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Built-In Corner Closet

Built-In Corner Closet published on 2 Comments on Built-In Corner Closet

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First of all, please excuse my inferior quality iPhone image. Ok, now that that’s out of the way, this corner built in closet is in FDR’s home in Hyde Park, NY.

There are built-ins that take up entire walls or a good portion of the room but this corner design would fit nicely in a small room. Looks easy enough to build from scratch (for a carpenter, not moi) but I’m wondering if one can come up with the perfect salvaged materials to do this. It’s game on for me because I have some tiny bedrooms in the new house and I think I wanna go with the corner thang.

Dead Celebrities in New York

Dead Celebrities in New York published on 1 Comment on Dead Celebrities in New York

Anne Bancroft Brooks in Hawthorne, NY

Mother is visiting. One of our annual outings is to see the dead relatives in the cemeteries. All of mine are in either Beth David or Montefiore in Queens. Not that you care, but I thought it might be of interest to you to know who else is buried in New York.

Anne Bancroft and Lucille Ball: Kensico Cemetery, Valhalla

Louis Armstrong: Flushing Cemetery, Queens

James Cagney: Gate of Heaven Cemetery, Hawthorne

Harry Chapin: Huntington Rural Cemetery, Huntington

Duke Ellington: Woodlawn Cemetery, Bronx

Judy Garland, Joan Crawford and Aaliyah: Ferncliff Cemetery and Mausoleum, Hartsdale

Ben Gazarra: Woodlawn Cemetery, The Bronx

Billie Holiday: St. Raymond’s Cemetery, Bronx

Lena Horne: The Evergreens Cemetery, Brooklyn

Houdini: Machpelah Cemetery, Queens

Andy Kaufman: Beth David Cemetery, Elmont, LI

Captain Kangaroo (Am I dating myself?): Saint Joseph’s Cemetery, Babylon, LI

Jerry Orbach, Trinity, NYC

Tony Randall: Westchester Hills Cemetery, Hastings-on-Hudson

Martin Scorsese (Yeah, I know he’s not dead yet.) Moravian Cemetery, New Dorp, SI

Shower Stalls

Shower Stalls published on 2 Comments on Shower Stalls

Love these “French” shower doors from Peppermint Bliss. She didn’t say where she got them from but word on the street is that you can use factory windows to achieve this look (which is probably what is shown in the picture).

Clawfoot shower base with new chrome “antique” enclosure. Via Little Green Notebook.

Corrugated metal is showing up everywhere these days. Via Apartment Therapy.

These reclaimed windows are a nice concept but you would want to seal them up before using them in your shower. Via Apartment Therapy.

Summer School

Summer School published on

Grounded in the city this summer? Don’t let your time go to waste. New experiences await you at every turn in this great city of ours.  Here’s a small list of some courses you can take whilst cursing your friends on the beach.

iPhoneography. No need to schlep a big, heavy camera when you can take great pictures with your iPhone. It’s just as good as a point and shoot, anyway. Learn the art and technique of iPhone photography at Photo Manhattan in Union Square.

City Tech hasn’t let us down this summer with their offering of real estate, renewable energy and DIY courses. Hurry up, because some classes have already started.

3rd Ward has Welding for Furniture and Intro to Woodworking to name a couple.

What’s that? You would rather be a beach bum? Well, at least you can do it the right way. Learn to surf in the Rockaways! Then you can come help me work on my house afterward and I’ll teach you some DIY tricks. Deal?

Awaken your inner Fred Astaire. Learn to tap dance at the American Tap Dance Foundation in The Village. Yes, there are beginner classes for adults and yes, I specifically looked this up because I want to do it myself.

How To Build A Planter Box

How To Build A Planter Box published on

Welcome new advertiser, Bunnings Warehouse (see sidebar)! They are Australia’s version of Home Depot. The mega home improvement store has a great website to boot. Check out their DIY section, including videos, brochures and planners.

The site also gives tips on sustainability and energy cost savings.

So go on and get lost among the 146 DIY videos on subjects ranging from choosing paint to installing a pool.

Hipster Hampton Jitney

Hipster Hampton Jitney published on

The Hamptons may have their Jitney but the Hipster Hamptons has it’s own Rockabus leaving from a single Brooklyn neighborhood. Can you guess where? Come on. Yeah, of course it’s Williamsburg.

It’s kind of funny that it exists but it’s pretty great because it’s a bit of a pain in the arse to get from Williamsburg to Rockaway Beach. It’s a breeze from my neck of the Bed Stuy woods as I’m 2 seconds from the A train.

Anyhoo, if you’re a Williamsburger who plans on coming out to Rockaway this summer to help me on my new house, check out the Rockabus. Service starts this weekend.

See you there!

Local Drive-In Theaters

Local Drive-In Theaters published on 2 Comments on Local Drive-In Theaters

Check out the Google today. It’s the anniversary of the drive-in theater! Raise your hand if you’re old enough to remember going to drive-ins. Yeah, my hand is raised.

Although drive-ins are few are far between these days, they still exist. I went to one while visiting my folks in Florida a few years ago. It was a drive-in megaplex, like 8 screens. People were just hanging out talking outside of their cars. WTF? Actually, I nearly got into a brawl with a woman in an indoor cinema upstate once for CHATTING ON HER PHONE DURING THE MOVIE. Man, people are friggin rude.

So, back to the topic. Here are some of the remaining drive-ins in the New York area. The norm for admission seems to be eight bucks for a double feature.

Delsea claims to be the only remaining drive-in theater in New Jersey, the place where drive-ins were invented in 1933.

Warwick Drive-In

Fair Oaks in Middletown, NY

Overlook in Poughkeepsie

Hyde Park Drive-In. This was one of the reasons I was interested in that Hyde Park house I looked at. Did I mention that there’s also a retro roller skating rink in Hyde Park?

Hi-way Drive-In, Coxsackie

Knowing About Home Repair Grants

Knowing About Home Repair Grants published on

Homeowners would surely entertain the idea of being able to repair their own home. After all, who does not want to improve their home living conditions? The only problem about this is the possibility of facing expenses, and other unexpected extras. This is where home repair grants enter the picture. Generally speaking, these home repair grants are issued to American citizens who are not able to have their homes fixed because of financial difficulties. Millions and millions of dollars are being offered to residents who need urgent home repairs and improvements.

Tips to Acquire

Home repair grants are generally given for free in order to make sure that there is no need for repayment. Still, there are requirements that need to be submitted and be qualified for. For one, the homeowner should be legally recognized as the owner of the property or residence that needs to be fixed. In line with this, it is also important to provide the needed documents and certificates to support the claim.

Also, this grant is not just given to anybody. The homeowner should also be part of the low income bracket. However, if you are the type of person who wants to renovate your home, then you can still give it a try. At the same time, you need to layout the things that need to be fixed, specifying the details involved. For a quick estimate, you may ask your municipal contractor in order to see how much money is needed to have the tasks done. This will prove to be a good factor in determining the home repair grants to be given.

 

The Next Steps

Since the government is the main distributor of these home grants, they can be found by visiting local departments like FEMA and HUD in order to see if specific grants are available for application. There are also organizations that are also willing to assist needy people and families. At the same time, there are also philanthropists who seek to help the needy ones by giving grants.

Also, it is possible to get information from local newspaper in order to search for people who will offer these grants from people. For instance, people who win from cosmik casino bonuses also share their winnings to people who need to repair their own homes. These people typically announce their offer in public printed publications.

Refacing Furniture

Refacing Furniture published on 2 Comments on Refacing Furniture

Hey kids! Here are more ways to save those pieces of furniture from the landfills. Plus, your friends will envy you for your kick-ass creations!

Idea #1: Plaster some vintage signs on that sh*t.

Idea #2: Old rulers and yard sticks! I’ve made frames and small pieces from rulers but never thought to do an entire surface. Pretty cool.

Idea #3: Laminate. Gorgeous laminate. I wouldn’t even know where to find stuff like that.

Idea #4: Got time on your hands? Bottle cap it.

More Stuff for Stoop Sale

More Stuff for Stoop Sale published on

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Valley of the Creepy Dolls

Oy. How did I collect so much stuff? I can’t even see half the crap in my basement. Fuggedaboutit! So, here are some photos of a few more things I found. Hope to see you at the stoop sale on Saturday. We’ll schmooze. You can meet my dogs. Maybe take some stuff off my hands so I don’t have to schlep it back into the house? Oh wait…it might rain. Maybe the sale will take place IN my house and not on the stoop. Whatev. It’s rain or shine!

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What home is complete without a creepy clown painting? You know you want him!

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Black velvet painting. Very classy. Unfortunately, she has a rip. Yours for 5 bucks.

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There are hinges and pulls and knobs and old tools. Guy things. Ya know.

Flickr set.

Decorating Doors

Decorating Doors published on

Got a bunch of plain doors you don’t really want to replace? Fancy them up instead of removing them. Start with a colorful paint and some antique hardware and go crazy with other techniques.

Ok, so the door above is actually a beautiful antique door to begin with but you can use chalkboard paint on any door. Mount an old frame or some molding around the chalkboard.

Create your own panel door. Do as many panels as you like. Whatever width of molding you want. Personally, I find mitering to perfection a bit difficult, but the good news is that there are ways to cheat.

This is a great fake-out. That door just has painted panels. No carpentry involved! Oh my, it doesn’t get any easier than that.

These panels were made from pre-cut artist stretchers that interlock. Miter schmiter.

Don’t forget that any of these techniques can be used on kitchen cabinet doors as well.

Saturday Stoop Sale

Saturday Stoop Sale published on

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**UPDATE: Chance of showers. This is rain or shine. We’ll take it indoors if necessary.

This is it! We’re getting rid of the clutter or else! Hope you’re around this Saturday, June 2nd because there will be something for everyone, especially crafters and vintage vendors.

I only started to go through stuff yesterday afternoon but I see that there are plenty of handmade upcycled goodies left and oodles of interesting found objects to make your own creations. Priced at $2 for salvage pieces to $20 for Etsy inventory marked down from like 60 bucks.

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Those baluster candlesticks were originally $75. Take ’em home for $20. I also have a bunch of balusters left so you can make your own. They work great as coffee table legs or picture frames. Or balusters for a front porch.

What else?

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Mid century doll house. Needs TLC. $20

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Vintage tschotskes. $2-$8. Lots of salt and pepper shakers for $5.

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Vintage jewelry. $2-$10

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Fabric and wallpaper. $5-$10

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The cool dress form belongs to my upstairs neighbor. Don’t know what he wants for it but it won’t be expensive. He’s also got loads of designer clothes including Gucci, D&G and Hugo Boss. Size medium-large. All originally over $150, priced at about 10 bucks. He also has DVDs and internet accessories.

Sale will take place 10am-5pm on Saturday. 11 Verona Place in Bed Stuy. That’s the A train to Nostrand and walk 1/2 block east, then left on Verona between Fulton and Macon. Do not come early or I will send the dogs out to lick you to death.

The flickr set will be updated along the way, so keep checking!

Add yourself to the mailing list for a reminder.

Latest finds to sell.

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