My Living room

Here are some befores and durings...I won't say afters because I'm not nearly finished. But things are looking a little better. Sorry for the poor photo quality, it was getting dark when I took the pictures.

Before...

During...

Before...

During...

As you can see, we painted alot. The ceiling beams and trim is all SW Pure White, the walls are SW Believable Bluff, and the ceiling is SW Tidewater. At first we had talked about tearing down the ceiling beams, but after they went white and I painted the Tidewater between them, they became one of my favorite features of the room. We also painted the paneling. If you have a paneled wall, see if you can take off the paneling. We couldn't because those two closets are actually framed in by the panels. So, until we remodel the room, we had to leave the paneling walls. I painted them a bright white, which makes a huge different and adds a nautical feel to the room. They already have such a different texture from the rest of the room, that I felt they called for a different color too. If you paint paneling, make sure you get a good couple coats of primer on there first. I'm just going to say, it wasn't a quick project.

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How to make a modern fountain

So sorry, folks. I was supposed to resolve the mystery of the origin of our outdoor fountain on Thursday but the annoying real world kept intruding.

So, here it is, two days late. Drum roll please.




Here is the fountain before. In its former life, it was a big fat country armoire.

Tom built me a larger version of this armoire for our first anniversary. We cut it down in size and stripped the green stain for our 10th anniversary. Around our 13th anniversary, Tom got a flat screen television of enormous proportions. Out of that transaction, I got a new media center, which he built for me.

As for the big fat country armoire, we could not sell it or even give it away since everybody else was buying flat-panel televisions of enormous size as well. So Tom used the wood and the basic structure to build a fountain.



Here's the backside of the fountain. It has a door on the bottom half.

Inside is the piping for the pump, which sits in the bottom tier of the fountain.

Tom coated the inside of each tier with roofing sealant and painted the outside with outdoor latex paint.

Neighborhood squirrels and birds treat it as their personal drinking fountain. It's really refreshing to sit by it (as I am now) and listen to the water flow.

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Before and After: From foam packing to outdoor ottoman

When it comes to DIYs, there's a fine line between hipster upcycler and trailer trash. I'm not sure where I fall with this one.

As you may have read earlier, Tom broke his foot, and I have been on the hunt for a soft outdoor ottoman that costs almost nothing that he could prop his cast on. Also, I'd prefer something I don't have to store all winter.

This week I came across a tailored skirted ottoman slipcover someone was tossing. I had no use whatsoever for a custom skirted ottoman slipcover, but I picked it up anyway. Later, I got the idea to somehow stuff it.

I found a big chunk of packing foam at work, which I cut down to size, squeezed the slipcover over it and pinned the traditional skirt up underneath. Voila! A light and disposable soft outdoor ottoman that cost me nothing but my pride.

When I brought it home, Tom laughed until he was wet around the eyes.

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Before and After: Plant stand to modern side table

It was finally warm enough for me to finish sanding this rusty painted plant stand I rescued from the trash about a year ago. I had been using it as a stand for our mini electric grill. But I was inspired by the Platner side table to upcycle it into a modern side table.

Design Within Reach

Sanding in an apartment is an ordeal. I took the project out on our little balcony whenever it got above freezing. A friend cut a circle of Plexiglass for me. Here's the after:

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