Tutorials – Page 5 – Love My DIY Home

A is for Ability – Talent is Overrated

There are many who believe they can’t do something because of a lack of talent. But I believe that most things can be learned, even if it doesn’t come naturally. “I am not talented enough,” usually means, “I don’t want to invest the time or effort to learn this.” or, “I don’t have the confidence to try.” Unfortunately, I think we miss out on a lot due to lack of effort or vision. Years ago when we attended our daughter’s graduation at Crown College, we hear the main speaker say, “Get a vision,” while pointing his finger at the audience. We joked about it later because it was his catch phrase, and since he was very old, his finger was very crooked and his voice was very “old.” “Get a vision,” has been repeated in our family many times since then in jest, but it really is the truth. We … Read more

Typesetter’s Drawer Upcycle – Essential Oils Decorative Rack

We found this typesetter’s drawer for just a few dollars about 6 years ago and just never did anything with it…until last week. I have a challenge in my Blueprint member’s group that consists of 3 things: Clean up/organize your workshop. Make your workshop pretty. Do something special for yourself. I’m joining my members in the challenge and I’m: Cleaning up my office (workshop already done) Making my office pretty Cleaned up the typesetter’s drawer, stained and mounted it on the wall of my master bedroom hallway. Here is the “BEFORE” of the typesetter drawer: We decided to take it to the car wash and spray it down – normally you have to be very careful when getting water on old wood because it could warp. But I decided it was worth the risk since it looked like the back had already been exposed to moisture (rippled). Besides, I … Read more

Antique Side Table Updated with OFMP – An Empire Case Goods Co. Antique

Pepper – An Empire Case Goods Co. Antique This is a Sponsored Post I found a sweet little antique bedroom side table from the Empire Case Goods Company at an estate auction. It was in bad shape and everyone was passing it by like it had no more life to it. I knew better. I immediately knew it was a great find and fought till I won it. It was a bit pricey, but totally worth it. Pricey for me might not mean the same thing to others… Upon a bit of research, I found the manufacturer of this side table, the Empire Case Goods Co., listed in a 620 page library book of Jamestown, New York 1915-1916 Town Directory. From what I’ve read elsewhere, the company was formed in 1912. This side table was sold by the Donath Furniture Company in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Their tag was stapled to the … Read more

Sometimes it’s the little things that grab attention…

Have you tried dry brushing? Sometimes a little tweek to your redesign plan can grab attention and set your piece apart from the hundreds advertised online. Here’s a very short video to show you one piece that got an update fetching a pretty penny from a discerning customer. I especially like techniques that are NOT expensive that are EASY. If you like tips and prefer them by video, check out my video tips series. >>> Blessings, my creative friend.

Click for Tips

Do you spend hours online looking for answers? I used to. Now I have them written down, categorized and tested. And now YOU can have 100 tried and true furniture flipping tips in 50+ videos. Watch this video for some pricing tips.

Mold on Your Furniture?

How to Clean a Piece of Furniture Prior to Painting to Ensure Mold is Killed and Will Not Reappear * Guest Post by John Ward * I recently obtained an antique credenza at a garage sale. This hardwood masterpiece was looking a bit worse for wear, so I decided it needed a facelift. However, after examining it, I discovered it had mold spots. Whenever people hear mold, thoughts quickly jump to the black gunk we see on walls or those powdery spots on cardboard boxes stashed in the basement. But, as you may know, mold can also grow on furniture, often appearing in spots. Mold is a pretty common problem, and effectively killing mold on a piece of furniture is difficult, to say the least. If you have a piece of furniture that you want to flip, here’s the best course of action to permanently get rid of mold before … Read more

Dye Stain, Java Gel & Water-based Stain Comparison

Adding a Bit of Pizazz I have a lot to share with you today – and I’m using several different products and several different methods and techniques to try them out and let you know what I’ve learned or discovered. NOTE: Most products listed are affiliate links. So here we go. First up: Let’s look at the differences between three different General Finishes stains: Java Gel (my personal favorite), regular water-based stain, and dye stains. If you’ve not used General Finishes dye stains, order some and check them out. They are water-based and super easy to work with. So here’s the deets: After prepping the piece, I painted the body in Loganberry from Chalky Chicks and topcoated it with matte CrystaLac water-based polyurethane. I left some of the wood parts that were had a nice grain and spiffed them up with Wise Owl Lemon Verbena salve, a gift from … Read more

Upcycled Antique Window Wall Decor

NOTE: All red hyperlinks are affiliate links for your convenience.* UPCYCLING AN OLD WINDOW I found an old window (click site for window repalcements) at a salvage warehouse and thought it would make a good addition to my living room walls. The only problem was it was old, dirty and falling apart. But I had a plan which is solar tinting as suggested by the professionals. I could see it all spiffed up and shiny new even though it looked like this: I paid $12 for it and asked DH to load it up. He shook his head and took it home for me. See, DH can’t envision like I can, so he often wonders how I can make something like this look good enough to use for decor. Fortunately he’s willing to help and has knowledge from past experience that helps me transform a piece. Reglazing The old … Read more

A Bit of Couch Table Glitz

Every time I flip a piece of furniture, I wish I could find a permanent spot for it in my own home. I think this is common for anyone who turns an old out-dated piece into art. We put our heart and soul into it throughout the creative process. It’s something that you must experience before you understand. It’s even hard to see it go out the door when it sells. You feel like a piece of yourself is leaving. Of course the cash in hand is great as is the thought that someone else will enjoy your creation. But still. It’s an emotional moment. I find it quite funny that we would get so attached to a “thing”. But it’s true. A piece of ourselves goes out the door each time. Here is the before. We got it from our favorite shop in Door County here in Wisconsin. We … Read more

Damaged But Not Destroyed

We tend to toss rather than fix, don’t we? Let’s reconsider. Let’s look through a better lense when considering what to do with an item. It’s so amazing to see an upcycle, redesigned and/or repurposed piece of furniture, decor, or whatever. I’ve seen it. I’ve done it. And I want to see you see it a do it too. This former book table shelf plywood and 2x4s homemade thingy was on Craig’s List. It was terribly scratched up by the owner’s dog. The lady was super apologetic about it when I went to go take a look. I even considered saying, “No thanks” to her when I saw how beat up it was. But I took it anyway and stored it for over a year waiting for time and inspiration to tackle it. Whenever I have a new product, method or technique I want to try out, in my mind’s … Read more