Pages :REMODEL AND LANDSCAPE IDEAS

Friday, August 31, 2012

My Buying Trip to Local Thrift Stores



My Buying Trip to Local Thrift Stores
Shop the items that are half price
that day. Go to as many in one
day as possible.








Have a plan! Keep in mind what
your clients will like and can afford.
Also items that look so new
you can give them as gifts as well. That way your not stuck with items.
I believe in finding the best items for the best prices and returning the favor
to your clients and friends and family and still make a profit.
I have also started refurbishing old used furniture,painting them ,distressing  and giving them a new life. I recently bought a hutch for $50.00 and redid the piece in chalk paint
that I made my self {learned on Pinterest} then distressed it then waxed it. Now
people want to buy it for $350.00….Well maybe the next piece…I have to keep this one.
It’s my first piece and I love it. It’s really made me eager to start this new venture!

CRAFT TABLE CLOSES INTO A PICTURE FRAME



    A MUST FOR 
    A CRAFTER!









    I SO WANT THIS TABLE …
    I FIRST SAW THIS
     TABLE ON PINTEREST 
    WHEN YOU SEE THIS YOU WILL WANT 
    ONE TOO
    The Tutorial. AKA The Longest Post Ever.


(Edited to add: Visit this post to get more information on purchasing a table if that's more your thing! :) )


First, I just wanted to say thank you guys for all the love, sweet comments and emails about the original table. I loved being able to pass all that on the Hub's. 

My Hub's wanted to rebuild the table from scratch so that he could show you step by step how to build one for you. Originally, we intended on doing a complete video tutorial. 

That would have been awesome. 

But about 30 seconds into videoing it, the boys started screaming, and interrupting the Hub's, and asking us for a million things, and we realized that there was no way in hell we would be able to video it with the boys home.

So, we did the next best thing. We took a million pictures, and we kept pages of notes.

------

So, the thing about this type of table is it's a very versatile thing. You can customize these plans to fit whatever your exact needs/wants are. 

Since I already have my work table in my office, and we don't have a need for another one, the Hub's decided to re-build the fold out table as a fold out Lego table for the boys so we could get rid of their train table that takes up a ton of space, and is used purely for Legos at this point.


 


The exact specs of this particular tutorial are different from the original table, but the steps are essentially the same. Also, at the end of the tutorial, I do include the specs for the original table, as well as a couple instructions for the parts that differ from this second table.

We hope that the tutorial is easy to understand, and that you guys can make your own fold out tables for whatever your needs.

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Supply List

1. (1) 2' x 6' Ponderosa panel (solid pine edge-glued panel)
2. (5) 6' long 1 x 8
3. (9) 6' long 1 x 4's
4. (2) 10' Plastic gutter (We got ours at Lowes)
5. Kreg Jig
6. Kreg self-tapping pocket-hole screws (sizes used were 2 1/2" for mounting to the wall. For everything else 1 1/4")
7. 6 x 1/2" Metal screws
8. (2) Exterior hinges
9. (2) Interior hinges
10. Latch
11. Wood glue
12. Brads 1" or 1 1/4" 


Part 1
Wall Box


1. Using (2) 6 ft. 1 x 8, cut the top and bottom pieces for the box to 51 1/2". 
2. Using (1) 6 ft. 1 x 8, cut the two side pieces for the box to 30". 




3. Measure for the screw placement on the top and bottom pieces to attach to the side pieces. 
     * Measure 3/8" in from the edge. Space the screws evenly. 
     *Because of the width of this particular box, my Hub's went with 3 screws (don't forget to space 
     evenly). 




4. Apply wood glue to the end of one of the 30" side pieces. 
5. Line it up with the top piece and screw the side piece and top piece together. 
6. Repeat for the other side piece. 
5. Turn those 3 pieces (that are now screwed together) upside down. 
6. Apply glue to the side piece ends, then line up the bottom piece, and screw together. 






Part 2
Table Top

1. Using a circular saw, cut the panel piece to 49 7/8" (1/8" shorter than the opening, this is so the table top won't rub when it folds up). 

---

The table top panel only comes in 24" at our local Lowes, so my Hub's had to cut a 1 x 8 to 5 7/8"W x 49 7/8' L, and then scab that piece together with the panel to make the table top 29 7/8"(for the same reason as the cutting the width of the table to 49 7/8")




If you need to scab your wood together also: 

1. Measure 2" and 16" in from each end of the 5 7/8" piece, and mark those measurements. 

2. Measure 9" from either side, and 25" to the center of the panel so that the screws are offset and coming from both sides of the panel and the 5 7/8" scab piece

3. Use your jig to drill holes at each mark 





4. Apply wood glue to the edge of the 5 7/8" scab piece, and then screw the panel piece, and the 5 7/8" pieces together. 




**They do make Kreg jig plugs for filling in those jig holes if you want them filled in.


Part 3
Interior Hinges


1. Measure 3/4" in from the edge, and then 10" in from each side on the inside of the bottom piece of the wall box. That mark will be where the center of your hinge will go. 

2. Screw your hinges on.


3. Attach tabletop to the hinges per directions provided with hinges.




Part 4 
Frame


1. Rip (3) 6 ft. 1 x 4's down to 2" wide. 
2. Then cut two of those to 51 1/2" (long point to long point of a 45 degree angle).
3. Using the third piece, cut two pieces to 31 1/2" (long point to long point of a 45 degree angle).

**The Hub's stacked the pieces, and cut them at the same time to make sure that they're cut exactly the same. 

To position the table so that the frame could be attached (and to keep the table top from going through the box), clamp some spare wood to the inside of the box, and then lean the table back. (see picture above)

4. Apply wood glue to the frame pieces, and then nail into place with brad nailer (1"-1 1/4" brads).
*Make sure that frame pieces are held flush with the outside edge of the box when nailing.*




Part 5
Legs And Center Frame

1. Rip 1 x 4 to 2" 
(The leg/frame will be 15" wide over all)
2. Then cut 26 5/8" x 2" (cut 6 of these two of which will be used for the center frame sides  ) ("A") side pieces.
 3. Cut 11" x 2" (cut 4 of these) ("B") top and bottom pieces.
4. Using the kreg jig drill 1 hole in the center of each 11" piece. 
5. Attach "A" to "B" using wood glue and screws, clamp together to help hold them, and keep them flush.

**Repeat for the second leg!




6. Attach hinges 4" to hinge from the inside of the frame
 7. Attach legs to the hinges leaving a 3/8" gap all the way around



8. Cut side leg trim pieces 26 5/8" (long point to long point of a 45 degree angle(x6 of them two of these will be for the center frame)
9. Put trim piece on edge on the hinges hinge and mark to notch for hinges. (pictured below)
 10. Place trim piece flat next to hinge to scribe exact depth to notch for hinge.(pictured below)




11.Square lines across for notch and cut with circular saw (reference picture for notching procedures).




 12. Cut top and bottom pieces 15" (long point to long point) of a 45 degree angle (x4)
13. Glue and nail trim pieces to legs.


Center Frame

1. Cut side pieces 26 5/8" (x2) (should already have these from previous "leg" steps)
2. Top and Bottom 11 3/4" ---Overall width 15 3/4".
 3. Cut the top and bottom trim pieces 15 3/4" (long point to long point 45 degrees).
4. Glue and brad nail frame to center and trim to center leaving a 3/8" gap all the way around.




Top Latch

 Find center and attach. 




Part 5
Inside "Stuff"

Trays:

 1. Cut gutter to 16" (x10). Drill holes for screws to attach sides (See pictures below!).
2. For inside tray rails (aka vertical side pieces) cut 1x4x30" (x 4).

Spacing for the trays: From top of the side measure, 3" to the top of the first tray then 5 1/2" to the top of every other

3. Mark center of rails (1 3/4") and center of tray (1 3/16") down from each of the marks made for the tops of the trays (i.e. from the 3" mark measure down 1 3/16" then from each mark after that do the same) these will be the center marks for the 3/8" dowel holes. (*see picture below*)
4. On one rail of each set of rails measure in from one side 1 1/4" and up from the center of each of the 3/8" dowel holes 2 1/2" and this will be the center of the holes for the stoppers to keep the trays from completely flipping over. (*see picture below*)
5.Drill these "stopper" holes with a 5/16" drill bit only half way through. 
6. Cut dowels 3/4" long and glue in place. (*see picture below)

Tray sides

Scribe with inside of the gutter. Cut one and use as a template for the rest (in this case, 20 total)



Attach the sides to the gutters with 1/2" metal screws, 3 per side (one on each side and one on the bottom as pictured below)

Mark the center of the tray sides and drill sides wit 5/16" drill bit
(Tip: Use a piece of tape on your drill bit for a depth indication. Only drill half way into the sides of trays. You may also be able to find a gauge that attaches to your drill bit at a hardware store. My hub's came in a doweling kit.)

Drill tray rails with a 3/8" drill bit. the bigger hole allows the trays to pivot (Tip: You can drill two at a time. Clamp them together, but make sure to drill straight through to the lines line up after being separated. Also, it is good to use a scrap piece of wood as backing to prevent the wood from splintering. )




Cut (20) 5/16" dowels to 1" in length for use in tray sides. Put glue into the holes then lightly tap dowels into them




Shelves

1. Rip a 1x8x6 to 6 5/8" wide.
2. Cut (2) side pieces to 30".
3. Cut 2 shelf pieces to 13"
4. Measure from the top of the shelf sides down 10" and 20" and these will be the centers of the shelves.
5.At the tops and bottoms of each of the sides drill evenly spaced holes with your jig to make it easier to attach.




Part 6
Mounting The Box To The Wall


First find the center of the wall you will be mounting the table to.

Find the studs in this area that the table will be in on the wall then figure for the size of the box (i.e. mark the sides of the table out on the wall so you know how many studs the box will mount to).

From one of the marks on the wall that represent the sides of the box measure to each stud line then mark those measurements out on the inside top and bottom pieces of the box. This is where you will drill holes with your jig to screw the box to the studs you have marked out on the wall (*pictured below*) (metal "L" brackets can also be purchased at most hardware stores to mount to the wall if you want another way to attach it to the wall).

Measure 16" up from the floor and make a mark (this will be to the bottom of the box) from that mark level across and make a line.

Cut two boards 16" to set the box on to help hold it while screwing it to the wall (it is good to have someone assisting to help hold the box so it does not fall on you.....Safety First!).





Remove the table top from the box leaving the hinges attached to the box.

Set the box on the 16" boards and screw to the studs. My Hub's used 2 1/2" pocket hole screws three top and three bottom but it never hurts to use a longer screw.

Once the box is mounted to the wall reattach the table top to the hinges.




 Part 7
Installing The Inside "Stuff"

First slide the shelves in, center them up and put screws in the top and bottom holes.


Next lay one tray rail flat and place each one of the dowels on the sides of the trays into each hole so that the trays are standing vertical. Now take the opposing rail and line up the dowels with the holes and fit on top.



Grab the rails keeping pressure towards the center of the trays, pick the whole thing up and slide into opening to the left or right of the shelves and then repeat with the other set of trays. (*pictured above*) Slide trays back until they just touch the wall and nail side rails in place with a brad nailer. *Repeat steps for second set of trays*




Stand back, admire your work, and then get to work making it pretty. Ha!






The Original Work Table




Wall box: 
Top and bottom pieces- 36"
Sides- 35 1/4" x 5 1/2" wide (1 x 6) 

Table:
 34 1/4" w x 35" l

Exterior frame:

Top and bottom pieces- 36" x 2 1/4" (long point to long point)
sides- 36 3/4"  x2 1/4" w (long point to long point).
Rip a 1 x 4 to get these pieces.

Legs/center frame:

Top and bottom pieces 31 1/4" x 3 1/2" ({2}1 x 4's)
sides- 24 1/4" x 3 1/2" ({2}1 x 4's)

leg frame trim:

Top and bottom- 31 1/4"(long point to long point) x 1 1/4" wide (1x4)
sides- 31 1/4" (long point to long point) x 1 1/4" wide (1 x 4)
**For these pieces, use the drop offs from the exterior frame cuts.

Shelves:

Sides- 35 1/4" l x 2 3/4" w (x 2)
Shelves 32 7/8" x 2 3/4" w ( x 4) 

Space shelves according to your needs. 

For the exact spacing on my table, from the top of the shelf sides,  measure down 5" to the top of the first shelf, then 10 3/4" to the top of the next shelf, and then 16 1/2" to the top of the next shelf, and then 25" to the top of the last shelf. 

Dowels- 34" x 3/8"  (x 4) 

*From top of shelves measure up 1 3/8" to the center, and back 1/4" to the center. 

*Last shelf, measure up  2 3/8" to the center, and 1/4" back to the center.

**These are your center marks for the dowels. 




(This picture shows where the dowels are hitting, and how the screws go into the bottom of the shelves.)


If you do build your dream table, we would love to see pictures, so please email away!

Happy building!

Thursday, March 1, 2012

ONE UNIQUE WALL , MADE FROM OLD USED CRATES

I just fell in love with this unique accent wall. What a great idea for a DIY project.Talk about a budget friendly home decorating idea! I found this on 
“Pinterest” which by the way I just love!
Last time we talked about the nursery
and this:
and a promise that the accent wall for our baby boy’s room would be (and I quote) “rockin” and “boyish” and “hug-worthy”.  Let me just give myself a huge pat on the back…because it is.  It really is.  The accent wall is everything I hoped for and more.  
I know…you are just wishing you could reach through your computer monitor and slap me right now…kinda like when that girl crawled outta the television in the movie The Ring…but a lot less creepy and more out of anticipation than the desire to take my soul into Hades.  But just be warned, I am an avid movie watcher and I know how to defeat evil spirits.  Plus, I got Jesus on my side…and well, frankly, he would totally backhand any evil-spirited chick if they came close.  We are tight like that.
Back to the point.  We created a very masculine accent wall for our nursery & can’t wait to share it.  But first, let’s introduce you to our inspiration: 
That’s right.  They are shipping pallets.  And there is such a thing in the world as Pallet-Craft.  I know.  I googled it.  Pallet-craft is reusing the wood that makes up shipping crates or pallets to make something else….like a chair or a deck or in our case, an accent wall.  And since we wanted a very cabin-inspired-look-meets-contemporary-aesthetic in our nursery, we thought there was no better (or cheaper) way to get the great woods indoors…than to put wood indoors. 
After a WHOLE lotta googling about the safety of using the Grade III wood that makes up pallets, we learned that some pallets are treated with pesticides & fungicides (NOT GOOD) but that you can find vendors that use untreated lumber (GOOD).  If you or your vendor doesn’t know if the pallets are treated, there are certain precautions to follow when using the treated lumber.  In our nursery, we followed those precautions even though we knew the lumber was not treated.  Afterall, you can’t be too safe with a baby.
First, (after researching & calling local home improvement store managers to find a place that would give us free pallets of untreated wood), Jeremy picked up about two dozen pallets.  Then he took his sawsall to them, cutting through the nails and giving us disassembled wood planks. 
Then, he used an electric sander to remove any splinters and also to loosen any dirt or debris.   
After sanding, he thoroughly cleaned each plank & removed any loose nail heads before taking them into the nursery.  This is when we made our first mistake:  we sorted the wood by color.  It’s much faster to sort the wood by width…if you are planning on doing this at home.         
After you sort it by width, then sort it by condition…like put all the wood of the same width with large cracks together.  It helps.  Believe me.
Ok.  So now that the wood is prepped for installation (and you didn’t inhale any pesticides because you sanded & cleaned everything in a well ventilated area while wearing a mask!  Good for you…you will not die.  Not right now.  Not from pesticides anyway.),  now is the time to come up with your plan of attack.  We didn’t.  Mistake #2.
We knew that we would attach the planks with an air compressor and a brad nail gun…
(here’s our setting for you pallet-crafters),
but we didn’t know much else. 
In fact, we started with these nails (3/4″)…
mistake #3.
And ended up using these (1″):
Afterall, nobody wants a plank to come down on Baby Will.   
So we just started in one corner and nailed in a plank along the bottom of the plywood.  When we got to the corner, we just measured and cut an ugly plank to fill in the gap.  Rows 1 & 2 were pretty fast.  But then we got to the outlet. At first, we thought we would just cut a piece to fit around it.  Then my boyfriend suggested a door. 
I know.  It sounded crazy to me too. 
But then he explained.  He could cut out a piece of wood & attach it with a mini piano hinge to the nearby planks so that the outlet would be out of sight…and out of the reach of mini baby Bower fingers.  Plus, it could blend into the wall instead of having a bright white outlet plate showing. 
It’s not done yet, but that is what the plan is.  So for now, we cut the pieces to go right to the edge of the outlet plate sides.
Then we did the same thing with the next row.
That’s when mistake #4 occured.  When we installed the row #3, we didn’t make sure that the tops of the planks lined up evenly.  So row #4 didn’t line up.  We had to figure out a way to put a solid piece across the top without having huge gaps.
Again…boyfriend to the rescue.  He just took his circular saw and cut the top of the higher plank so that it would line up with the one on the other side of the outlet.
Setting the saw to the depth of the wood plank ensured that he wouldn’t cut through the plywood underneath…just the taller plank.
Can I just say that boyfriends with accent wall solutions are hot?
Because they totally are.
In the end, it lined up perfectly and we forged ahead.
When it came to the window sill, we just cut the end of the plank to fit perfect around it.
We did avoid mistake #5 by remembering to vary the widths of the planks.  Since we wanted this wall to look random (but not too random), we knew that it would be important to use the wider planks in a row every once in a while.  You can see we put about seven thinner rows between our thicker rows.  I think it helps create a very random (but not too random) look.
Oh – and if you are doing pallet-craft, it is important to take breaks.  We took the mandatory Smoothie-King break half-way through.   
After said break was over, we got back to work.
Or Jeremy got back to work and I got back to sitting down with my camera…
That’s when mistake #6 hit.  This time it had to do with levelness again.  When we built up either side of the window, the sides were slightly off.  The left side was slightly lower than the right side.
So we decided that the best fix would be to notch out the plank directly above the window so that it could fill in the cracks.  You can see here how the right hand arrow is showing you were we ‘notched’ the wood out.  The left arrow shows how we had to improvise with the wood planks (using various widths) to make it even.
We did this once before on a lower piece but that time it was because we ran outta the same width planks.  I don’t think it looks bad…in fact I love the imperfections of a wood wall.
My favorite imperfections are the cracks and the knots and the nail holes.  They seem so manly to me.  Which is good…because this is gonna be a little man’s room.
So ready for the finished wall?
Are you really really ready?
Ok…stop trying to strangle me through your computer screen…
here it is:
Pretty hot huh?
And because I am a dork, I mocked up some curtains on there so see if I liked it.
Ok.  Now for all you folks out there who aren’t completely satisfied with our pallet-wood safety precautions, it doesn’t stop there.
oh no.
Now comes the nitty-gritty.
After we finished installing the wood, Jeremy whipped out the vacuum.
He made sure each little dust particle was off this bad boy.
And then we applied satin polyurethane.  We decided to go with the spray type in a satin finish.  This way if the plank-people-lied and we had treated wood, it would literally have to rain outside, seep through our exterior, our drywall, our plywood and our pallet wood, and then Will would have to pick away the polyurethane and suck on the seepage to be affected by the pesticides. 
We felt pretty solid about the chances of that not happening.  And if it does…well, Will can have a kick-diaper story about the way he avoided death when he goes to pre-K.   
So that’s it folks.  One very accented wall…for the grand total cost of $15.  Since the pallet wood was free and we had a giftcard for the polyurethane, the 2.3 pieces of plywood & a half a pack of nails was our only cost.  Not too bad, huh?  I think it looks a heck of a lot costlier than that…plus we figure since it isn’t a baby-style wall, it can grow with Will as he develops into a young man.   
What do you think?  Does it look like a textural masterpiece to anyone else?  Because it totally tells me to hug it with it’s boyish good looks.  And does anyone else out there have a penchant for pallet-crafting?  Or maybe you had a cheap alternative to an accent wall yourself?  Was it painted on or was it a wall decal or what?  C’mon.  Tell me about it…nothing is hotter than an accent….wall :)
 
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