Bedside Table DIY For some reason I was having the hardest time picking out bedside tables for our bedroom. Do you ever get a mental block about something? Why was finding the perfect bedside tables turning out to be so hard? Bed Side Table tools and supplies: 1.5" Kreg screws (fine thread) you won't have to pre-drill with these screws.75" wood screws3/4" hardwood sheet of hardwood plywood 4' by 8'drillwood gluesandpaper (50 and 220 grit)straight edgetape measurepencilskill sawOptional:stainpolyurethane Steps: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. Jeremy and I absolutely LOVE how the tables turned out! DIY Shelving Unit: 2 Ways Sometimes you need a little extra storage in a room. Going vertical can help maximize space but it can be hard to find a bookshelf or cart in the specific dimensions your space requires. My favorite solution is to build something myself! I built my cart knowing I'd probably use it in a few different rooms in the future, because we tend to move a lot. 1. I love a touch of industrial in every space to toughen up the girly vibe that I lean towards. I chose Krylon Italian Olive for my shelf, because I love the industrial look paired with an industrial color. My favorite kind of furniture is versatile, so I'm really happy with how this turned out.
DIY Tree Stump Side Tables I have always loved seeing tree stumps that people have spruced up to become a part of their homes. They always looks so stunning! I've seen ones that were painted solid gold or silver, I've seen them half painted or just the tops, and I've seen quite a few where folks simply stained the wood so that you could still see the beautiful grain. I wasn't quite sure what I wanted to do with my tree stumps, but I definitely wanted to give this project a try. First step: locating stumps. After getting my stumps I started looking around for information about drying them out. Once the tree stumps are dried out (or mostly dried out) the bark will be much easier to remove. I highly recommend using a hand sander or belt sander to remove any remaining bark and to get your tree stump looking smooth. Now apply wood filler to any large cracks or holes. After much thought (probably too much) I decided I wanted to stain the wood instead of paint. Next I added wheels (casters) to the bottom of my stumps.
DIY Brass Side Tables Trey and I have been wanting a side table (or two) for next to an over sized chair in our living room. Often one of us (or both, if we're feeling snugly) will sit in this chair while eating dinner and watching the Daily Show. The problem? There's nowhere to set a cup or your plate temporarily when your done. We have three dogs (three!) so not having a place off the ground for your drinking glass or empty plate can be a dangerous thing. :) We used to have these DIY tree stump tables next to the chair. These are heavily modeled after this Jonathan Adler table. 1.) 2.) 3.) 4. 5.) 6.) *I had originally planned to use J.B. Once your wood dries you are good to go. Credits // Author and Photography: Emma Chapman.
Make Your Own Eye Mask! Any other "light sleepers" out there?? If so, don't cheer too loudly, one of our fellow LS may be trying to take a nap. I didn't realize that I was a light sleeper, until I got to college and found out how difficult it can be to sleep in a dorm with lots of other people nearby. Supplies: Download the pattern (right click/ctrl + click on Mac and select "Save file/link as"), two patterns of cotton fabric, quilt batting (to add some thickness to the mask), elastic, fabric glue, felt, seude fringe, fabric scissors. 1. These turned out so cute (and were easy to make!) Credits // Author and Photography: Laura Gummerman
Build a Rotating Teen Storage Unit PDF version This plan is based on the PB Teen Display-It Storage Mirror. My 13-year-old saw it and wants to build it, so I'm producing plans for it! I'm going to call the project "intermediate" skill level because of the swivel base part, but the rest of it should be "beginner"! My version uses 1/2" thick MDF plus, if you want, crown molding and furring strips for decorative purposes. Handmade from this plan >> Dimensions Dimensions: 21" x 21' x 70" Materials and Tools Shopping List: 3 sheets 1/2" thick 49x97 MDF Crown Molding, if desired 1x2 Furring Strips for framing mirror and cork board, if desired Cork Board Roll 58 3/4"L x 17 3/4" Floor Mirror Hanging Pegs or Hardware or 3M hooks Lazy Susan, 12", 5/16" Thick Capacity 1000 lbs. 1 1/4 inch screws wood glue wood filler 120 grit sandpaper primer wood conditioner paint paint brush Tools: square drill sander countersink drill bit Cut List Cut List: Sheet #1 2 @ 21" x 64" 2 @ 21" x 21" Sheet #2 1 @ 21" x 64" 1 @ 21" x 20" 2 @ 19 1/2" x 19 1/2" 2 @ 21" x 20" Step 1 Step 2
Make a DIY Knock-Off Orb Chandelier!! <div class="greet_block wpgb_cornered wpgb_shadowed"><div class="greet_text"><div class="greet_image"><img class="enable-pib-img-under" src=" alt="WP Greet Box icon" data-recalc-dims="1"/></div>Thanks for coming by! I try to feature a new creative tutorial every day -- and I'd love to have you follow along: <a href=" rel="nofollow"><strong>subscribe to my email updates</strong></a> or <a href=" rel="nofollow">come follow along on Facebook</a>.<div style="clear:both"></div></div></div> Have you seen those Orb Chandeliers at all of the high-end stores?? I love their shape and modern look. And we thought how fun would it be if we each made one and then shared our tutorials on the same day?? Projects are always so much more fun when you do them with a friend! What a great friend! So Shelley came over one day and we worked on it. Notes on design:
DIY Orb Chandelier Tutorial - Zgallerie Eclipse Knockoff Who knew that over 3 years later we'd become the best of blogging buddies and life-long friends (???) It's so crazy how life works, isn't it? From painted chevron rugs to Valentines day subway art and even a little help with a bedroom makeover (soon to be revealed on Jen's blog), I've had a BLAST working with this super-talented-creative-mega-mind friend of mine, and hope we NEVER stop collaborating on awesome projects together. All that being said, about 2 months ago Jen and I were laying around in a hotel room, during a blogging event, talking about things we wanted to still get done in our homes, and we both mentioned how MUCH we really wanted one of those cool orb chandelier lights that we kept seeing around in all the high-end stores. If we saved, we knew we could probably afford one, but neither one of us felt like spending over $500, or DOUBLE THAT on a single light fixture was really the best place to put all of our hard earned cash. Here's how we did it: (see first image) Ta-da!
chalk paint annie sloan | TwoFriendsTwoCitiesOneVision After searching Craigslist, thrift stores, and everywhere in between, I found this table at Marshall’s…when I didn’t even go to Marshall’s looking for a table. Isn’t that how it always goes?? This table was the perfect width for my entry. A Ballard Designs table for 4 bones. $400. And I paid $100 for mine. I bought a sample size of the most beautiful Antibes Green Annie Sloan’s paint for $9.99. And down to the last drop of paint, the table looked like this: And distressed with american walnut colored stain: Here she sits, partially styled. Antibes Green is the most perfect vintage green I’ve ever found! xoxo, Carrie Today’s Creative Blog, Tip Junkie, Home Stories AtoZ, Blah to Beautiful
a { letterpress inspired } play table. » Wild Ink Press By now most of you will have forgotten that we were working on Cameron’s big boy room… a long, long time ago. I believe I left you hanging mid-remodel, and I’m sure if anyone remembers the project at all, it is to think “poor kid, still sleeping on the floor with no furniture” – in fact, I received an email last week from a reader asking me just that! Well, in as many words. Rest assured, we have made progress on the room. Which is what I’m going to share with you today. I started with a 30″ play table I purchased from Amazon… ….All I wanted was to guarantee it was affordable, solid wood (no plastic, no particleboard!!!) In two days, with a bit lot of elbow grease, I turned it into this… …a letterpress-inspired, numbers-fun play space. Are you ready for the blow-by-blow? I began by sanding the finish off completely on the top of the table. For the legs and underneath, I planned to paint them, not stain, so I simply scuffed the surface with the sander a bit. Next was the stain… You see?
How to Create Your Own Subway Art Furniture/Dresser | Houston Furniture Refinishing: Lindauer Designs Just show us some love & link back once you are ready to show off your masterpiece! See the original NYC Subway Dresser here Finished NYC Subway Dresser Well our NYC Subway Dresser has become a huge hit – thank you to everyone for all the feedback & kind words. The secret to this piece was not stencils or complicated taping – it was simply stick on vinyl letters from Hobby Lobby – yep, that’s it! Since I didn’t take step by step pictures of the dresser in progress (because frankly, this was an experiment that totally rocked), I quickly whipped up a piece to show you the steps involved. Step 1: Get yourself a piece of furniture to work with and paint your base colors. Step 1 - Blank Slate Step 1: Apply base color Step 2: Apply the vinyl letters once your base coat is dry. Step 2: Apply the letters Step 3: Apply the top coat of paint & let dry Step 3: Top Coat Step 4: Peel off the letters once the top coat is completely dry. Step 4: Peel off letters Step 5: Distress Step 6: Apply waxes As seen on:
Outdoor Shelves Part Two: Framed Hens and Chicks After a bitter cold week here in North Central Pennsylvania things finally started to warm up yesterday. I think it’s almost time to start picking up some plants! In fact, my Mom and I have a little trip planned to visit this amazing greenhouse tomorrow. So excited! Yesterday I made a little more progress on my Outdoor Shelves. I now am officially the owner and creator of my first vertical garden! Now, I know what you are thinking, “Michael, you’re going to need a few more hens and chicks because that just looks like framed dirt.’ I do realized I need a lot more hens and chicks, but I picked up this little bunch at my brother’s house yesterday and just couldn’t wait to get started. Here is how this whole thing came together. The first step to making my framed hens and chicks was to cut a back for my frame. I picked up some hardware cloth (wire screen) at the local hardware store. I trimmed off the excess on each corner to to give me a nice clean edge when inserting it into the frame.
Restoration Hardware DIY Desk Hi guys!! I hope you have all had a great week! I am so excited to share my latest build with you guys. I wanted a desk that didn’t take up too much space, and that would also grow with him. So… I hit up my sweet friend Ana White for some easy DIY plans to make my very own. Here is how it turned out… This is a super easy build! I did use my very favorite tool on this build… Love my Kreg Jig®. Here are my pocket holes for my bottom shelf supports. And here they are attached to my legs… I did a straight cut for both of my shelves. I decided to countersink my screws at the top of the legs. Here are the legs just before I added the top shelves. For my table top I used this project panel from Lowe’s and I LOVE it! I used Gorilla Glue Wood Glue on all of my joints, and I also use it to attach the legs to the top. That is it! To finish his desk I used my very favorite… Rust-Oleum Ultimate Wood Stain in Dark Walnut This stuff is great… Dries in less than an hour. This is my favorite. That is it. I love it!
Pallet Board World Map We’re happy to have my younger sister, Lyndsay, back here on The Merrythought with another guest post. This time with a fun DIY to spruce up your home or office wall space. I love this project – I’ve been obsessed with globes and maps since I was a kid (anyone else steal the maps out of their mom’s National Geographic Magazines? No? It’s not uncommon for me to feel inspired by something I see on Pinterest and think “I can make that!” What you need: -A pallet -A hammer -A pry bar (to separate the pallet boards) -A saw -Nails -Tracing paper -Tape -A free online map outline of the world -A carpenter pencil -A sharpie (color of your choice) -Indoor latex paint of your choosing (I went with thicker so I only had to paint only one coat) -One thick paint brush -One thin paint brush for edges [My favorite color is yellow and my office does not get much sunshine, so I decided it would be the perfect color to brighten up the walls. Thanks for sharing this great project with us Lyndsay!