Furniture Building & Makeovers

Mini Dresser Make Over

Published on February 26, 2013February 26, 2013 by Our Humble Abode4 Comments

I’ve been searching for a simple, affordable, MCM style wooden dresser for several months. Various thrift stores and very few options. Until last week, when I spotted a five foot dresser for $50 and a matching mini dresser for 25 bucks. This dresser is for the tiny library/guest room which makes the nightstand size perfect.

Clean lines, MCM style, in good condition (a few scratches and a laminate top). Perfection. I could have left it as is, but I knew it could be better. Refinishing to the rescue. The dresser is plywood with a thin wood veneer. For solid wood I prefer to sand the surface to prepare for stain. But, I worried I’d sand through the veneer. Despite my last paint stripper experience, I decided to use Citristrip on the drawer fronts, sides, and legs.

While it did its magic, we hit up the hardware store for a plastic scraper, a sample of Ben Moore paint, and came back to get started. It seemed ready.

Scraping most of it off was quick, leaving me with a pile of spaghetti like stuff. The round legs took a little more time, but the finish came off cleanly.

With the scraping done, I used an old rag and odorless mineral spirits to clean off the residue. Which didn’t work. Instead it just made a gummy, tacky mess. I let it dry, then used 220 grit sand paper on the laminate top and flat sides.

The darker patches are from the stripper.

Lesson learned, skip the paint stripper, Amanda. It might work, but the clean up is more than I’m willing to deal with. But, I was able to start staining. Dark wood floats my boat. Wait, that didn’t come out right. I had a can of Dark Walnut stain (left over from a bookshelf I refinished a few years ago). Two coats on the fronts, sides, and legs. But I had to paint the drawer edges and sides to hide the layered plywood that before were painted dark brown.

To protect my freshly stained sides, I taped off everything so I could prime and paint the laminate top and drawer dividers.

A few coats of paint on the primed spots followed by two coats of satin polyurethane gave a nice shine, protecting and enhancing. Come back tomorrow to see how it turned out. Yes, I’m a total tease, but I’ve got to take pictures still.

Nookie There

Published on January 3, 2013March 26, 2013 by Our Humble Abode17 Comments

In addition to the fireplace surround, we’ve also been busy building a little nook storage. We’re still not completely done (are we ever?!), but a few of you noticed it a few posts back. It was a small project, but we think it will make a difference in the function of the room. Another dead, useless corner, we need not. Ben built a basic cabinet with a floating shelf above. To make the floating shelf, Ben attached thin strips to the side and back walls. A piece of 3/4 inch MDF on top, then a few bracing boards sandwiched between a piece of 1/4 inch MDF.

To hide the gap, he added a piece of 3/4 inch MDF. Wood filler, primer, and paint covers the seams and brightens the little nook. Eventually, we plan to add a tv on top of the cabinet with decorative items and books on the top shelf. Originally, I wanted two shelves, but it would have been too tight and cramped up to the ceiling.

Oh, and I’m testing out a paint color. I picked up many of the swatches you all recommended, and Behr’s Wheat Bread was a close contender. But being on the north side seemed to bring out the blues in every color. Instead, we moved to the next swatch over and liked Behr’s Sandstone Cove. In bright light, it reads more tan, but in dimmer light (natural on the other side of the room or artificial) it has a slight gray undertone. Here it is compared to a 25% tint of Wood Smoke.

Wood storage is necessary close to the fireplace. Right now, we’re going outside to get wood. Every time we want to start or stoke the fire. So that’s how the bottom cabinet will function, once the paint cures that is.

Now we’ve got to install the baseboard, crown, and the rest of the trim around the doors in the hallway. There it is, a quickie built-in.

Have you made any storage additions recently? I’m craving a good organizational fix. Am I the only one that gets that itch after a new year?

Surrounded

Published on December 31, 2012March 26, 2013 by Our Humble Abode28 Comments

Well, it’s the last day of 2012. I seriously can’t believe how fast this year has gone by. We’ve got a nearly complete year and nearly complete fireplace. Though we did deviate from our original plan. Ben added the border trim and we decided to k.i.s.s.; keep it simple, silly.

Down the road, if we feel the need to add more trim, we can. I spent a few days sanding, priming, and painting the beast.

The front, mantel, hearth, and both sides have simple 1/4 inch thick by 2 1/2 inch wide trim around the edges.

Once the paint cures, I can start decorating. Eek, I’m so excited. We’re still not sure exactly what large item we want above. Maybe a mirror, but I’m leaning toward a long, lean art piece.

And then I can add accessories to the mantel. For now though, we’re just happy to have a more functional, brighter, cleaner (and easier to clean!) fireplace. Black hole, no longer.

Next up, sealing the slate, then grout. And then we can cross this make over off our list.

How did 2012 treat you? Any big life changes for you? Moving to the mountain house was our biggest change. And one we didn’t expect a year ago. Heck, this time last year we were mid kitchen remodel.

Cover Up, Part Deux

Published on December 17, 2012March 26, 2013 by Our Humble Abode26 Comments

Before getting to decorating, I want to say how deeply saddened and sorry I am for the families in Connecticut. Such a senseless tragedy. Our thoughts and love go out to the families, friends, and community of Sandy Hook. Here’s a link offering various ways to help.

Well, the cover up is working; the fireplace has never looked better. Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, I present to you exhibit A:

On the left, 70’s moss rock, complete with poorly placed vents. The right side shows step one of the great cover up consisting of studs and cement board. And now, exhibit B:

A clean slate, pun intended. Ben laid the slate tile, saying it was the easiest tile he’s ever worked with. And we’re both head over heels for the pretty, slightly varied, textural tile.

Because the insert has angled sides, we decided to tile the insides of the walls, too.

Everything outside the combustible free area (the tiled surround) has gotten a layer of plywood. This should come in handy if/when we want to hang something above the mantel.

Speaking of the mantel, we considered a solid piece of reclaimed wood. Then we thought it might stick out (not in a good way) with the rest of our plans. Instead, Ben built a simple plywood box to place over a few 2 by 4 boards. Basically a mantel slip cover over supporting studs.

Clearly, we’ve still got some work to do before we can call this a wrap.

For starters, we’ll add 1/4 inch thick by 2 inch wide trim around all the edges, including the mantel. Because the rock extended into the hall, we covered it up just like the rest of the fireplace. As it currently is, it seems like an odd little bump out. To make it fit with the rest of the fireplace and differentiate between the normal walls, we’ll add more 1/4 inch trim to make a grid. Then, to brighten up the space and balance out the dark slate, a few coats of white paint. Something kind of like my Photoshopped version:

In addition to painting windows, baking cookies, squeezing the boys a little tighter, and usual errands, that pretty much sums up our weekend happenings. What did you do this weekend?

Cover Up

Published on December 11, 2012March 26, 2013 by Our Humble Abode25 Comments

The great fireplace cover up has begun. After a day of being annoyed that we couldn’t remove the rock, Ben decided on a plan of attack. It involves wood 2 by 4s, steel studs, plywood, and concrete backer. First, he started with the wood studs, building a frame slightly larger than the deepest rocks around the top and sides. Combustibles shouldn’t be too close to the insert, so we have a slightly higher than we’d like mantle. The bottom of the 2 by 4 is where the bottom of the mantle will start.

A 2 by 6 box (basically a very short version of a wall) makes up the base of the hearth, which is sturdy enough to support the weight of the 600 pound insert.

In the hall, the framing is minimal to keep the walkway wide and show as much of the inlay floors as possible.

Then Ben had the pleasure of installing the new duct work, with plenty of annoyances and obstacles along the way. Finally, time to haul up the beast, I mean insert. Ben and Handy Sammy loaded it on a dolly, hefting it up, one stair at a time. I pulled in the dolly, trying to help, but I couldn’t get it to budge. Luckily, the guys are much stronger and got it up the stairs without hurting themselves or the house.

The next morning, they carefully hoisted the insert, scooting it around to get it in place.

As I mentioned before, combustibles can’t be close to the insert, so Ben used steel studs to frame out everything below the mantle.

Oh, and we took down the huge mirror. Fortunately four clips held it in place, so there’s no wall damage. Oddly enough, the room feels bigger without the mirror reflecting the kitchen. A layer of concrete board on top and we’re ready for tile.

Awkward angles of the surround won’t let us tile up to the insert, so we’ve got a small frame around.

Speaking of tile, we chose 1 foot by 2 foot black slate tiles at Home Depot. Why? Because we’re suckers for natural stone, love the color, subtle color differences, the matte finish, and the price. Most importantly, the dark tile should better disguise soot or ash from the wood fireplace. Had we gone with a gas insert, we would have chosen a lighter tile.