DIY Decor & Crafts

No Sew Basket

Published on October 16, 2014October 16, 2014 by Our Humble Abode3 Comments

Over the past several years, I’ve seen so many cool baskets. Metal, wicker, fabric, or leather, I like them all. So useful, almost everywhere. I was especially intrigued by a clever folding basket design.

A brilliant origami-esque design uses slits to hold the shape without help from other materials. No sewing, snaps, buttons, zippers or anything of the like. Wanting a basket to store magazines, I used iron on interface (essentially a sheet of hem tape) to fuse two pieces of fabric together and prevent fraying.

Before cutting, I created a template on Kraft paper. The areas inside the white show one-quarter of the design. Just flip to make the other sides.

With my template ready, I traced it onto my fabric, cut, and put the handle through the tabs.

Instant no sew basket, albeit a floppy one.

Honestly, it does keep my magazines contained, but isn’t anywhere near rigid enough to carry. If you make your own, use a few more layers of fabric. The stiffer/sturdier, the better.

After this basket failure, I dug in Ben’s leather cache and found a thick, saddle/belt type leather. He said he didn’t need it, so I made a leather tote to store newspaper.

Same process, but the heavy leather is perfectly sturdy and oh so handsome. A welcome addition to our fire supply area, now that temps are dropping.

Light Bar

Published on October 6, 2014October 6, 2014 by Our Humble Abode8 Comments

Several years ago, I bought this lamp for 10 dollars at a vintage shop. The broken, ribbed blue shade wasn’t looking so great, but the base was ace. Now you can have ‘The Sign’ stuck in your head.

I recovered the shade with navy linen and put it in the boys’ updated room and called it done.

And it never gets used. We read bedtime stories in the living room, then brush teeth and tuck the boys in. Essentially, it was a decoration. One that could be used in another room. Our family room is a tough space to light because there aren’t floor outlets so cords are a tripping hazard. The only place to have a plug-in lamp is on the bar.

Oddly enough, I’ve been pining over this lamp from Schoolhouse Electric and recently realized how similar the base is. Even if it is the shorter cousin with more junk in the trunk. Because it’s all about that base, ’bout that base. Oh jeez, I need to take a break from pop radio.

So, I took matters into my own hands and made a few quick changes. A new shade from Target + a stained round wooden base from Hobby Lobby + a little spray paint = Schoolhouse look-alike.

To get the base right, I stained it with Minwax Special Walnut. The bottom of the lamp is open and hollow, so I essentially made a large toggle bolt to hold the wood in place, but not permanently attached. I started by drilling holes in the center of the round and a piece of paint stick. Gluing a nut to the top of the paint stick made up my toggle.

After putting the bolt in and tightening it halfway, I slipped the wood strip inside and cranked the bolt.

Keeping a little pressure against the wood will allow the bolt to snug up.

To give the neck a little spruce, I sprayed it with Rustoleum Dark Walnut paint. Add a new shade and it’s finito.

Not a bad knock off for less than $20, including the price for the base. Adding a wood base and new shade to any gourd lamp could give a similar look.

Now it sheds light on the bar area and adds some height.

Honestly, I’m stupidly excited about the new look. Schoolhouse has some amazing pieces. Sadly, I have a hard time justifying that cost for a lamp.

Sometimes though, I get lucky and find similar items. Like this wool blanket that is a dead ringer for their Kelly Green Throw. That my friends, is why I love thrifting.

Marble Topped Box

Published on September 30, 2014September 30, 2014 by Our Humble Abode1 Comment

Everyone has ugly things that are necessary for life. Feet, cords and wires, and remotes, to name a few. Hiding feet is an easy change. We still (going on two years now!) have to build doors to hide the cords in the entertainment center, but that’s a different project for another day. That leaves us with remote controls. Perhaps your situation is different. Maybe you’ve got a fancy universal remote. We don’t. Nope, there’s one for the tv, another for the receiver, and the controller for the Play Station (our dvd player). Before this, the three squished together in a too small open tray on the coffee table.

To give those ugly necessities a home, I built another recessed lid box. With a twist. I paired a 1/2 inch MDF base with a marble tile top.

Following the same process, I crafted the simple box, using our remotes as a dimension guide. Two coats of Tate Olive inside and out for a touch of color. Then, Ben cut a 12 inch square tile (left over from the master bathroom shower) to size for me and drilled a hole in the center.

A semi creepy pull from Hobby Lobby is a fun accent. Kind of looks like bird claws, no?

Hobby Lobby knobs come with the bolt attached to the pull. Sometimes it’s nice, when turning knobs into towel hooks, but other times, it just adds another step.

After securing the knob with the washer and nut, I used a hacksaw to cut off the rest of the bolt. Voila, a chic remote house.

Green = Green: Free Stump Coffee Table

Published on September 12, 2014September 12, 2014 by Our Humble Abode30 Comments

You may be right! I may be crazy. But it just may be a lunatic you’re looking for. To quote my longtime BFF (not really) Billy Joel.

Often times, I’m not actively searching for specific items. However, if I see something that I can’t stop thinking about, I feel compelled to get it. Such is the case of this giant slice of starting to rot cottonwood.

At 43 inches in diameter and 12 inches tall, this thing is massive, not to mention heavy. Ben thought I was crazy, but loaded the beast up for me.

The affair started innocently, as I drove past the chopped up remains of a 25 foot tall dead trunk. After a few days, I decided to ask by leaving a note with my name and number. Instead of being the crazy woman knocking on the door, demanding a piece of wood. A few hours later, a sweet gal called me back saying I could definitely take what I wanted. Sa-weet. I dropped by to pick out the piece and chatted for another one and a half hours. I guess she didn’t think I was crazy.

Back to the wood. This old cottonwood had died years ago. The stump finally fell over. Which means this thing has real character. After a thorough sanding to get the surface splinter free and as flat as possible, I dug sawdust out of the bug trails.

To get all dust and debris off and out of cracks, I lugged out the air compressor and a spray gun. Worked like a charm to get the gunk out. Then I gave the sides one coat of polycrylic. For added smoothness, I applied three coats to the top, sanding between layers. Sanding between coats is always important, but even more so on an unfinished piece of wood.

At 12 inches tall and somewhat uneven (notice a raised chunk toward the front in the photo below), I attached three steel casters. Not only do the casters add a few inches in height, it makes this two hundred pound slab mobile.

I bought four, but after talking it over with Ben and looking at the base, three worked better. Despite an uneven base, after flipping it over, the top was almost perfectly level. As the old saying goes, “Almost only counts in horseshoes and casters.” Under $6.00 each at Home Depot, these 300 pound rated wheels are heavy-duty.

Four 2 1/2 inch long screws and washers keep the wheels in place.

With the piece sanded, clean, sealed, and wheeled, all we had left was to bring it inside. Basically I made a heaftier version of this stump and put it inside my house. Feast your eyes on our new, rustic meets industrial coffee table.

Adding the heavy (both in weight and appearance) table has helped ground the room.

I’m keeping the old table. Because I love it and it could work well in our bedroom seating area.

This hulking piece was fun to work on and now has a fun story.

And character in spades.

One side has a giant crack along with a woodpecker hole.

Some of the chainsaw marks are still noticeable on the top.

Despite several rounds of sanding with 50 grit paper, the top isn’t completely smooth. I mean, you won’t get slivers if you run our hand across the top. Though it is far from your typical glossy mahogany furniture.

You can feel bumps, divots, and a few rough patches.

For a hot second, we considered screwing the crack back together. Clearly, we decided against that. It could have worked. Or it could have made the split even bigger.

Overall, this was a quick, easy, and inexpensive project. Free stump + a few hours of sanding + 1 quart of polycrylic + three steel casters = my love in coffee table form.

Based on the 17 photos, some very similar, in this post, I think it’s safe to say I’m smitten. What’s the craziest thing you’ve done in the name of cool furniture?

Kinda, Sorta Landscape

Published on August 26, 2014August 26, 2014 by Our Humble Abode9 Comments

You know I love about making my art? I don’t feel bad when I get sick of it and want a change. Which is exactly what happened with the ampersand I painted for our master bathroom.

It was fine, and filled the wall okay. But it was elementary and rather boring after a while. Using the same canvas, I set out to paint a very loose, abstract landscape. Here’s how it started:

Too bright, and almost as boring as the ampersand. I waited a day to be sure I didn’t like it (I didn’t) and focus on what would make it look better. More muted colors, different proportions of the darker ‘mountain’ areas, and more blending. So, here’s the same landscape, version 2.0.

Not terribly different, but different enough that I like it. Now to frame it out. Maybe with pine 1 by 2 lumber, like I’ve done before. Or just maybe with some of my cedar pile.

It’s a bright, colorful spot against the dark walls.

Having all the supplies and reusing the canvas means it was a free project, too. Hooray!

I left some texture in the sky and grass, which I really like.

Not too bad for a few hours of painting.

When brainstorming ideas, I thought about getting another engineer print done. This time, of the hot air balloons we saw last month.

Being in a bathroom, with excess moisture/steam, I’d have to frame it behind glass. Maybe it’ll still happen, even if in another room. Engineer prints come in black and white only. I think it’d be fun to color over the balloons so it’d look something like this:

I do need large art to flank the entertainment center.

With just a little color, and a lot of contrast, cutting the above image in half could make a cool diptych type set. Not sure yet, but I really like the idea. Assuming coloring over the print would work well… What art have you covered over? Any fun engineer print projects you’ve tackled?