Befores

I've had some good luck junking in the last few weeks! Check out these two little diamonds in the rough that people had left out for the garbage collector:





And this little beauty was only $15 at a local flea market:



As my place gets more and more packed with "projects" I am beginning to feel a little bit like one of TLC's Hoarders. So I might have to put these items up for sale in the shop once they're done. Keep an eye out for the "Afters" post!

Easy Candles

Is anyone else sick of using tea lights for ambiance? They burn out so darn quickly! How about a really simple, reusable, and decorative alternative?

For this project, all you need are some jars (I used spice jars from Ikea, only $2.99 for a 4 pack), melting wax (soy wax is said to burn cleaner than paraffin wax), wicks (try to get them without the wire), and a little tacky glue.



The instructions on the wax said to use some special kind of tacky wax to stick the metal plate of the wick in the jar. I didn't have any, so I used tacky glue, and it seems to work out pretty well. Just make sure the glue is dry before you pour in the hot wax.

You can melt the wax 30 seconds at a time in the microwave, but doing this tripped the 1939 electrical circuit in my duplex, so I had to resort to the old-fashioned method - melting on the stove top. Don't put the wax directly in your saucepan, use a double broiler method instead.



When the wax is clear, without any chunks, pour it carefully into your jar, avoiding the wick. It will turn opaque as it cools.



When you're done, you'll have a tidy little set of spice jar candles, which you can keep refilling with new wicks and wax as needed.



I am thinking of tying wire around the top lip of the jars, and using them as hanging candles outside.

Gigantic Photo Strip!

I've been looking for an easy, innovative way to fill a skinny patch of wallspace, and today I hit on it: an oversized version of my favorite strip of photos from last year's County Fair.

First, I bought some 5/8" square poplar dowels from my local hardware store, with which to make a frame to stretch my canvas. They only came in 36" lengths, so I had to add 8" to the ends to get my desired 44" length.



My mother helped me glue and staple together a 44x10 frame, with crossbars to stablize it. We also puttied the joints, just to make sure the staples didn't create any bumps.



Then I printed my four black and white 8x10 photos on iron-on transfer paper, and cut a 14" wide piece of canvas cloth...



Ironed them on per the instructions on the packaging...



Let them cool...



Stapled the fabric on the frame, and done! Personalized art, perfect for my bedroom! If I had it to do over again, I would probably look for a prefab frame, so I didn't have to go through all the pain of sawing, gluing, stapling, puttying... ugh. My arms ache just thinking about it. But the result is pretty satisfactory, so it was worth the effort.

More Desk Organization!

You can't say I didn't warn you! My boss was going to get rid of his Ikea Mackis desktop drawer unit thingy, so of course I snapped it up. This time I left it with the natural finish, and I quite like it.



It's a nice contrast to the white unit, and looks a little less formal. Plus, not painting the inside makes the drawers open a lot more easily!

Desktop Storage

The first day I arrived at my current job, I was greeted with this blue-washed Ikea drawer unit.



It was a storage solution that I never questioned, until I successfully completed an awesome Design*Sponge tutorial. I loved the outcome so much, I immediately wanted to make over every set of drawers I could get my hands on.

Since the unit was already blue, I couldn't stain and varnish it, the way I did with the last unit. Instead, I painted the whole shebang white, and added simple $6 acrylic drawer pulls for a whole new look.



I think this is a perfectly elegant office storage solution, especially with the added accordion filing system I added to the inside (thanks to tacky glue and craft paper).



Watch out for lots more storage solutions that take advantage of this technique. I just can't get enough!

Salvaged Chandelier

During a recent rummage mission at St. Vincent de Paul, I came across this diamond-in-the-rough:



Didn't look like much at the time, but after a coat of primer...



Then a hefty dose of blue paint, new cap nuts, and $5 worth of acrylic "crystals" from Michaels, and bada bing!



Not too shabby! All told, it was $20 for the chandelier (talked them down from $30, since I wasn't sure the lamp would work), about $15 for paint, cap nuts, and light blubs, and $5 for the faux crystals. So for about $40, I got to dress up my small hallway with a much needed punch of color and sparkle. And I just can't stop gazing at it!

Anthropologie Hack

Design*Sponge recently posted a tutorial for a diy version of Anthropologie's (ridiculously overpriced) Curator Table, and I immediately fell in love with it. I do have to admit, though, that I was pretty convinced that I could do better than the venerable Britt, when it came time to emulate her tables - not to deny her just desserts... she had the idea, I was just capitalizing on it. And I also had a miter saw, which she was apparently lacking.

Britt's table:



My table:



Really not that different, I just continued the trim all the way around the top and bottom of the table, and stained instead of painted. One word of advice though: make sure you line the molding up, so that it doesn't overlap with the drawer above or below it. Makes for a pretty difficult time opening the drawers. :/