It’s here… Reveal Day! I love a good makeover, don’t you? Our current flip house, named Hattie, seemed like she didn’t need much, but in reality all the little changes added up to a full remodel. This was the kind of house that just needed a few of the right touches to bring it up to date. And while that’s not as exciting a makeover as some of the falling-down houses I’ve seen, the overall effect turned out to be really satisfying. But enough of my musing, let’s get to the pictures, shall we? Hattie Before her Makeover Here are a few “Before” shots of our beloved Hattie, to remind… Keep Reading
Get Outside! With a Free Camping Checklist
Time to go Camping! Y’all, it’s hot outside. I mean what-happened-to-Spring-how-did-we-end-up-in-the-middle-of-Summer hot. Around here, we escape to the mountains whenever the desert gets too hot and dry. One of the best things about New Mexico is the mountains are never far away, and they are always cool and refreshing. Where it All Started A few years ago, we bought our first camper, a sweet little vintage Apache pop-up camper. I really had no interest in camping before that. My husband is an outdoors-man who loves hiking, backpacking, and generally any sport that requires peeing in the woods. Me, not so much. I’ll take my “roughing it” with a side of comfort… Keep Reading
Yardistry 12×14 Gazebo Installation Tips
‘Tis the season to get outside! This is the time of year it starts feeling like summer, even though officially it’s still spring. Which means it’s time to get outside before it gets too hot to enjoy it! I can’t wait to share this post with you today as part of Remodelaholic’s Get Out! Outdoor DIY Challenge. We haven’t done much to our backyard since moving in two years ago, but this summer that’s all about to change. As much as I love interior decor, I also love to get outside and enjoy the amazing Albuquerque weather as often as possible. When you get about 300 days of sunshine a… Keep Reading
A New Flip House Named Hattie
Ladies and Gentlemen, I’d like you to meet Hattie, our latest flip house adventure. Yes, I know it’s probably weird to give people’s names to our houses, but we need a way to keep track of them and I get so attached to each one that it’s as if they have their own personality. I like to think of it as a term of endearment, rather than naming a natural disaster. Although to be honest, I’m sure both have an element of truth. If you’re just joining, you can check out our first flip here, and our second flip here. Back to Hattie. She’s a wonderful, stately lady, full of dignity… Keep Reading
Barn Door Frequently Asked Questions
Fun FAQ’s – Double Barn Doors Because sometimes a DIY tutorial raises more questions than it answers, I thought I’d spend the month of February going back and doing a series of Frequently Asked Questions posts about some of my most popular DIY projects. Now that it’s halfway through March, I’m finally ready to finish the last post in the series! So, what I intended to call “February FAQ’s” has now been changed to “Fun FAQ’s” because FAQ’s are really year-round, and also, I can’t stick to a schedule to save my life. (If you haven’t already, check out the updates on my kitchen cabinet makeover, my concrete countertops, and my… Keep Reading
DIY Concrete Countertops Frequently Asked Questions
Fun FAQs: DIY Concrete Countertops I have loved these concrete countertops since I built them over a year ago. The gray concrete adds just the right amount of urban style to this guest bathroom, and you can’t beat the price! I was surprised at how easy it was to make such a big change. The process was a little time consuming, mostly while waiting for each coat of concrete to dry, but it wasn’t technically difficult. I wrote about how I created these countertops in three different blog posts: The Process The Reveal The Finishing Details Don’t worry, DIYing your countertops isn’t that hard! I just had several other projects… Keep Reading
Painted Kitchen Cabinet FAQs and How They’re Holding Up
Fun FAQ’s: Painted Kitchen Cabinets There sure are a lot of ugly, outdated kitchen cabinets out there! How do I know? Ever since I wrote this post about how to paint your kitchen cabinets, I’ve heard from approximately 300 of you who are thinking of doing the same thing. In fact, I’ve had so many questions over the past year about my painted kitchen cabinets, that I thought now would be a good time to answer them all together in one place, as well as let you know how the cabinets’ paint job is holding up. ~ This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I will receive… Keep Reading
$100 Room Challenge Family Room Reveal Week
It’s finally here – reveal week of the $100 Room Challenge! I have to admit, there were a few moments along the way that I questioned whether I would get this one done. You would think that a whole month would give you plenty of time to finish a project that only includes painting closet doors, painting bookshelves, and a little stenciling. But like me, you would be wrong. The optimist in me always thinks projects are small when I get started. Then the procrastinator takes over, telling me I’ve got plenty of time to get it done. Then reality hits and the work actually gets done, usually a little… Keep Reading
Week 4: Stenciling over Tile
I learned something very important while working on this week’s $100 Room Challenge: I really dislike stenciling. But I love the effect, so I’m determined to press on. And I’m sharing with you some of the tips and tricks I’ve learned for stenciling tile. First I want to say a big Thank You to DecoArt for providing the Chalky Finish paint for this project. Although this is a sponsored post, all opinions are my own. $100 Room Challenge Week 4 – Stenciling Over Tile Have I mentioned before how glad I am that there are five weeks this January? I’m sure I wouldn’t be able to get this challenge done… Keep Reading
Week 3: Painting Bookshelves & Cabinets
It’s already week three of the $100 Room Challenge! I’ve gotten my closet doors done, and this week I (mostly) finished painting my bookshelves and cabinets. Today I’ve got a few tips for you if you’re thinking of painting a bookshelf. For these shelves and cabinets, I used basically the same process as I did with the doors, but I added an extra step of sealing the shelf tops with Polycrylic, to protect the paint from books sliding in and out of the shelves. If you’re just joining us, check out Week 1 and Week 2 to see where all this is coming from. ~ This post contains affiliate links…. Keep Reading