Build It Archives - Page 37 of 55

Build Your Own Giant Chalkboard | Pretty Handy Girl

Have you scoured antique stores or Craig’s List looking for a big giant vintage chalkboard? Those vintage school green chalkboards are highly sought after. But, hard to find. I have good news for you! You can build a Giant Chalkboard any size you want! (Although, typically you’ll be restricted to 4′ x 8′ if you want to use a sheet of masonite.) And you can mix your own chalkboard paint in any color.

Take out your notebooks, your pencils, and get ready to take notes.

Materials:

Masonite sheet cut to desired size (mine is 22″ x 48″)
1×4″ pine boards for frame
1 cup flat latex paint in color you desire
2 tbsp. of unsanded grout
Pencil
Stain
White paint
Paint brush
Sanding block
Container to mix paint in
Kreg Jig
Drill
1 1/4 inch pocket screws
Staplegun
1/2″ staples

Instructions:

Pour 2 tbsp. of unsanded grout into your empty container. Add 1 cup of flat latex paint and stir well. (Yes, I used satin and it still worked.)

Paint the masonite with the chalkboard paint. Pull your brush in one direction. Then smooth out the paint by dragging the brush in a perpendicular direction.

Let the paint dry. Lightly sand and add a second coat of chalkboard paint.

Let that coat dry and sand smooth.

Assembling the chalkboard frame: Read more

November 24, 2014/21 Comments/by Brittany Bailey

bookshelves facelift, Build It, de-clutter, DIY, Do It Yourself, framing, hanging shelves, Home Tour, jigsaw, kreg jig, lockers, nailgun, organizational tips, Product Review, Stairway makeover, storage, Tutorial, wood putty

Sports Gear Storage Shelves in a Small Space

My home is protected by ninjas! Well, actually Tae Kwon Do athletes, but they are ninjas in training. So, don’t even think about breaking into our house or they will open up a can of whoop ass on you! 😉

Unfortunately, where my boys are plentiful in kicking and punching skills they lack in the picking up your stuff department. Which means that the bottom of the stairway to our bonus room is usually the dumping ground for their gear bags, clothing and gear.

Sport Gear Storage Shelves in a Small Space | Pretty Handy Girl

I knew I could “up” the amount of storage we had in this small unused space by going vertical. I designed and created Sports Gear Storage Shelves in the small space at the base of our bonus room stairs. Adding mesh siding gives the storage system a locker vibe and allowed for better air flow around stinky sports gear.

Sport Gear Storage Shelves in a Small Space | Pretty Handy Girl

Want to know how to build your own Sport Gear Storage Shelves? Hang out for a while and I’ll walk you through the step-by-step tutorial.

Materials:

6 – 1 x 3 x 8′ poplar boards
1 – 4′ x 4′ x 3/4″ finish grade plywood
2 1/2″ wood screws
1 1/2″ cabinet screws
1 1/4″ pocket hole screws
Wood shims
Wire mesh
Stain (or paint)
Wood glue
Finish nails
Wood putty
Putty knife
Kreg Jig
Hand saw or coping saw
Power sander and sandpaper
Nailgun
1 1/4″ finish nails
Tape measure
Level
Pencil
Painter’s Tape
GRR-RIPPER 3D Pushblocks

Cut List:

5 – 15″ x 24″ plywood (shelves)*
5 – 1 x 3 x 15″ (shelf cleats)
5 – 1 x 3 x 23″ (shelf cleats)
2 – 1 x 3 x 88″ (sides of support frame)
2 – 1 x 3 x 4.5″ (top & bottom of support frame)
1 – 5.5″ x 84″ piece of wire mesh
Rip edge banding 1/4″ thickness from one 1 x 3″ board

* You should be able to get a sixth shelf cut from your plywood if you wish to use it for a base.

Instructions:

Before beginning to build, sketch out your design with painter’s tape. Take note of the height of any baskets or gear bags you will store on the shelves. This should give you the ability to visualize the storage shelves and make any alterations to your design before you build. Once you are happy with the layout, write down your shelf heights.

Sport Gear Storage Shelves in a Small Space | Pretty Handy Girl

You may wish to clad the walls in wood planks like I did before you build the shelving. If you decide to add the planks, here’s the tutorial for planking your walls.

Measure and mark the heights of your shelves.

Using a level, draw a pencil line where the shelves will rest.

Secure the 1×3″ cleats below the pencil line using 2 1/2″ wood screws into studs.

Sport Gear Storage Shelves in a Small Space | Pretty Handy Girl

Continue securing shelf cleats to the wall with screws into available studs.

Sport Gear Storage Shelves in a Small Space | Pretty Handy Girl

Paint or stain the cleats to match the wall color.

Sport Gear Storage Shelves in a Small Space | Pretty Handy Girl

Building Curved Shelves with Edge Banding: Read more

November 10, 2014/9 Comments/by Brittany Bailey

31 Days of Handy Home Fixes, Build It, drill, Home & Auto Maintenance

Day 19 – Drill Holes to a Certain Depth

Occasionally you need to drill a hole to a specific depth. Or you want to drill a hole into but not through your wood. This simple trick helps you do just that!

Day 19 – Drill Holes to a Certain Depth

When I was drilling the top of the new closet doors, I marked the depth of the door pin onto the drill bit with painter’s tape.

As I was drilling, I know to stop when the tape reaches the wood.

Similarly, when creating these fun art utensil holders for my mom, I put a piece of painter’s tape to mark how deep to drill without going through the other side.

You can also use the tape trick to create countersink holes. Drill with the smaller bit first, then center the larger bit and drill just deep enough to bury the screw head.

I hope you are enjoying these quick little tips and tricks. I’m on the homestretch and still have some great tips to share! Stay tuned.

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October 19, 2014/4 Comments/by Brittany Bailey

Build It, Contributor, Decorating, DIY, Home Decor, shutters, window dressing

DIY Interior Cedar Shutters

Hello Pretty Handy friends, Jaime from That’s My Letter here today to share how to build functional interior cedar shutters using inexpensive AND readily available hardware.

I have been itching to build some cedar shutters for our living room for quite some time now. I had two requirements: 1) they had to be completely functional to block out the hot summer sun (which also makes them great for privacy) and 2) use no fancy hardware. I didn’t want to special order any shutter hardware and I like to build using readily available supplies.

You can find the cedar planks and hardware at your local home improvement store. Ready to learn how to build the shutters and install these beauties?

You can see just how much light the shutters will block out once closed. I plan to keep the shutters open except during the extremely hot summer days.

Interior cedar shutters make a great alternative window treatment if you’re not into fabric panels. They truly are a statement piece (and hopefully distract from the fact that my windows don’t match!). I also built the sliding door console last Spring, a link to all the details on that piece is in this post.

Materials:

cedar boards (1×6 and 1×4)
saw
nail gun
1 1/4″ finish nails
1×2 pine board
2″ wood screws
drill & bits
pencil
measuring tape
wood putty
sandpaper
paint
hinges (pictured below) & screws

Hardware: (for one pair of shutters)

2 – 2 1/2″ hinge (spray painted oil rubbed bronze) & 12 screws
2 – 4″ decorative tee hinge & 12 screws

Instructions:

MEASURE YOUR INTERIOR WINDOW SPACE. MEASURE IT AGAIN. MEASURE IT AGAIN. The top of the window may vary from the bottom. Read more

September 17, 2014/12 Comments/by Jaime Costiglio

accessories, Aged, bookshelves facelift, Build It, dark wood, decor, Decorating, distressing, DIY, Do It Yourself, Home Decor, lockers, organizational tips, painting, Recycling Box, stain, storage, Tutorial

How to Build Custom Rustic Wooden Box Crates

Making custom rustic wooden box crates is super easy. You can build your crates to fit in a book case or use them as drawers in a cabinet. When I was giving my IKEA cabinet a makeover, I chose to remove a door and build custom box drawers instead.

Here’s the super easy tutorial so you can build your own:

Materials:
(some links are affiliate links)

4 pieces of 1/2″ Plywood for sides
1 piece of 1/4″ Plywood for base
Wood glue
1-1/4″ Finish Nails
Minwax Walnut Stain Cloth
Paint
Scraps of wood for details
8″ strap gate hinge
Wood Screws
Pencil
Sharpie Permanent Marker

Tools:

Instructions:

Begin by cutting the 1/2″ plywood into four pieces the size you want for your crate sides.

Test fit the sides together. Add a line of glue to the ends of the plywood. Read more

September 8, 2014/9 Comments/by Brittany Bailey