Play Workbench

Another Christmas goody, this one is for my nephews.  I felt like I needed to step up my game for my nephews after I built the play kitchen for my nieces (if you missed that post you can view it here).

I found this old roller cabinet (probably used for a microwave or tv) at a local thrift store and decided to make it something new.  I wanted to build them a play work bench for all their, soon to have, tools.

First thing is first, it needs a couple coats of paint.  I used a dark gray chalk paint from Americana decor.

Then I began to make the back.  I cut 2 strips of 2" wide boards I had lying around down to 20" and another 2 to 29" and made a frame.  Then I laid the peg board on top to see how much I needed to cut and I trimmed that down to size also.  Then I screwed the peg board on to the frame.

Next I spray painted it white.  I was reading articles on how to transfer images from paper to wood/canvas/etc and thought I'd give it a try.  So 1 powerpoint print out later...

I read that you could use acrylic medium to transfer images.  I really wish I would have practiced first but here's what I did.  After printing out my logo I made (backwards) you brush on the acrylic medium on the ink side of the paper (just a thin layer).  Then you press it down on the surface you want to transfer to and make sure to get most of the wrinkles and air bubbles out.  Now you are supposed to let it dry over night, and I wish I would have.  Instead, we all know that I'm impatiently impatient, I used a blow dryer.

After I thought it was dry, you take water and spray the paper.  I'm not sure why I thought I could just peel the entire paper away and the image would be there but that's not how you do it.  What you are doing is actually taking little layers of the paper off.  The edges that don't have the medium on it will tear away super easy and that's fine.  What I found to work best was once I sprayed the paper with water, use a damp towel and lightly rub off the layers of paper.  NOTE: you don't want all the paper to be removed (if you do your image will quickly go away, you can see that where I started at the bottom of the logo).  Once you get it where you like it let it dry...again I used the blow dryer and followed that up with a coat of polycrylic spray.

I also attached the peg board to the work bench cart.  I set it down about 8" in the back so that I had enough places to anchor it to the cart and not worry about it falling off.  By the way, how cute are those new handles?  Here's a little closer view of them.

So for the sides of the workbench, I decided to make 1 side a chalboard using chalboard spray paint, and the other side is painted with the gray chalk paint and has a sheet of cork (you know to hang up your building plans and things).

Little push light has been installed in the bottom.  More storage bins added to the pegboard.  Chalkboard wall is complete.  All we need now are some play tools and a giant bow.

Side view #1

Side view #2

Under the cabinet

Before and after comparison

Serving tray

I came across this idea on Pinterest from Simply Designing.  I went to Sutherlands and picked up some cedar fencing.  It was cheap and I guesstimated how much I would need.  Turns out after spending $11.00 I got enough for 2 (just for the wood).

I ended up getting the following:

• (2) 1x6x6 @ $2.68
• (3) 1x4x6 @ $1.99
• A packet of corner brackets (came with 4) @ $4.79

I began by making the frame, per the directions I was following I made the following cuts:

• (2) 1"x3"x18"
• (2) 1"x3"x12"

This made the outer frame.  A little wood glue and the nail gun.

Now, I'm not going to lie....I'm horrible with angles.  So I cut the first strip of cedar (that I cut down to 2" wide) and cut my first 45 degree angle.  I did the same thing to a 2nd board I had.  I'm thinking to myself....to get it to sit flush with the frame I'll cut another 45 degree angle on the outside of the base, right?  No....

The only thing I felt like I did do right was mark my 12" board @ the 6" mark on the inside (of both sides) of the frame.  That way at least my arrow was straight.

So here's what I did and I don't recommend it.  I had all the arrows lined up glued and nailed.  On the outside the arrows (or base) weren't cut (they were various lengths I just cut on a whim.  I laid frame on top of it and traced from the inside of the frame where I needed to cut.  Then I went back with a jigsaw and cut them off.  When I did that, nothing really fit perfectly as it should.  But I put glue around the bottom inside of the frame....hammered the base in (it was pretty snug in some areas) and finished up with a nail in each arrow board.  Surely, there was a simpler way to do it.

I wanted it to be a little different and my mom really like the classic clean white.  So I chose to paint this instead of staining it.  It's painted in Old White chalk paint from Annie Sloan.  First coat down.

I know, it looks a little scary...but hang in there with me....

I also got handles from hobby lobby.  My mom has these feathers hanging on her Christmas tree that are white and the tip of them were dipped in gold paint.  Since this is a gift for her, I'm going to do the same thing with these handles (excuse the paint on my hands).  The handles were $6.99 a piece.

So I taped off the feather where I thought it looked alright and put a little gold spray paint on.

I also, put a clear coat on (I used polycrylic).

Then I attached the handles and the corner braces.  I even added a little decor.

Christmas Wreath

My son was begging for a wreath to hang on the front door, why???  I don't know.  Anyway, I wasn't about to spend $40+ on the pretty one's I've seen at the store.  So we were at the thrift store today looking around at furniture for another Christmas project when...he found one.  At $2.99 I really couldn't complain.

So later on this evening I had to go to Hobby Lobby for some other Christmas knick knacks, everything related Christmas was half off.  Everything I grabbed seemed to have sparkles.

It's going to take forever to get rid of all this glitter in the house...

Seemed a little too much to me at first but after hanging it on the door, I like it.

There you go son, you have a wreath.

Shiplap accent wall

Friday project at my sister's house.  She wanted a shiplap accent wall.  Done the thrifty way, we had some big sheets of plywood cut down to 6" wide.  Here's what we started with, nothing wrong with a patriotic room...just ready for a change.  So the white wall is what will be the accent wall, the other walls will be painted in a cream color.  I'll update paint brands/names soon as this project is still ongoing.

We were going to use liquid nails as well as staples to keep the boards up, but she decided on just the staples in case she ever wanted to make changes to the room again (that way she wouldn't have to replace the sheetrock).

Making some progress.  For the spacing going horizontally, she used a few nickels so they were spaced evenly.  For the vertical spacing we butted them right up next to each other.

After they were all hung we went back over the vertical seams and the staple holes with caulking (it's all we had but it worked great).

Followed by the first coat of paint.  Looking better already.

1st coat of wall paint done.

To be continued....

Ottoman

For my mom's birthday, my sister and I decided on making an ottoman.  Not too many pictures to share here but you get the idea.  One old tire, a couple pieces of particle board, legs and fabric and presto!!!

After adding the soft furry fabric.

Surprise!

Happy Birthday!!!

Here she is in her new home!

Bifold indoor window shutters

I've been scouring the internet trying to come up with some window treatments for my kitchen.  Should I do the white wooden 2" blinds like the rest of the house or go with curtains?  The more I looked the more frustrated I became because I couldn't find anything that was perfect (hard to find that when you aren't exactly sure what you are looking for).

Then I stumbled on a post from Pinterest, and finally found something I would be happy with.  This idea came from a blog called Homespot.  So I'm using that as my inspiration for window treatments above my kitchen sink.  After measuring the window and going off her deductions to account for the hinges, I'm feeling pretty confident that these will fit just so.

Plan is to stain these the same color as my hardwood floor.  I was really considering painting them the same white color used on my window trim, but after the cabinets are painted....having them stained instead may break up the room a bit better.  So here's the plan after making some careful calculations.

Supplies List:

• 1"x4"x8' Whiteboard at Lowe's @ $1.92/ea (Need 2 of these)
• 1"x6"x8' Whiteboard at Lowe's @ $3.92/ea  (I will need 6 of these)
• Hinges at Lowes's @ $1.97/ea (I will need 8 of these, came in packs of 2 so I ended up getting 4 packages)
• 2 knobs at Lowe's @ $2.77/ea
• Copper Spraypaint at Lowe's @ $5.88
• Minwax Early Americana Stain (already had on hand)
• Polycrylic top coat (already had on hand)

The blog I was looking off of only spent $10.  I wish I could say the same, even though my cost is higher it still is a relatively cheap project when you see the end result.  So all in all I spent around $45.

So here's my doodle AKA the plans:

If I calculated correctly, which past experience tells me the odds are not in my favor, each board (there will be 12 all together) will need to be cut to 36 3/4" x 4 7/16" (LxW).  I'm using the 1x6" boards for this.

I will need to make 3 of these for each panel.  There were be 4 panels all together, 2 for the left window and 2 for the right.  With me so far?

I will also need to cut braces to hold each panel together, for the braces I am using the 1x4" whitewood.  I need to make 8 braces all at the length of  13 1/16".

How I came up with these figures:

Each of my windows measures 37"x27 1/8" (inner most point of the window).  It was suggested to subtract 1/4" from the height and 1/2" from the width to account for the clearance room and hinges.

For the braces, it was suggested to subtract 1/4" from the width of each panel to allow the shutters to shut all the way.

Fractions and decimals are not my strong suit but I did as instructed and began with the height of each panel.  My window is 37" tall, subtracted off the 1/4" and ended up with 36 3/4".  For the width of each panel, I began with the width of the window 27 1/8" and subtracted 1/2" and arrived at 26 5/8.  Then divided by 2 (because I want 2 panels on each side) and came up with 13 5/6".  Now I want each panel to have 3 pieces of wood on it.  So I took the 13 5/16" divided that by 3, and got 4 7/16".

Phew, that hurt my brain.

Here's to the beginning of a new project.  This is what I'm working with, I've never ever really cared for the blinds that have been here since I bought the house.

Even though I can't stand to do this, I'll probably be better off staining all the boards before I assemble anything.  I also know, from the pictures that I viewed, that the hinges will show, so I either need to find bronze hinges or use some spray paint so they aren't silver.

I think the part that I really love about shutters is it's an older style, and that's right up my alley.  I also like the fact that since there are cabinets on either side of the window, even having the shutters folded open won't look weird since the cabinets are already sticking out from the wall.

So here are all of my pieces cut to size.  Time for a light sanding and stain.  I debated on routing the edges but I like the more rustic look so I'm going to leave them alone.  

I even recruited a little help for the staining process...

Couldn't find the right hinge color so a quick coat of bronze spray paint to each side will do.

Now that they are stained, let's put a coat of sealer on.  I recently read an article on the differences between polyurethane, varnish and shellac.  I've only really ever used polyurethane, but I will be sticking with polycrylic from here on out, goodbye yellowing furniture!  Ahhh, drying time....

So all the boards have been stained and sealed, time to put it all together beginning with the braces for each panel.  Just some wood glue and nails from the nail gun will be enough to keep these together.  I set them back 6" from either end.

Next adding the hinges to each panel.

I figured while I was at it, I should probably paint the trim and window.  I also used wood filler to cover the holes from where the old blinds used to be.

And adding the knobs, any project with hardware...seems to be my favorite part!  Final step attaching them to the window and voilà another home project complete.

Before and after

After thoughts: