Skip to content

Page Header

Posts categoriezed as DIY

DIY Stainless Steel Countertop

DIY Stainless Steel Countertop published on 1 Comment on DIY Stainless Steel Countertop

Since Linn from Christonium sent an email describing her DIY stainless steel countertop, I’m just gonna be lazy and cut and paste the whole thing. Yeah, even though it’s on her own blog (hit link above). But it looks great and her how-to post is more informative than anything I can come up with myself. Because I’m lazy.

Soooo, here’s Linn…

I wanted to share a project of mine which I’m very happy with: my new stainless steel kitchen counters which me and my husband installed ourselves. When we were remodeling our kitchen we were debating about what counters to choose. I loved the idea of stainless steel counters, so industrial, natural and durable, however if you get them professionally installed then they can be pretty pricey.

We worked with a local sheet metal place that gave us a very reasonable quote on shaping a piece of stainless steel if we did some of the work ourselves: so we made a plywood model of our counters, brought it to our local shop and later installed it all on top of our old counters. The result has been great. We got really nice counters which ended up costing us around $400 (roughly $20/square foot.) Now, that’s an excellent price, and our counters are perfect!

Bedroom Upcycling Ideas

Bedroom Upcycling Ideas published on 1 Comment on Bedroom Upcycling Ideas

This is a guest post by Jeremy who loves writing about living green, saving money and DIY. He is from EasyApplianceParts, a DIY resource and retailer of appliance replacement parts.

We spend almost one third of our life in the bedroom. The bedroom is our space to relax, unwind and leave the stress of the world behind. Creating a bedroom that is your own sanctuary can be done without having to spend a fortune redecorating. How?  The answer is upcycling. This means taking existing items and repurposing them to build the bedroom of your dreams. The recipe for an upcycling designer is a layer of personal design style, followed by a cup of creativity, two cups of the materials you’ll need and a sprinkle patience, topped off by a do-it-yourself attitude.

Create your own furniture

Buying a brand new bedroom set can be expensive. Most of the bedroom sets currently available from furniture stores are made from particle-board based wood.  Create your own durable and stronger bedroom set by using previously used wood such as boards, planks and wood pallets. Solid wood pieces can be found in antique stores, yard sales, estate auctions or old barns.

Making your own bed – Wood pallets used to transport goods can be obtained from nurseries or home stores. They can be transformed into just about anything – desks, chairs, end tables, benches and beds.  Homedit has developed a stylish and easy to build platform bed made from wood pallets. The best part of this idea is that it costs next to nothing to build.  The only materials that are needed are wood pallets, hinges and casters. Add your mattress, paint and you’re done. An extra added benefit to a wood pallet platform bed is it can be enlarged or reduced as required.

Extra seating – If your bedroom is large try adding in a bench at the edge of the bed or by the window for a window seat.  Old coffee tables or a small garden bench can be used to make your own bench – just add some paint, cushion and the bench is ready.

Continue reading Bedroom Upcycling Ideas

Marble Window Sill

Marble Window Sill published on 2 Comments on Marble Window Sill

This is a work in progress and it doesn’t look like much now, but I’m excited that after oh, about four years of plywood window sills, we finally cut the marble to install. The plan has always been to use the recycled marble that came from our fireplace hearth. Two slabs were sitting in the backyard. Don’t know what took so long.

The pieces are not wide enough. We’ll use smaller cuts on the sides and fill it in with grout to make up the difference. Wood molding will be added to the front, painted to match the radiator cover.

It will take about another four years to for the finished product.

Scary Renovation Mishaps

Scary Renovation Mishaps published on

Ever fall off a ladder? Not me, because I’m so scared of heights that I cling to it for dear life. But here’s an FYI for ya. Always put the ladder on level ground and make sure the support brackets on the side are locked in.

Blue Paint Spill

Paint spill. Probably the most common DIY mishap. At least in my world it is. Something I will never learn….to look where I’m going. Don’t kick the bucket over. And check bottom of shoes BEFORE stepping off of the protective paper or tarp.

The old nail through the pipe routine. Yeah, we had a contractor’s assistant put a screw through our copper pipe while installing subflooring. It wasn’t a massive flood. More like a drip, drip, drip of the tell-tale pipe.

Foot through the floor….or rather, ceiling below. Can’t count the number of times we were working on joists and sub floor that someone’s foot said hello to the downstairs neighbors. My scary moment happened when I fell through the floor and was dangling from the bannister that I was lucky to grab unto. My husband was right next to me and after a few moments he looked up and asked “Do you need help?” Um, ye-ah! Would you mind?

Fun DIY Projects with Wood

Fun DIY Projects with Wood published on

IMG_6420

Yesterday we covered some plastic DIY projects you can do around the house. Today it’s wood! Inspirations from the Solar Decathlon.

Isn’t that inscription on the deck a lovely idea? It can be done on decks, siding or just about any old piece of wood you have around your house.

There are a couple of ways to go about the writing. You can burn it in. Remember those wood burning instruments we all had as kids? (If you’re over the age of say, 35?) Well, that technique is called pyrography. Thing is…do you really want to go out and buy that tool now? Perhaps you have a Dremel or router around the house. If so, then you can carve the letters out then stain them any color you want.

First you’ll want to line it up properly with a straight edge. Tape a stencil down and trace the outline. No, you don’t want to leave the plastic stencil there to be burnt or cut. The rest of it ain’t rocket science. You can figure it out.

IMG_6365

Check out that cool shower base. You know what? I’m not even telling you to make it yourself. You can probably buy shit like that at Ikea and plop it right down. I just like it, is all.

IMG_6413

I’m not quite sure if this is recycled shipping pallets or a piece made from scratch. Either way, it gave me the idea to do it with shipping pallets. A while back, I thought I’d be really cool and build a bunch of stuff made from the reclaimed wood of pallets. Well, it was crazy trying to take all the slats apart. So why bother? Just cut them down and build stuff out of them that way.

IMG_6391

I’m feeling the love towards the bark! Ok, so bark siding is pretty pricey to purchase if you can’t find a tree that it’s coming off of. But I’m not talking about residing your whole home with it. Perhaps a 4×4 framed square to use as a cork board? Or as a backsplash in the your kitchen? An entire wall behind the bathroom sink? A line of bark shingles instead of chair railing? The possibilities are endless.

DIY Fun with Plastic

DIY Fun with Plastic published on

IMG_6399

Yes, I’m a ho for Plastics Make it Possible. Those dudes along with Ogilvy PR sent me down to the Solar Decathlon and the inspiration I got from these kids in the competition is the gift that keeps on giving.

IMG_6401

Ok, so check out the light fixture used in the Purdue University home, which BTW, took second place. Not too shabby. I don’t know how much they did from scratch, but if they started with 4 pendants and built the lucite shade, then they would have built the frame and drilled holes in the lucite to attach the bolts. I’ll bet you can find something similar with a clear shade. The beauty of this is the sand. Yes, that’s just sand.

All you have to do to make one of these babies is tape the edges and find a clear, non yellowing adhesive. I’m guessing a spray adhesive would work brilliantly. But here’s the thing. Why stick with beige? You can do any color sand. Make it a red light, Roxanne. Or!! You don’t even have to stick with sand. What about recycled glass? Recycled multi-colored plastic bottles and such on the outside of the lucite? Or recycled crazy straws? That’s crazy fun! Use heavier glue for these. Are you getting the picture?

IMG_6392

The LED backlit panels used by Appalachian’s Solar Homestead rocked my world. They weren’t the only ones to use these acrylic sheets to set mood lighting, but they were the only ones I got a picture of. Seems an easy enough project. Run your lights and cover them with translucent plastic sheets. Get creative with it by framing and hanging “light boxes” instead of covering the entire wall.

IMG_6424

The back splash above was in the City College of New York Solar Roof Pod. (Woot! Woot!) To be honest, I didn’t catch what the materials are. I’m going to guess that it’s Corian or another acrylic solid surface material with glass inlays. Easier and less expensive than buying a sheet of Corian would be to make a resin backdrop and set in the accents instead of cutting into the piece. Remember that you can work on a horizontal surface and hang it once dry. If you’re going with resin, the possibilities are endless. I happen to love the clean look of this one, but remember my resin countertop? It could easily be a backsplash.

So, there ya go. Tomorrow I’ll show you some fun wood projects. But just one more word on plastic. I could not have made it through the rainy weekend without the following two items keeping my feet and pants dry. So, thank you again, plastics, for making it possible to stay comfortable on the nastiest of nasty days.

IMG_6405

IMG_6404

Solar Decath Part I

Building Stairs

Building Stairs published on

After six years of procrastination, we finally replaced our dangerous basement steps that were about to collapse.

Pre-cut stair stringers can be purchased in many lumber shops. This video kicks off after hubby measured and cut his own stringers. Project is for an intermediate skill level DIYer. Beginners can do it if they’re good at math. I suck at math, therefore, I would not be able to install stairs.

DIY: Concrete Slab Form

DIY: Concrete Slab Form published on

IMG_6301

This may be boring for you more designy/less handy folks, but it’s what we’re working on at the moment. In this case, we happen to be creating the slab to use as the bottom step of the basement stairs.

Check out this video if you want to learn how to set up the form for a concrete slab pour. If you’re working on an entire floor, you would do something like this on a larger scale. The room can be broken down into smaller slabs and joints can be filled in later.

Tackling the Basement

Tackling the Basement published on 3 Comments on Tackling the Basement

IMG_6281

Ugh. Just when we thought we were near the end of our renovation we realize that the basement will be a bigger project than we had anticipated. Why can’t we just leave it a dusty, crumbling mess? Well first of all, basements are the foundations of homes and the stone walls need to be maintained for both structure and water blockage.

The main reason we want a nicely sealed-and-easy-to-clean unfinished basement is the cats. The plan is to make a cat hangout down there so they stop messing up our garden level.

IMG_6283

On the to do list is….

1. Rebuild the stairs that hubby ripped down over 2 weeks ago. We are currently climbing down the hatch out front.

2. Repoint stone wall and bricks.

3. Pour concrete for solid, level floor. What is down there is about an inch of uneven concrete on top of soil.

4. Move boiler against wall to create more space. Yay, another few thousand for a licensed plumber! Oh, did I mention we’re replacing boiler and water heater while we’re at it?

5. Build wall separating new boiler from cats.

6. Sump pump. We will clean the area by hosing it down.

7. Exhaust fan.

8. Seal walls and epoxy floor.

9. More lights. Deal with holes in ceiling cats can climb into.

That’s about it. A lot of work for an unfinished space that nobody is gonna see.

IMG_6286

Stairs in Tight Spaces

Stairs in Tight Spaces published on 2 Comments on Stairs in Tight Spaces

We are preparing for our next home improvement project: the basement. The plan is to clean it up and seal it so we can let the cats have their own playroom down there. Before any work gets done, the first thing we need to address are those stairs that have been dangerously hanging by one nail for the entire 6 years we’ve lived here.

Basic basement steps are easy enough to install. Prefab stringers can be purchased to make life easier. You can even find full staircase kits ready to go. For those, you would only need to measure ground floor to top landing and make sure it’s all level, plum and well supported.

Of course it’s never that simple for us. For some reason, we have the waste line running alongside our basement stairs. That’s why someone decided to build an unevenly supported staircase by moving right stringer in by oh, about six inches. Can’t figure out why they thought this would work, but then again we don’t get a lot of their “fixes” in this house.

So, what do you do when trying to install a stairway in a narrow area with a sewage pipe and crumbly plaster walls on either side? And no, moving the pipe is not something we want to do.

The floating staircase is the idea we’re leaning towards at the moment. The straight stairway above has a metal mono stringer running down the middle instead of the usual twin supports. This shouldn’t interfere with the weirdness on the sides and the one tread that hits the pipe can be cut shorter.

Here’s a narrow staircase. Kind of weird and not for us. But it beats a rope or fireman’s pole if you don’t have space.

Of course the worst part about this is the cost. A basic Home Depot set of DIY basement stairs should cost around a couple of hundred bucks. These fancy schmancy kits will run closer to two grand. I haven’t researched thoroughly yet, but I’m hoping we can just buy that mono stringer and cut our own treads. It will save some dough.

Kits:

Fast Stairs

Iron Shop

Mylen Stairs

Stairway Shop

2 Years Ago in Renovations

2 Years Ago in Renovations published on

Flashback: July 27th, 2009. The Reclaimed Home post of the day was “Garden Apartment Now Livable!”. So, where do we stand now in the world of home renovations? Finished?

Hardly. It’s funny that I decided to look up past posts on today of all days, when I’m taking my dogs and my visiting mom and fleeing the scene for a couple of days. The window guys are on week 3 of installation and the garden and parlor apartments are once again, works in progress.

So, how did it all work out with that to-do list I posted 2 years ago?

1. Work around windows. Still no sills. But at least the windows will be new.

2. Get shutters in. Oh yeah. They will be coming out and going back in. Again…windows.

3. Radiator covers. Radiator covers. Check!

4. Sink, counter top, backsplash. Mini Kitchen. Check. But we’ll be taking it out now that we have a full kitchen on the parlor floor.

5. Paint sink base. Yeah.

6. Finish molding. Yup.

7. Strip doors (ugh, more stripping). Ah, we just painted them white.

8. Clean up mantel. Um…

9. Re-do hearth (damn, forgot about that!). Later.

10. “Fancy paint” for trim and medallion. Painted medallion done. Still no light fixture.

Grand Entrance

Grand Entrance published on

Before: hallway

I was just looking back on some old Flickr photos of my Bed Stuy renovation and realized that I never blogged about my fabulous parlor floor hallway. (Nor various other little projects)

That’s the before shot you see above. The previous owners “renovated” the house. Oh please, don’t get me started. Everything in the hallway was painted a glossy shit brown…the bannister, the newel post, the doors and the molding.

After: Hallway

We took the double doors down and stripped and repaired them. They were in pretty bad shape and needed some fill in material. The back door with that badly home made transom was switched out for an antique door that actually fit into the frame.

Ah, but my pride and joy is that newel post! The one that was there when we bought the house consisted of four pieces of plywood boxed together with a Home Depot doodad on top. We found a gorgeous salvaged newel post that would have been original to a brownstone of this era and replaced it with that. The post was stripped and stained to match everything else.

The Victorian light fixture and ornate radiator were also salvaged finds.

This stuff doesn’t really take much design skill. It’s kind of just like putting back what was taken out.

Renovating on a Tight Budget

Renovating on a Tight Budget published on 1 Comment on Renovating on a Tight Budget

If your renovation is costing more than you paid for your house, something is wrong. You shouldn’t have to sell your first born to update a home. Sure, there are certain large ticket items you wouldn’t want to skimp on….roof, windows, facade, boiler, structural. But semi-skilled work? Come on.

As you know, I’m a big advocate for DIY. If you put in the sweat equity, you can be save yourself in the vicinity of $40k. I came up with that estimate by comparing DIY input to that of an unskilled day laborer at $125 per day over the course of a year. My own skills are superior to a guy you pick up at Home Depot, so my own estimate is probably double that. Obviously you wouldn’t quit your $200k per year job to do it, but as a freelancer earning bupkas, I was able to put in the time. My husband who put in a lot less time because he actually has a full time job and does earn something, probably saved us even more while only working on the house on weekends. That’s because he has mad skills.

Before I go into materials, just a few thoughts on other ways to save on labor. Painting and demolition parties, barters, hiring apprentices to high end contractors and of course picking up day laborers.

Materials range from free to high end. Since this has the words “tight budget” in the post title, guess where I’m going with this?

FREE

It would be a fun experiment to try to do an entire renovation free of cost. But nothing is ever free. It would take tons of time and probably cost more in fuel than trying to buy locally. But here goes…..

1. Craigs List. Go directly to the “free” section. You may find anything from sheetrock scraps to clawfoot tubs. People measure wrong, decide to use something else or may want to recycle what they are ripping out.

2. Freecyle.org Sign up for the group to gain access to a nationwide network of recycled goodies. IMO, it sounds a whole lot better than it is. When I signed up, I couldn’t believe the audacity of some people. One of the requests I saw was for a minivan for someone with 8 kids. Hello, maybe you should stop having kids if you can’t afford a van! But I digress. You can post your own needs, search for what’s out there and offer up what you no longer want.

3. Dumpster Diving. Oh yeah! I’m talking dumpsters parked outside of a renovation, obviously. Better still, find the fixer uppers that have just closed, contact contractors and demolition guys to see if they’ll give you the head’s up. No, they won’t be happy, but one or two of them might not think it’s great to stick everything in the landfill. You know, those sensitive contractors.

Almost Free

1. Craigslist. This time search “materials”.

2. ReStores. Located throughout the US and Canada. Run by Habitat for Humanity, these shops take donations from the public and sell the items at a fraction of the cost. They have everything including the kitchen sink. Paints, cabinets, light fixtures, furniture….

3. Build it Green. I saw a coffin in here once. If you live in NYC, this place is just as good as any Restore since the closest ReStore is in Mt. Vernon. BIG is a huuuuge warehouse in Queens. They have new and used studs, wiring, cabinets, doors, windows, appliances and more. Do keep in mind that items like plywood, sheetrock and studs go quickly as these are basic to any renovation.

4. Salvage! There are antique architectural salvage yards all over the planet. Although you might sometimes find a bargain at Olde Good Things or Demolition Depot, they are not for the shallow pocketed. My two local faves: Eddie Hibbert in Clinton Hill and Vaccaro’s in Gowanus. I’m talking antique french doors for 20 bucks and marble mantels for less than $400. *They may need work.

5. Overstock and Closeouts. Every now and then, manufacturers need to get rid of some clutter. There are samples, irregulars and dead stock taking up space. They don’t always post it online, but I’ll give you a for instance. I once found the mother load of concrete tiles, countertops and sinks on Craigslist. Get Real Surfaces in Poughkeepsie was having a sale to get rid of dead inventory. I made out with enormous boxes of tile for $10 per box. They were probably worth about $20 per square foot.

6. Ebay. Did you know that you can buy faucets, toilets and tools on Ebay? Yep, it’s all there!

7. Overstock.com. Sometimes good for faucets, shower and light fixtures, tiles…it kind of depends on what they have that week. Hit or miss.

Upscale. Low Budget

Green Demolitions. Buy what the millionaires got tired of looking at. Top shelf appliances (think Viking, Sub Zero) and cabinets for a ton less than what you would pay new. These aren’t completely inexpensive, but it’s a good deal for what it is!

PS: Side effects may include saving the planet while saving your pocketbook.

Primary Sidebar