m looking forward to a morning when towels and medicine cabinet junk isn’t the first thing {beside Panda Cat, of course} to greet me in the a.m.
On a side note, please let me tell you how crazy I looked buying only six fence posts, in PraCan, in 20 degree temps, with more than a foot of snow on the ground. The kid processing my order gave me a look…but he didn’t ask. So I didn’t tell. My weird hardware store purchases are my business. {And yours too. There are no secrets between us. Especially when it comes to my awkwardness.}
by Amy | Mar 2, 2013 | Blog, Crafts, The Art of Adventure, The Art of Projects
I don’t Instagram. Really, I don’t even understand what that means. I thought it was just fancy filters you could add to your phone photos. Now it’s all…”Follow me on Instagram.” “Oh, Amy, you’d love it.”
Guys…I don’t need any more social media in my life right now. Pinterest was a pretty big step. Maybe someday I’ll get on board. It must be pretty awesome because loads of my awesome friends do it. For now, I’ll sit this one out.
However, when I’m out and about I do tend to snap photos on my phone. When I see something that strikes my fancy I take a photo. Especially if it’s something that I think is “over-priced” and I could “…easily whip that up at home,” or “find something like it at an estate sale.” So I looked back through my phone. I really do need to do some deleting. And I put together this little collage of things that have been inspiring me lately.
Enjoy.
#1. We were in South Dakota last weekend. While visiting we went to what I consider the cutest winery ever. Total transparency…I haven’t been to very many wineries. But I really do love Prairie Berry. And their free wine tasting doesn’t hurt. Anyway I was this precious wine caddy. We could make that, don’t you think?
#2. When I was in Dallas for the Strip Church conference I took my lunch break at the Galleria Mall. In the middle of the food court two kids had used their mom’s coats {and their coats} to build an elaborate fort. NBD. Except that is pretty, stinking awesome. What’s even better was how the parents just continued to chat like nothing weird was going on.
#3. In Shreveport, Rhino Coffee uses table paper to write their ever changing menu. I don’t know where, and I don’t know why…but I need this in my house. A very welcome alternative to chalkboards.
#4. At a grocery store in Dover, DE there was an aisle completely dedicated to colored sprinkles. WHAT?!!
#5. Again, at Rhino, the bathroom had this nifty TP holder made out of plumbing. Sturdy, practical, I could totally do that.
#6. My friends’ boxer, Clara Belle incognito. Who’s that cowboy in the living room?
#7. I love this line of quirky-folksy tea cups from Anthropologie. Too bad I can’t afford them. I’m banking these cute patterns for my next paint-your-own-pottery night at Margie’s in Minot.
by Amy | Feb 26, 2013 | Blog, The Art of Fitness
Do you know what winter hands are? I thought I did. Then I moved to Practically Canada.
The chapped hands of my past pale in comparison to what is going on with my knuckles right now. And it’s not just the knuckles. My whole hand is rough like someone ran sand paper over alligator skin. I’m telling you, I’ve never experienced hands like this before. The cold weather makes them bad. Cold season hand washing makes it worse.
If you looked only at my hands and guessed my age, you’d probably put me in the ball park of 75 years old. So gross.
So I reached out to locals. How the heck to they deal with this every winter? Newsflash…winter still has several months left up here. My hands will be bloody, chapped stumps by then if I don’t take action now.
I got a few pieces of advice. Lotion followed by socks over the hands before bed. Mary Kay hand scrub. Body butter. But the most unique tip is the one I’ve found to work the best. Are you ready to heal your nasty, winter hands? Go to your kitchen and get out your Crisco.
Wait, what? Crisco?!
Yes, you heard right. The very sweet, very northern yoga instructor at my gym clued me in on this little home-miracle. Just open up your tub of solid shortening and smear it on your hands. Then cover your hands with a pair of soft socks or gloves. Wear them to bed, or for 30 minutes at a time. You’ll seriously be amazed. It’s time to defeat our winter hands once and for all.
Amy
by Amy | Feb 20, 2013 | Blog, Crafts, The Art of Projects
Pretty right?
This may be one of my favorite wreaths ever. I’m kind of a wreath junkie…so that’s kind of a big deal. It’s pink and romantic {a little late for V-Day} and just so gosh-darn pretty. I needed something to replace that awesome Pottery Barn knock off snowflake wreath from Christmas time. It’s really time I begin looking forward to a day with no snow and blooming flowers. This is a perfect fix.
I’ll tell you this: It was easy, but it wasn’t fast. Commit a few hours or a few nights of TV watching/multi-tasking and you too can be the proud owner of a wreath just like this. All for the low, low material cost of $9. Here’s what you’ll need: (more…)
by Amy | Jan 21, 2013 | Blog, Crafts, The Art of Projects
Hi there. So…as promised, today I’m going to show you how I whipped up these pillows. Now, you are not even going to believe how long these took. Ready? 9 minutes 35 seconds. Did I just blow your mind. Okay, total transparency…they took that long to make each…and it didn’t include the time it took to cut out felt hearts and glue those on. That was another 10 or so.
For this project you’ll need 1 yard of fabric {that’ll make 2 square pillows}, felt, and hot glue.
This is a long post…so if you are following along, go on and click through now. (more…)
by Amy | Jan 18, 2013 | Blog, Crafts, The Art of Projects
A week ago I pinned this lovely idea to a board titled “Pretties Please.” Every day since then I’ve gotten notifications that it had been pinned and repinned and pinned some more. The image links to a good page of 5 sweet ideas for upcycling old dressers. And that got me thinking…what else could we do with those drawers. So, without further ado, I give you 7 Upgrades for Old Drawers. {#1 is the planter above.}
Our second idea comes from Kamm’s Korner. Click the image and you’ll be whisked away to her blog for the complete DIY tutoril. Don’t you just love the look of the window boxes? You could always remove the hardware for a less obvious drawer look.
Olive and Love took some cast off drawers and transformed them into pretty, easily accessible under the bed storage.
Nice Girl Notes used drawers to make a perfectly portable dollhouse.
A Time for Everything made this jewelry organizer from an old wooden tray. But what’s stopping us from using an old drawer?
Entry ways can always use more storage. Why not get some of those shoes off the floor and up onto the wall? This project comes compliments of The Douangphila Blog.
Last but not least…Now that you’ve used up all the drawers what ever will you do with the dresser? Cameras and Chaos used this draweless dresser for storing her fabrics. I think it’d be lovely in a guest room or bathroom for storing towels and linens.
And where should you go to get these magic dressers? I dunno…thrift shops are always brimming with ugly dressers and nightstands. Check craigslist.org in the free section. Sometimes people are trashing the craziest things. {Like a dresser with no drawers…}
Happy upgrading!
Amy
by Amy | Jan 17, 2013 | Blog, The Art of Projects, the house
Here it is! It hardly looks like the same room. I know, amazing…right? I’ll just let the photos speak for themselves tonight.
Here’s a tiny peek at the process. Luckily we ran into some friends at the hardware store who offered the services of their brad gun, air compressor and miter saw.
We covered the linoleum with red rosin paper so that if there was asbestos on the backing it wouldn’t get kicked up in the air when we nailed into it. Then it was a matter of interlocking the planks and nailing each one in place. Oh, and lots and lots of cuts to make everything fit just right.
The whole project took 9 days to complete. From the day that I tore out the carpet until the last tool was put away. Read yesterday’s post about dealing with project aftermath for more on how to cope with the mess. Actually laying the flooring took two full days of work.
We went with bamboo for a few reasons. First of all, we really liked the look of it. I loved the color and texture. Second, bamboo is not a scarce commodity…it grows fast and is durable and hard. And third…because it grows so quickly it makes it an affordable choice too.
So, what do you think? Panda likes it. After all, we did find her wandering in the bamboo behind our house in Louisiana. I like it too. I really couldn’t be more please. So we will mark this one complete. Ahhh…it feels good to finish a project.
Amy
by Amy | Jan 16, 2013 | Blog, The Art of Projects, the house
So often we can be fooled by DIY project photos. And I’m guilty of misleading you too.
We see the hideous “before.” The beautiful “after.” Photos of the steps that fall in between. But you know what you don’t see very often? The project aftermath.
The aftermath is all the things that are amiss you your home and life after a project is complete. As you well remember, just over a week ago I impulsively ripped out our nasty, smelly brown carpet. Eight days later we had a new floor and were able to call this project complete.
Seven days after I ripped up that carpet we had a new floor. Project done? Not hardly. Once you brush the saw dust off your hands, look proudly on your accomplishment, then promptly turn around to view the aftermath. Let’s see…there are tools strewn about. A Shop-Vac taking up half the dining room, the furniture is stacked Egyptian-tomb-style in the front room, empty boxes block the kitchen sink and cupboards, a basement full of saw dust and flooring scraps. And let’s not forget the non-project things that get neglected when doing some DIY…laundry, fast food containers {who has time to cook?}, the litter box…
Here are my ways of coping with the aftermath.
- 1. Don’t freak out. Yes, the house will be a mess. Don’t even try to stay on top of things while you are knee deep in project. Just let it happen.
- Schedule in an extra day at the beginning of your project. Do laundry, make a big meal that makes good left overs, take out the trash, clean the litter box…do all those little things ahead of time. Make your unaffected rooms clean.
- Schedule an extra day at the end of the project. When you put in that last nail, revel in your accomplishment. Go out for ice cream. Use the following day to put tools away, vacuum, do more laundry, etc.
- Save the prettiest part for last. I use my favorite part of the project as a reward for getting the aftermath cleared. Rearrange my furniture in the living room until this afternoon…when everything had been put away and all the boxes were taken to the recycling center. I wanted the room to look finished, but knew that I had to do the lame stuff first.
- Make piles. Don’t wear yourself out by making a million trips to the garage or basement. Instead, sort things out…then use plastic bins, bags or laundry hampers to haul big loads at once.
The moral of the story is that home improvement is more than just a before and after shot. {But seriously, who doesn’t love a good B&A?} I’ll show you the pretty before and after tomorrow. But for now, to be fair and totally transparent, I needed you to see the aftermath. Because I know we are all anxious…I’ll give you a preview.
That’s all you get. Now, don’t get your panties in a twist. The big reveal is happening tomorrow evening. So be sure to check back! And like the Facebook page, while you’re at it!
Amy
