Have you seen my command center in the kitchen? It’s a beauty to look at, don’t you think? Especially that gorgeous wood desk top.
Well, I have a secret! It’s actually an old kitchen table top that was given to me for FREE! Yup, zero dollars, no moolah, nothing! And this is what the table top looks like:
I actually flipped it upside down to refinish it. But, I’m jumping ahead of myself. Here are the details: Read more
A few years ago, while driving back to work from my lunch break, I spied a very cool but sad looking vintage step stool sitting at the end of someone’s driveway next to their trash. I passed by, but it didn’t take me long to circle around the block and come back to pick up the stool. Unfortunately the step stool stayed untouched for at least 4 years. This time it wasn’t in my garage, I left the sad step stool in the back room of my office. Good thing I’m the only one who goes back there! I finally decided it was time to show this little vintage step stool some love. Check out this step stool makeover.
The structure of the step stool was in fairly good condition, but COVERED in rust. In some areas thicker than others. I thought about using the old school method and hand sanding the stool like Jeff talked about a few weeks ago (Painting Metal Patio Chairs ) but decided if I tried this avenue I would be sanding for a few months. I also considered using a sand blaster to remove the rust. And while it is a fast effective method, it is not practical for everyone. After much thought I finally decided on a 3M sanding disk that attaches to any drill. Let’s get to it shall we? Read more
Have you ever been bored with the way a room looks? For me, it was my living room. It houses the same sofa… The same lamps… The same golden frames surrounding the same prints we loved so much 13 years ago! I have a quick tutorial for giving your room a mini-makeover for not a lot of cash. This Easy Sofa Makeover will help you out.
Remember last month when I showed you how to build a window seat in a bay window? I had promised to share with you how to move the floor register. I’m true to my word and am back with the tutorial today.
When I built our kitchen window seat, I had two obstacles in my path. The first was moving the wiring for the outlet, the electrician and I simply pulled the wiring down from the outlet on the wall and re-routed it into the new outlet box in the front of the window seat. A relatively easy task. Moving the HVAC vent wasn’t very difficult, it just involved a little more cutting and measuring. But, this is a task you can handle!
I have seen some other methods for re-routing the floor vent. One such method involved building a wooden box to channel the air out the front. I caution you from doing this if you live in a humid climate. Mold can grow inside the wooden box. You could build a channel with HVAC rigid ductwork, but you’d be adding an extra turn which can cut down on the airflow. Another alternative would be to move the register to another location in the floor. I chose to move it to the front of the window seat.
How to Move a Floor Register Materials:
Instructions: Read more
Learn how to make this White-Washed Patriotic Flag Sign and hang it with pride in your home.
The other day I was at the fabric store but after not finding that perfect fabric for one of my projects, I went to the other section of the store to take a break from it all. While there I saw a little sign that read:
This Is A Place We Gladly Call Home…
and for that we are truly thankful
Those words totally spoke to me! I didn’t buy the little sign but I came home thinking about how to create my own version. The sign was more expensive than the materials to make my own sign ten times bigger!
My sign came out beautiful, especially with the large American flag on the background. I’m happy to show you how to create your own White-Washed Patriotic Flag Sign! Let’s make this sign.
(I’ve included affiliate links for your convenience. I earn a small percentage from a purchase using these links. There is no additional cost to you. You can read more about affiliate links here.)
Optional: Gold Sharpie marker
Cut off the tops to get rid of the “dog ears.” Mark the area for the blue square on the flag.
Add star stickers inside the square. Paint over the star stickers with blue paint.
Paint the red stripes next. After the paint dries, remove the star stickers. Give your boards a light sanding.
You can leave your patriotic sign like this or if you want to give it the white-washed look, continue.
White acrylic paint and water is mixed at a 50-50 ratio to create a white-wash. Apply three coats of the white-wash. Wait for the paint to dry between coats.
Print out your quote on the computer:
This Is A Place We Gladly Call Home…
and for that we are truly thankful
Transfer the lettering onto the boards using graphite paper.
Using a brown Sharpie, trace the letters and fill them in.
Do you want them a bit fancier? Use a gold Sharpie to create shadows.
After the letters are filled in, it will look like this:
Give the letters an extra two coats of the white-wash to make them blend better.
Lightly rub stain on the entire sign.
We’re finished making the White-Washed Patriotic Flag Sign. Now it’s time to assemble and hang the sign.
To hold the boards together, attach cup hooks and screw eyes between the boards. (I chose to paint mine silver since I only had gold.)
No need to pre-drill, the boards are fairly soft so the hooks and screw eyes will go in easily.
Attach two extra screw eyes to the top to hang it onto the wall.
This was a very easy way to put the sign together, hang it, and… it doesn’t take much space when it is time to store it away!
I hung some more patriotic decorations and our dining room is ready for a celebration!
What do you think of this White-Washed Patriotic Flag Sign Tutorial?
Thanks so much for stopping by!
