Small Projects

Light Switches

Published on May 22, 2013May 22, 2013 by Our Humble Abode10 Comments

Completely out of Montana norms, it rained all weekend. Rain outside meant little time for work outdoors. Instead, we had a lunch date, relaxed, and hung up two light fixtures. The first, the PVC icosahedron pendant I made to replace the too low, never used ceiling fan.

I looked for a cheap pendant and canopy at home improvement and thrift stores, but didn’t find anything. Soooooo, I decided to steal the $6 thrift store pendant from the dining room. Ditched the shade, using only the guts. We had a few metal down rods from other pendants, so I covered the cord with a small piece.

While it may not stay forever, I’m super happy with the open, modern, geometric shape.

I still might replace the top and bottom points, just to make the peaks a little more obvious.

While Ben had the supplies out, I asked him to install a new light in the boys’ room, too. Snagged this one at ReStore for eight bucks. A quick scrub and ready to go. Wish I would have thought about this before and painted the gold canopy. Ahh well. Still better than the boob light that was there.

Bonus, we could raise chickens in here with a light like that. Not that it’ll happen, but we could. And I just might be able to start (and hopefully finish!) scraping the popcorn off the ceiling. Handy Sammy will be out-of-town for a month, so we can shift the boys to his room, giving me a month of time to get it done. Without disturbing him. Woo to the hoo, I’m ready for this. At least I am in my head, my arm might hate me by the end of it.

Thank You, Spring Cleaning

Published on May 8, 2013May 8, 2013 by Our Humble Abode13 Comments

I swear I can thank spring cleaning for my most recent thrifty finds. First a Drexel dresser for the boys’ room and now two chairs and a foot stool.

I found the chairs at Habitat for Humanity ReStore for five bucks each. Sold! They’re solid wood and should be easy to refinish and upholster. Because one has a giant tear in the seat.

Oh, and the orange vinyl isn’t my fav.

For now, the chairs will live in the family room, replacing the Target slipper chairs, which are in the living room now. I’ve been looking for arm chairs with a smallish frame. Ideally I’d stumble upon something like this for a fraction of the price. But I’m not holding my breath.

Until that magical day happens, these are okay. You know, with a little lovin’.

Surprisingly comfortable, the small footprint of the chairs fits nicely in the walk path perimeter room. A little more depth would be great to feel more lounge-y. Eventually (when our kids stop wiping grimy hands on everything) we’ll man up and buy adult furniture.

How ’bout that footstool/ottoman/side table for $8? After a quick search, I saw many similar stools for sale, some as high as $300.

The cane top has damage, but the wood is in good shape. I’m considering cutting a larger piece of plywood to set on top, making this footstool a round coffee table.

What would you do to these pieces? Sand and stain? What type and color fabric for the chairs? We’ve got cream leather in the basement that I think could look nice. Thoughts?

Kitchen Chronicles

Published on May 1, 2013May 1, 2013 by Our Humble Abode8 Comments

Oh yes, the kitchen. We’re eagerly planning a full scale remodel complete with new cabinets, double wall ovens, moving the island out a foot for more work space, and a marble back splash. But that can’t happen right now. Fingers crossed it can happen within the next 365 days. But, there have been a few minor changes since we moved in. Remember the blue wallpaper?

Vincent and I tore it down, exposing the glue backing. Already a vast improvement in the light and bright department.

Then I sprayed the glue, scraping it off. And replaced the windows. I didn’t do that, Ben did. He’s far more skilled than I am.

For months, the kitchen looked like this:

Eeeesh, not good. Scratched walls, filled nail holes, and dingy primed walls. Last weekend I got so sick of looking at the ugly walls. That’s what happens when our weather isn’t nice and I’m stuck in the house a lot. I look for things to do. To flow with the family room, I painted the walls Sandstone Cove, using Glidden’s Duo eggshell.

Ahh, the glory of solid colored walls.

Too bad the rest of the kitchen isn’t as easy to change.

Because the kitchen wraps over to my office, I painted those walls, too.

Black hole of electronics be damned. Hmm, wonder if I could spray paint them… Haha, not going to do that!

If only the paint had been a bolder color to make the change more obvious. One small step for me, one giant leap for our kitchen. Do you get itchy when the weather doesn’t coöperate? Look for something, anything to do?

P.S. Our three-year blog anniversary is coming up in a few weeks. If you have questions for us, maybe we’ll do a Q and A? You can leave comments here or email at ourhumbleabodeblog@gmail.com.

I’m Bringing Drexel Back

Published on April 29, 2013April 29, 2013 by Our Humble Abode30 Comments

Admittedly not as catchy as bringing sexy back. On Thursday, the boys and I ran errands, then took advantage of the sunny weather by stopping in a garage sale and two thrift stores. We left Goodwill with three small planters for $1.50 each.

But we hit the jackpot at our second store, striking gold with this beat up Drexel dresser.

Listed at 90 dollars, I wasn’t going to buy it. I asked if I could get a discount for the scuffs and burns on it. The manager took off 25% making it $67. Not needing another dresser, I couldn’t decide. Yes, it would look great in the boys’ room. But they had a white one that worked just fine. So I asked you, and nearly everyone said, “YES!” Tipping point, I bought it. Over the weekend, I sanded it down, getting down to bare wood.

Originally I thought I’d stain it dark (to match their bookshelf), but seeing the pretty grain made me question that decision. Again, I asked you what to do. This time, votes were about 75/25, so I went with a clear finish and gold painted hardware.

Now, Drexel’s back and more handsome than ever.

He’s a far cry from the antique-y white dresser of yore, adding a warm wood tone and sleek lines.

Look at those legs! Slightly tapered, no cankles.

Perhaps the handles are the furniture equivalent of a gold chain?

A few burns and one stain are still slightly visible on the top because they went too deep to sand out.

Sixty seven dollars well spent. Because we already had sand paper, spray paint, and clear coat, $67 is all I spent on this guy.

Another change in the boys’ room that has me chomping at the bit to give this room some attention. Like paint covering the walls. All four. And a twin bed for Ev, once he’s unhappy sleeping in his crib.

Rope and Ribbon Pendant

Published on March 21, 2013March 21, 2013 by Our Humble Abode12 Comments

Well, the guest room has a new light fixture. Surprise, it’s not on this list, though I was leaning toward numbers two and five. But I remembered I had a lamp shade I kept when our lamps broke. I unscrewed the glass cover and hung the shade from the old light, just to get an idea of how it looked.

Too small, and I didn’t like the slightly tapered shape. I took a drum shade off a lamp in the basement, replacing it with the tapered shade. Whaddya know, they were perfect for each other.

Knowing I liked the look and size, I started working on the wiring and hanging. Inspired by this cord cover up, I got out an Ikea cord kit (I had on hand) and cotton/poly rope from Home Depot (for 3 bucks).

A knot at the bottom, close to the socket to start. Then I wrapped the cord like a friendship bracelet. Behind the cord, then through the hole from the front. Not only does this wrap cover the cord, it makes a neat swirl knot design.

Ben hung the light last night using a basic ceiling canopy. The plain shade was boring, so I taped two pieces of wood veneer around the top and bottom.

Everything looked too monotone, so I stole pillows from other rooms to test accent colors. I loved the punch of green this one added. Imagine yellow walls with the dark blue headboard and shots of bright green. Yes, please!

Which prompted me to dig in my ribbon box, coming out with kelly green.

Exactly what I want. Fun, colorful, and lively. Green has a way of perking up any space. To evenly distribute the lively green I want to make another storage box. Luckily the navy set will work perfectly in the main bathroom.

Because I had most of the supplies already, the light cost me $3 for the rope. Score. And you know I can’t resist a DIY. Double score. What do you think of the changes?