DIY
Restored Arched Mirror
Months and months ago I found an arched mirror at the thrift store for five dollars. It was a 3-foot tall wood mirror with a gorgeous shape, so even if the mirror itself was a little wobbly in the frame, five bucks was a steal! The mirror had been painted an off-white color and painted well, I might add. I find it ironic that the ugliest paint jobs are always the hardest to remove. Why is that? Due to the intricate detail on the frame of this arched mirror, my only choice was to either paint over the bad paint job or strip the paint. I chose to strip the…
All About Rim Locks (Vintage Door Hardware)
It’s no secret the best part of our Colonial Farmhouse is the original wood flooring, but the second best thing is that many of our doors have vintage rim locks. What are rim locks? I’m so glad you asked. A rim lock can also be called a box lock. It is a square-shaped locking mechanism that is installed on the surface of one side of a door. How do rim locks work? Excellent question. You’re really getting into this, I can tell. The rim lock has two locking features. First, it can be unlocked from either side of the door using a key. The keys usually look like what we…
Back Porch Shelves for Drink Storage
Some folks build shelves for important things like books. We build shelves for equally important things like drink storage. Reading is important, but have you ever been dehydrated? I rest my case. After living in our home for a year we had a pretty good idea of its problem areas. No, I’m not talking about the leaky roof, the rotting deck, or the oven that randomly switches the temperature display from Fahrenheit to Celsius. Do NOT get me sidetracked on the oven that is messing with me. We’ll be here all day. Today’s problem area was the back porch where we stored all of our canned and bottled drinks. Wait.…
Vintage Milk Can Side Table
There is nothing I won’t rescue and repurpose for our home. Well, maybe I should throw a caveat in front of that declarative statement. There is almost nothing I won’t rescue and repurpose for our home. Take this rusted out milk can, which I ultimately turned into a vintage milk can side table. It was sitting in our yard when we bought the Colonial Farmhouse. If the big hole near its base is any indication, I think it is safe to say the milk can had been sitting there for awhile. A good long while. It was just waiting to be noticed while it weathered the elements. “Hey, guys! Guys?…
Built In Hallway Shelves
Let’s talk hallway shelves today because they can be a game changer! We have a weird space between our kitchen and main bathroom that is bigger than a hallway, but not quite a room. For the purpose of this post I’m going to call it a hallway because calling it “that weird space” just seems, well, weird. And, honestly, it doesn’t really narrow it down because there are plenty of weird spaces in our home. Here’s how that hallway looked on the day we took possession of the Colonial Farmhouse in June 2019. In case you are wondering, that is not our stuff in the bathroom. The seller left it…
Over-the-Door Basketball Hoop with Wood Backboard
I love my kids. I don’t love all the kid stuff. It is rarely aesthetically pleasing, but I can fix that – this one time. My son has an over-the-door basketball hoop that is fun to use, but not super easy on the eyes. For the record, I have no one but myself to blame for this eyesore. I’m the one who purchased the over-the-door basketball hoop for him. The things we do for our kids. Here’s how we took an over-the-door basketball hoop and gave it the full court press a makeover with a wood backboard. It’s a total SLAM DUNK! Here is the step-by-step tutorial. Wood Backboard Step 1:…
Black Stained Vintage Stool Makeover
Today, for your viewing enjoyment, I’m sharing a black stained vintage stool makeover. I’m definitely throwing around the word vintage pretty loosely. I’ve read that anything older than 20 years can be considered vintage. Anything at least 50 years old is true vintage. An item has to be 100 years old to be an antique. All this tells me is 50 is the new 20. Who makes up these rules? Not this vintage person. We had a sturdy stool with a great profile sitting in our garage. It was left here by the seller. If I had a nickel for every time I said an item I’d made over in…
All About Our 240-Year-Old Pumpkin Pine Wood Floors
I have been unabashed in my utter love for and devotion to the original pumpkin pine wood floors in our Colonial Farmhouse. It was love at first sight. In fact, I might have discounted the problems our Colonial Farmhouse had because those floors were the rose-tinted glasses through which I viewed this money pit. Can you blame me? Look at these floors! Hubba hubba. The oldest part of our Colonial Farmhouse dates back to the 1780s. Additional rooms were added on in the early to mid 1800s. I’ve been so used to living with modern (1930s and after) hardwood floors that I didn’t realize how much I had to learn about…
Modern Live Edge Side Table – Target Hack
This story of how I created a modern live edge side table has the perfect old meets new plot line. Get ready to feel a flutter deep down in your sentimental soul. This story starts a long time ago in a land not so far away. A huge tree used to stand tall and proud about ten steps away from the front of our house. The diameter at the base of this tree was over 6-feet wide. Had this tree stood sentry over our house for one hundred years? Maybe more? Was it here before cars were mainstream and the county road was paved? I don’t know. I was told…
Painting Ceilings is Super Fun
Painting ceilings is super fun. Said no one ever. Here are some things to keep in mind when painting a ceiling. Who knows when this advice might come in handy? Truth #1: Painting a ceiling is great “me” time. Need some alone time? We all do from time to time. If you need some alone time just ask anyone if they want to help you paint a ceiling. Poof! Just like magic, everyone will disappear. Truth #2: Remember, painting ceilings is super fun. Just keep repeating this mantra over and over. If you say it enough times, you might even start to believe it. If you don’t say it enough,…
