Archive for the ‘before’ Category

COLOR DIPPING

Wednesday, April 18th, 2012

If you saw Emily Henderson’s blue office makeover or Cassandra’s red red redo on Coco and Kelley, then it’s old news that it’s Sherwin-Williams National Painting Week. I’m celebrating paint and painting and paint related things with a bit of DIY and the funnest of yellows, Fun Yellow.

DIY? Say what.

Here’s what: Burl. Jute. Color Dipping. Magic.

Lets do this thing.

…………………..

MATERIALS

TOP
2 – wood tops/whatever you’d like to use. *I used two slabs of vintage redwood burl I found on Craigslist, but you can use anything your heart desires. Like maybe burl? Oh, wait.

LEG
6 – 1/2″ x 10″ galvanized steel pipe
6 – 1/2″ galvanized floor flange
1 – jute twine
1 – paint *I used Sherwin Williams Fun Yellow

TOOLS
1 – drill
24 – screws
1 – glue *I used Gorilla Super Glue. Why? It was already here.
1 – masking tape
1 – small paint brush

HOW TO

1. Screw the steel pipe (or nipple – if you prefer the hilarious technical terminology) into the flange.

2. Squeeze a dollop of glue onto the base of the threaded part of the pipe and attach the end bit of that jute twine.

3. Wrap jute twine around the entire length of the pipe. Yes, it’s boring, but really doesn’t take that long.

*Be sure to keep the twine slightly taut as you wrap and also as you’re wrapping, it helps to push the wrapped twine down towards base for even coverage.

4. Finish wrapping the length of the pipe and cut the twine.

5. Tuck the loose twine bit into the pipe and secure with a spot of glue.

Now you have a fully jute wrapped leg. Hooray.

*Smart person tip: notice how the twine actually wraps over the pipes rough threaded end in order to protect delicate floors and such? Be nice to your floors!

6. Measure 3″ down from the foot end of the pipe.

7. Tape around the pipe horizontally at this 3″ mark.

8. Dip the securely taped leg into some paint. Like yellow maybe?

*Smart person tip: Stuff old newspaper bits or paper scraps into the leg hole so it won’t fill up with paint and drip forever.

9. Brush off any excess paint drips with a small brush and lay the leg down to dry.

10. Once the paint fully dries, go ahead and remove the tape slowly and carefully to keep the paint edge crisp.

Repeat and repeat and repeat all of those steps as needed.

FACT : tables need more than one leg. Crazy, but true.

Look at you, you sassy finished legs. Hey now.

OK, now that every leg is jute wrapped, color dipped and thoroughly dry – then what happens?

Well, these babies can’t wait to hold stuff off the floor.

The time is now.

Lets go nuts.

Screw the finished legs onto whatever top you’ve scrounged up and then repeat and repeat and repeat. Do I need to say that the screws go through the flange holes? No, but I did.

Anyways. Boom. Legs. Done.

Now you have the power to transform anything into a table. Use it wisely.

Look whose all screwed on and ready to be a nightstand! You legs! That’s who!

Go get in the guest bedroom, you silly gooses.

Adding these custom dipped boots of color to the jute wrapped legs helped float the nightstands off the black wall and wood floor in all the best possible ways. The final tables turned out way better than I’d dare hope, which is great since I’ve gotten incredible tired of looking for nightstands.

All my problems? Solved.

DIY accomplished. Done and Done.

Even notoriously pretentious Iggy-pup is impressed. He also asks that you ignore that new headboard situation happening. Details soon.

Oh, so just in case nightstands aren’t your jam – no worries, my feelings aren’t that hurt – methinks this project can easily be customized to anything and everything you’d like to wrap in jute or color dip. Like your friends? Neighbors? Or maybe something more practical, like taller legs for a dining table?

Color boots for everyone.

…………………..

For more color fun, check out Amanda Hill’s project launching tomorrow over at Recycled Consign and Design. Thanks again to Sherwin-Williams inviting me to participate and helping sponsor my project for National Painting Week.

 

LEGGY

Tuesday, April 10th, 2012

I picked up this hunky bit of burl some time ago with plans to rip off those too tall and weirdly sad peg legs that had been slapped on it. This chunk of redwood burl is everything I’ve been dreaming of in a coffee table, so I wanted to do something spectacularly special and possibly brassy for the base?

So, of course I gave up after a few weeks of failed ideas and worse attempts at brassy greatness by throwing some basic hairpin legs on this puppy.

Come on.

Sometimes you’re on eBay and you’re fed up and you buy some 12″ hairpin legs and call it a goddamn day.

Three legs with three screws each and boom, done. No more stressing out about legs.

Now it sits at the right coffee table height (about 15″) and these new hairpin legs don’t actually offend me. I like the contrast in materials and maybe I’ll eventually figure out how to get some brassy ones on there. For now, this is working out great.

ADMIT IT. That’s some good wood.

So burly.

The living room is still going through some changes, so pretty please let’s all agree to just ignore the layout. Focus on that chunk of amazing wood. It’s growing on you. You like it.

Burls.

CHANDELIER

Wednesday, February 8th, 2012

Farewell Lindsey Adelman DIY Chandelier.

It’s not you, it’s me. I swear.

I’m not a one lamp kind of girl.

You are bright and brassy and great, but it was time and you’ve moved on to a better and more exciting life. Let’s stay in touch, OK?

(moment of silence)

Now that that awkwardness is behind us, lets focus on the reality of living for months without a dining room light- a situation that becomes darkly apparent as I repeatedly flip the switch in an absentminded attempt to brighten the room up. The shame of being so dumbly forgetful in that moment rushes over me in a hot tidal wave of crrraaaapppp.

Brutal-palooza via RUE

After the DIY Adelman’s abrupt departure, I started courting some big brutalist chandeliers in a frustrating game where I’m desperate and they all play hard to get. Three great ones slipped away from me on the old eBay for just DOLLARS while the next potential beast was a ‘sure thing’ until the dealer who’d agreed to a certain arrangement sold it out from under me. Coincidentally, during the week I thought the brutal deal was done, I stumbled on the last and final stabby brass monster which I shortsightedly turned down. Since having two of these things seemed way to bourgie?

via Metro Retro

Suck it, lamp. I’m burnt out on chasing the elusive brutal dream.

Break my heart one too many times and I won’t go back. And really, when am I going to get over this brutal phase? Soon? Probably soon.

Nevertheless, H.F.N.D.R.L ’12 (AKA Hunt For a New Dining Room Light) has entered phase two…in which I sort of look around and consider other lights. Edge of your seat shit, I know, but that big ugly hole is mocking me as I endlessly flip the switch in my spooky dining room. Obviously, life is incredibly rough. Boo hoo. I need a chandelier.

Bourgie.

Bourgie to the max.