The second photo gives you an idea of the damage on the finer details and the corners. I apologize to those who cannot stand the sight of painted wood (sorry mom) but it would have been very very difficult to sand and stain all the pieces!
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
The Before and After for Micheal's Dresser!
Since I do most of the blogging I tend to be the "keeper of the photos" and when I asked Micheal why he didn't include a "before" picture he said he couldn't find one. So without further ado, BEFORE and after. :)
The second photo gives you an idea of the damage on the finer details and the corners. I apologize to those who cannot stand the sight of painted wood (sorry mom) but it would have been very very difficult to sand and stain all the pieces!
The second photo gives you an idea of the damage on the finer details and the corners. I apologize to those who cannot stand the sight of painted wood (sorry mom) but it would have been very very difficult to sand and stain all the pieces!
Monday, October 24, 2011
DC Metro Deals Under $100
Some Craigslist finds - since I don't have time to go grab this stuff up myself I'll pass along my finds to you!
Not quite the vintage "poof" but still a nice wicker accent - $30
A cute vintage dining set that would look great with paint and new upholstery! - $50
Vintage oval mirror that would look beautiful either cleaned up or spray painted. Turquoise? Yes please! - $24! Couldn't beat that at Marshalls!
While these aren't vintage they have that industrial AND I'm pretty sure are a steal at $50 for both.
TEN DOLLARS for this beautiful 1940s waterfall desk/vanity - WHAT?! Looks to be in good shape too.
Cutie pa-tootie plaid leather ottoman - $50 is a bit pricey for my taste, but it sure is sweet!
Saturday, October 22, 2011
We feel violated... (well, mostly me)
Not that we copyrighted it or anything, but you can't tell my they didn't google "foreclosure 2 fabulous" and what comes up first? US!! And the show is lame. I had always intended to just buy the URL for F2F but never got around to it and it made me pretty sad when I saw that it was now taken. They started posting in March, le-sigh. Maybe when I'm done with internship I can give them a run for their money! Micheal suggested starting to make web episodes for some of the stuff we do, maybe I'll give it a try. :)
-Kari
P.S. You might notice the other tabs have stuff on gluten-free, it's an experiment - I'm on day 6 or so with only one major slip up.
Friday, October 21, 2011
Micheal's Fancy Dresser
We finished the dresser a few weeks back, so I thought I would finally get some pics up. It sat for awhile in the basement as countless other projects took precedence, I finally decided to knock it out when I realized the basement was getting a little crowded with projects. Originally I wanted to strip and stain the dresser. But I'm glad we painted it instead, there were a few "beauty marks" that would have been difficult to minimize, I started to embrace the imperfections when painting the dresser because it added a little character without throwing off the aesthetic (you can see one of these marks on the top left drawer).
I started by removing the hardware and drawers. One of the main reasons we decided to paint the dresser was the realization that it would be nearly impossible to sand the edge carvings. Absent that hurdle everything was sanded using 120 grit paper with the Ridgid palm sander and the final sand by hand. The edge carvings required a little more strategy. Folding a small section of sandpaper over 1" metal square allowed me to get inside the crevices without rounding the edges.
The best lesson from the last dresser I painted was to paint the inside of the drawer slots because when the drawers are closed you can see the unpainted wood from different angles. So this time I taped off the inside of the drawer slots giving them a nice finished edge. To prevent the drawers from scuffing the paint I inserted small felt pads where the drawers would slide across the paint.
Kari used a polyurethane finish on the top to give it more durability. Although it added a little shine to the matte finish there is less fear about scratching the paint. I reattached the original hardware keeping the aged patina. I have yet to sit down and decide where all the clothes will go, so far I've only stocked the sock drawers. I love the short top drawers, because now everything is nicely displayed.
 |  |
I started by removing the hardware and drawers. One of the main reasons we decided to paint the dresser was the realization that it would be nearly impossible to sand the edge carvings. Absent that hurdle everything was sanded using 120 grit paper with the Ridgid palm sander and the final sand by hand. The edge carvings required a little more strategy. Folding a small section of sandpaper over 1" metal square allowed me to get inside the crevices without rounding the edges.
 |  |
The best lesson from the last dresser I painted was to paint the inside of the drawer slots because when the drawers are closed you can see the unpainted wood from different angles. So this time I taped off the inside of the drawer slots giving them a nice finished edge. To prevent the drawers from scuffing the paint I inserted small felt pads where the drawers would slide across the paint.
Kari used a polyurethane finish on the top to give it more durability. Although it added a little shine to the matte finish there is less fear about scratching the paint. I reattached the original hardware keeping the aged patina. I have yet to sit down and decide where all the clothes will go, so far I've only stocked the sock drawers. I love the short top drawers, because now everything is nicely displayed.
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Weekend Landscaping, Nixing Bushes
The past few weeks we have finished a few projects, most notable my dresser and a small record cabinet. We have also been discussing larger projects like insulating the attic, reconfiguring our entry door, and building a front deck. However, this weekend I opted to work on the yard. Landscaping is a challenge because our front and back yard are inclined and the front bushes were probably put in to lessen erosion. Ultimately we want to terrace the front yard. Not sure on the design yet, but I'm a fan of mixing metal I-beams and wood.
Once all the bushes were pulled I tried to level the slope of the front yard and unintentionally succeeded in pulling all the creeping quackgrass and smooth crabgrass.
I pulled the first bush with the pick axe and quickly decided to use the truck and tow chain for the remaining ones.
The days are numbered for the remaining bushes in the front yard. Our wishlist includes putting in a simple narrow wood deck with large planters. Need to start playing the lottery.
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