Ally and Callie: The Other 128 Hours: DIY

Showing posts with label DIY. Show all posts

DIY: Seat Upgrade, Refinishing Dining Chairs

Craigslist shopping has been a part-time job lately. I was on the hunt for queen anne dining chairs to pair with our new rustic farm table, which was hand crafted by You're Unique. Finally found four chairs that fit the bill and my vision. I was able to easily unscrew the cushions from the chairs, and reupholster them to turn these classic chairs country.

queen anne chairs makeover - before and after

Project Time: 3.5 hours
Project Cost (4 Chairs): $145.79

Materials:

$100 - Chairs (craigslist)
FREE (on hand) - 120-grit sand paper
$20 - 1 2/3 yards linen fabric (Joann's 50% off)
FREE (on hand) - Staple gun
$5 - Small roller
$10 - Quart of paint (Martha's Stewart in Heavy Cream)
$.79 - Sponge brush
$10 - Finishing wax
FREE - 2 old rags

Step 1: SAND - I used leftover 120-grit sandpaper from my end table project to give the chairs a rough sand. I didn't completely strip them, I just wanted to kill the high gloss shine. Take a damp rag to get rid of any dust and debris.
Step 2: PAINT - Make your own chalk paint (TUTORIAL), and use a roller to cover the chairs. I also took a sponge bruch to get into the nooks that weren't reachable by the roller. I did two coats.
Step 3: WAX - Use a rag to apply a thin coat of finishing wax to your chairs. Then, take a dry rag to wipe off, giving it a matte finish.
Step 4: REUPHOLSTER - Reupholster your seat cushions with new fabric (TUTORIAL)
Step 5: ASSEMBLE - Screw cushions back to chairs, and test them out!

DIY: Upholstering Perfect Corners

I recently made over some dining room chairs, which I plan to share with you next week. In the meantime, I want to show you an easy way to handle those tricky corners when reupholstering. The best way I found to handle corners is tri-fold. Before we get to the corners, I'll start from the beginning...

Project Time: 45 minutes
Project Cost: $20

Materials:

FREE (came w/ chairs obviously!)- Old seat cushions
$20 - 1 2/3 yds. fabric (for 4 chairs.. plenty of leftover)
FREE (on hand) - Fabric scissors
FREE (on hand) - Staple gun

My winning fabric lived at Joann's. I picked out a beautiful beige linen, and did everything I could to find a coupon. Luckily, it was a holiday weekend, and I was able to get 40% off!

Step 1: MEASURE - Place seat cushion face side down to determine the length to cut your fabric. Leave 4 inches extra on each side.
Step 2: STAPLE CENTERS - Once fabric is cut, center your cushion (still face side down). Fold over about 1/4-1/2" to create a nice even line, and staple the center of each side. PULL TIGHTLY.

Step 3: STAPLE SIDES - Continue to staple (and pulling tightly) leaving a little bit of room before reaching the corners.

Step 4: TRIM ACCESS - You will end up with access fabric once you reach your corners. Trim them down with fabric scissors, leaving roughly 3" left for you to work with. (Yes, I am in my PJ's.. it was a late night project!)

Step 5: CORNERS (TRI-FOLD) -

Smooth out fabric and staple horizontally
Smooth out fabric and staple at an upward angle
Smooth out fabric and staple vertically

Step 6: FILLERS - Fill in the extra spaces with your staple gun.

Wine Box Organizer

Moving gives you a clean slate, so as we are settling into our new house, I'm trying to find the perfect home for everything.. including those extra ugly wires that I have a tendency to toss into a bag and bury in the closet.

Organizing wires and cables for your home

To organize those odds and ends, my go-to is a wine bottle box, which already has compartments (amen!). It's a great solution to organizing my extra cords, paint rollers.. really anything! Next time you go to the liquor store for some Skinny Girl wine, kill two birds with one stone and grab some wine packing boxes too!

Contruction Zone: DIY Ahead

I have a handful of new DIY projects in the works, but not one is ready for a photo shoot, so here are a few sneak peaks into what is to come...

We gathered wood from an abandoned 1920's home.

All of the walls are made from solid wood. I grabbed a few pieces for a new coat rack. I loaded my truck bed with a handful of other goodies, including cabinet doors and trim. I am really excited about the future of this abandoned wood.

I found this treasure on craigslist, a set of old school lockers, perfect for a home with no storage. Some spray paint and baskets will transform this trash to storage treasure.

And last, hubs and I have been busy planting our garden, in our new DIY modern garden planter. A full tutorial to come.

June is a month of travel and parties, so I am working to complete these as time allows. I look forward to sharing my completed projects with you all soon.

What's on your to-do list this month? Share with us below.

DIY: Refinishing End Table

Furnishing a home is not-so-easy. After spending thousands of dollars on a down payment, you're now spending thousands of dollars to making it feel like a home. I'm sharing with you all of my budget-friendly projects and bargains for our new brick ranch. First up, an end table for the living room.

Materials:

$20 - End table (craigslist find)
$4 - 120-grit sandpaper
FREE (on hand) - Cloth
FREE (coupon) - Chalk paint color of choice (mix Plaster of Paris with any paint color: TUTORIAL)
$5 - Stain of choice
$10 - Sealer (polyurethane or finishing wax
$2.50 - 3 sponge brushes

TOTAL COST: $41.50

Step 1: SAND - I sanded the top since I was restaining, and it was really beat up. Take a damp cloth and wipe down all dust and debris.
Step 2: PAINT - I made my own chalk paint (TUTORIAL), and painted the bottom of my table with my sponge brush. I did two coats for full coverage. Trust me, your first coat WILL NOT look pretty!
Step 3: STAIN - I used a dark stain in Kona to cover the top of my table with another sponge brush. Two coats does the trick!
Step 4: DISTRESS - I went around some of the edges with 120-grit sand paper to just barely distress the piece.
Step 5: SEAL - Using my last sponge brush, I sealed the whole table with a water-based poly.

Can't wait to reveal the whole living room makeover!

Changed My World

Thank you Zach for showing us how to live and thank you Carlos for sharing. Now go make someone smile today!

A Reclaimed Weekend

I have been waiting for a dry weekend for weeks now, to go up to my father's land to gather reclaimed wood from an old barn. I came across a pricey Buckhead art piece for $700 that I want to recreate. While I have a stock of reclaimed wood, I thought I should make a few extra items as well. Here are a few ideas (or places to buy) from some of my favorite etsy shops:

Planters for summer flowers like these from Lilpicker. I love the addition of handles.

Coat rack from So Purdy Creations

Frames from ReBarnCHF

Wine rack from Aspen Bottle Holders

and last I found this on Siler's birthday registry from Reclaimed Things

What items should I add to my list?

DIY Painted Mason Jars

This weekend, a few of my bridesmaids threw me a wedding shower. I'm sure you'll see all of the details of the mimosa bar and brunch setup in an upcoming post from Callie!

As my thank you hostess gifts, I gave each girl a flower arrangement in hand-painted mason jars, and a cute pair of earrings from one of my favorite boutiques, Francesca's.

Mason Jar Recipe:

Wilton Icing Color (from Michael's w/ 40% coupon)
Modge Podge (find at any craft store)
Foam brush (from Mochael's)
Spray Adhesive
Natural Jute
Hot glue gun

Step 1: Mix icing color of choice and modge podge. Depending on what you want your jar to look like, color to modge podge ratio will differ. For mine, I used very little icing color. My suggestion would be to start out small, and you can always add more.

Step 2: Use your foam brush to paint your colored "paint" on the outside of your jar. Set to dry.

Step 3: Spray a clear adhesive over your painted mason jar to seal.

Step 4: Use your hot glue gun to attach your natural jute, or hemp along the top rim of your jar.

Step 5: Add flowers to your finished product!

More Pallet!

With the success of my DIY pallet bed, I decided to make a matching pallet coffee table. The low height and square shape give the table a modern touch, but the rustic paint and uneven finish keep with the cottage feel of our home. The pallet coffee table was a much easier project than the bed and can be completed in a day.

Step 1:
Gather materials.

1 pallet - look for a pallet with solid wood, thick slates and minor to no cracking
4 4" wheels
4 pieces of scrap wood cut to the size of the wheel to add height
16 bolts
16 nuts
16 washers
paint if desired

tools:

power drill
paint brush

Step 2:
Paint both the pallet and wood blocks

Step 3:
Once the paint is dry, lay the top of the pallet on the floor and trace the holes from the wheels on desired location. Repeat tracing step on the blocks of wood.

Step 4:
Drill holes in the pallet and the wood blocks.

Step 5:
Assemble by placing the bolts thru the wheel, the wood block and the pallet. Add a washer and fasten with a bolt.

Step 6:
Clean up, flip over and you're done! I love using the wheels because it makes the table very versatile. When friends are over, we load it up with snacks and pass the table around.

Color Block Beaded Necklace

I've been so busy cranking out orders for my etsy shop, I rarely have time to make something special for myself. My Europe trip is slowly approaching, and calls for some a new punchy accessory to take abroad.

When I received an email from Fusion Beads for 30% all wood beads, I jumped to the opportunity for a great deal (when do I not?!). Here is my piece - a chunky color block wood bead necklace. Let me know if anyone is interested in a full tutorial!

Total time to make: 1 hour
Total cost: $18.70
Materials:

2 strands 10mm greywood beads
2 strands 10mm rosewood beads
2 strands 10mm natural beads
2 crimp beads (necessary to hold beads on string)
6 closed jump rings
6 open jump rings
large lobster clasp

Flowers To Fill

If you purchased Ally's planters from her post last week like I want to, you now need to fill them with flowers. Last year I went with a monochromatic red and white theme around my home. This year, my spring blooms have inspired me to use tons of color.

So off to Home Depot I went - they have the best prices on flowers in my area, even though Pikes has prettier blooms off the shelf, you can get your HD blooms looking just as good with some tlc.

I picked up some purple, pink and white begonias for my window boxes. They are hearty and can take lots of sunshine. I chose salvia for my flower beds mixed with marigolds, because they grow thick with tons of blooms. And then some amazing fuchsia plants to hang on my partly shaded trellis.

Planting is super simple. Pick out flowers based on the amount of sun they will receive in each location, sunny(6+ hours of sun), part-sun (4-6 hours of sun) and shade (less than 6 hours). Since counting the hours of the sun can sound daunting, if your yard gets sunshine, pick the flowers on the sunny isle.

Pick up a bag of potting soil to place in a pot. Carefully pull the flower and dirt from the plastic tray, separating the bottom of the root system by lightly pitching the roots apart.

Dig a small hole for the flower roots and firmly cover with dirt. Water, water, water all summer long. I planted my left overs in a few pots for the back porch. Mix and match and have fun.

Best of luck on your blooms!

Wedding Thank You Cards

The wedding is creeping up, and we've already received some wedding gifts! It feels like the Martha Stewart fairy is sprinkling her love all over our home. With my bridal shower in less than a month, I need to start thinking about 'thank you' cards for our wonderful friends and family.

Since I've designed all of the print materials for the wedding so far, I'll be adding 'thank you' cards to the portfolio, but everyone needs a little inspiration. Here are some of many ideas I found. Any favorites? Send your thoughts and ideas my way!