Hang on to those wire hangers.

Apparently Pinterest is not a new "thing." Well, maybe the idea of having a virtual pin-board style space to collect mood boards, favorite pictures, inspiring quotes and phrases among other "favorites" is a new concept, but the art of repurposing (as is seen so much on Pinterest) is not.

In the Silent Auction at the Cornelius ReStore, which began on Wednesday, April 24th and will last for two weeks, is a fascinating Women's magazine from 1953. Now, on the cover of this magazine we note that it only cost $0.07 at the time of publication: 

(Wouldn't it be nice if everyone still cost only $0.07?)

What drew me to this magazine wasn't its price, however, but what was on pages 25-28....

Hang onto your hangers: 26 ideas of what to do with your wire hangers:

I apologize for some of the larger images but I want you to be able to get a good look at what you can do with your wire hangers! I'll point out some of my favorites:

#8, bottom right hand corner of the left page, suggests using wire hangers as the tiny railings of wire & wooden beads to ensure safe transportation of beverages on a tray

#12, down at the bottom right-hand corner that looks like a laundry hamper, is actually a letter basket that has two compartments, for answered and unanswered mail. 

On this page I really like #24, the red almost circular thing on the right page. It's a "fanciful pincushion that can be any bit of fabric stretched tightly over frame." 

And lastly, #26 are the skewers in the bottom right hand corner: "Whether its for marshmallows or shish kebab, everyone can have a skewer of his own"

What unique things have you made from ordinary household items?

New Guest Blogger: Heather O. & globe transformation!

Hey y’all!  My name is Heather, and I am so excited to be a guest blogger for Habitat ReStore.  I just moved here from Maryland, where I did many repurposing projects for a local ReStore.  I graduated with an Interior Design degree and love any design or creative projects I can get my hands on!

Now enough about me…on to my first repurposing project.  The sun is shining and Spring is in the air, which was my inspiration for this project.  Who would think using light fixture globes and a plate would turn into a planter?!  ReStore has a great selection of items that with a little imagination and creativity, can transform into a great Do-It-Yourself project.  

 A small budget and a few steps transform these ReStore items into great flower planters!  The globes at $1 each and the plates at 25 cents, make this DIY project extremely budget friendly.  All you need is to turn the globes upside down and hot glue them to the plate to create the planters.

 And what do you get?!  An inexpensive and unique planter for a great Spring project.  The globes are from light fixtures of all time periods, which will add so much character.  Get some pretty flowers and try this Do-It-Yourself project for your porches for the start of Spring!

Sideboard-schmorgusboard

Do you ever get the feeling that something is missing? Not your car key or your wallet (although I certainly do get that feeling sometimes), but rather that something is missing to complete a room? That's exactly how I felt in my living room...

...Until I found this beauty!

This unfinished sideboard came into the Habitat ReStore in Mooresville for less than $70. It's got two doors, one on each side, both of which open to reveal lots of glorious space! I couldn't pass this sideboard up. 

It was exactly what I had been looking for at a price that matched my budget. And I knew that I wanted something that I could customize to my house and make my own color, so this was perfect!

I immediately hit Lowe's Home Improvement and picked up a can of stain: Rust-Oleum's Ultimate Wood Stain in Kona. Actually, my intention was to only pick up one can, but I couldn't decide on a color, so I picked this one and a Red Wood also. Ultimately I ended up using both. On the workbench below the can of stain you can see samples of the Kona and the Red Wood. . 

Luckily the sideboard was in pretty good condition when I brought it home. It only needed a light finishing sanding with a 220 grit sand paper. Then I removed the doors and any hardware, and got to work. 

I started by staining the top with the Kona:  

After two coats of the Kona had dried I put a coat of the Red Wood on it. The Red Wood has a varnish in it, which was nice since I didn't have to do it later. However, it did make the staining a little difficult. I had never worked with a stain+varnish before and its a little like working with honey. It's thicker than stain, but not quite like paint... just a whole different ball game for me.

Anyway, I eventually finished painting staining the sideboard, inside and out. I'm so thrilled with the way it turned out, especially since this is pretty much the first time I have ever stained anything.

I do wish that I hadn't put a second coat of the Kona on because it makes it look close to black. I would rather have had a little more red would show through. And the one thing I would caution with the stain+varnish is that its hard to make sure no bubbles pop up on the surface. I could probably do a light sanding and another coat of Red Wood, but I'm pleased enough with the sideboard and will probably leave it this way for quite a while!

Please excuse the muddy paw prints! My little princess has decided she likes to roll in the mud when Mommy and Daddy aren't home, then run through the house!

Have you stained any furniture recently? Leave a comment and share your experience!

Don't fear the paint

I used to have a serious fear about picking out paint colors. What if the color I chose was too dark for the room? What if it didn't match the adjacent wall colors? Or it clashed with my rug? Or my red couches reflected a pink hue onto the walls? I used to stalk watch closely what other bloggers had to say about paint colors and chips, would clip samples next to the outlets and light switches so I constantly saw the color in the day light, candle light, and lamp light.

I know this sounds a little extreme but you must understand, I am a P.E.R.F.E.C.T.I.O.N.I.S.T. At least, I was before I realized that paint is truly nothing to fear. I attribute getting over this fixation to my newest favorite blog, Jones Design Company!

I'm truly impressed with Emily's ability to try anything and everything. Including this fabulous Painted Wall Paper. Her's turned out so well in the office that I had to try it!

The only place that I dared take this plunge, however, was in my Master Bath. So here it goes: 

I started by cutting out the template that Emily provides here, and then I traced it onto cardboard and cut it out like she suggested. 

The next step was to start tracing this beauty onto my walls. I started behind the bathroom door because it was the largest area with the fewest interruptions (light switches, moulding, etc.). I simply placed the pattern up on the wall and began tracing with a light pencil.  I was careful to keep the spacing pretty even between the patterns. 

Once I got quite most of the wall behind the door traced I had to decide what color paint to use. I pretty much only had a white that I thought would look decent against my "Tawny" colored walls, so I grabbed a can and a flat brush and got to work. 

At first I wasn't entirely sure how Emily created the double line look but after I checked out her blog again I realized that you make the double lines by painting inside the tracing. This is how it turns out: 

To be honest, I'm not entirely sure that I love the white on the Tawny walls so I didn't paint much more than this. Ideally I'd like to repaint my bathroom an elephant grey in a matte finish, and then do this design in the same color with a high gloss finish. The only problem with that... then I'd have to redo my bedroom too!

.. and after only 7 months in the house, I'm not ready to start all over again.

So for now my bathroom pretty much looks like the last picture above, but with a few more shapes painted in. I stare at it every day trying to decide whether it is worth finishing or if I should repaint my wall solid again. 

And here's the lesson I learned... It's not the end of the world! Paint is just paint, and the perfectionist in me has to get over it! :) Happy painting!

Comfort Acheived

I have finished my living room table! See the earlier post about me first painting the table black.

To upholster the top, first I marked and cut foam to fit the top of my table.

Then I placed stuffing on top of the foam. I used several layers, folding them to fit the area.

After I knew the foam and stuffing fit correctly, I laid the fabric face down on the floor, followed by the stuffing and finally the foam on top. I then flipped my table upside down on top of everything being careful to line everything up with the top of the table. Don't forget to space everything so the edges of your fabric are spread evenly around the table. This ensures you will have enough fabric to pull up and staple.

I then used a staple gun with 5/8'' staples, though I would suggest longer staples if you have them available and the wood you are stapling into is thick enough. Before each staple, I stretched some of the stuffing up and over the lip of the top of the table I was stapling into followed by the fabric. I pulled it pretty tight but watched to make sure I wasn't pulling so hard that the fabric puckered. I worked my way around the table, making sure to keep the fabric tight and straight.

I finished up by cutting the excess fabric around the edges then flipped it over to see how it looks. I'm pleased with the outcome and my goal of a comfortable foot rest while on the couch turned out great!

Come to the ReStore and find your perfect table, chair, or piece of furniture to [Re]Claim! Good luck and have fun!

Light your own way

While sitting in the living room yesterday with my newly engaged sister we discussed what it would be like when she moves into her own place with her soon-to-be husband. She asked all sorts of questions about my home, which has changed tremendously since she was last over, what with the endless projects and the ever-changing home decor. 

During our discussion it occurred to me that every single light fixture in my house has been changed in the last 6 months, with the exception of the bathrooms. Admittedly, it wasn't easy deciding on fixtures to replace the out-of-date and original ones that came with our home. But we're pleased with the ones we've chosen. 

Here is a look at how a little light can change the whole ambiance of your space: 

If you look closely you can see the faint white line from where the original track lighting was in our kitchen. The three-light unit was dated and look out of place on our slanted ceiling. So we invested some time and money into putting recessed can lights in the ceiling. We put the lights on a dimmer switch and it was one of the best decisions we've made yet. 

The second best decision in our kitchen was adding this piece: 

Our kitchen is a little awkward in its layout, and lacks the necessary cabinet space to store my fabulous Calphalon pots and pans that I received as a housewarming gift! After much debate, my mother finally saw our need for a pot rack, and blessed us with one as another housewarming present! 

This fabulous lighted pot rack hangs over our kitchen sink and is the best!

Our living room and kitchen share the same slanted ceiling, which you can see in the mounting of this ceiling fan. We were pretty nervous at first that the slant would cause some issues. We knew we wanted a ceiling fan in the living room, and we also understood that we needed to make sure it dropped down far enough for the fan blades to avoid the ceiling. 

With this Hunter ceiling fan purchased from Our Towns Habitat ReStores we avoided this issue all together! The new ceiling fan, pictured below, lights up the room and provides some great circulation in our house!

And while we love our living room ceiling fan, we also hate the glare that it produces on the TV we have mounted above the fire place. Plus it can be so bright! A little soft light never hurt anyone... and with that I'm thrilled with my latest purchase!

This table lamp, while you can't see it now, has a speckled mercury glass look to its base, and a great big wide canvas shade. I love the mixture of the two textures and I am in love with this addition to our living room. Eventually I'd like to get another and move this lamp into the bedroom....

 ...to replace this lamp and it's twin. Don't get me wrong, our Whiskey Lamps are pretty cool, very unique. I've never seen anything else like this come in to the Habitat ReStore (where these lamps were purchased from a few years ago). However, the shades are a little large for the bedroom, and the labels don't match the decor of our room. 

My favorite light fixture, in the whole house though, is definitely this chandelier that I bought at Our Towns Habitat ReStores about a year ago. It is a pewtered silver look with white shades (which I will probably change out eventually), with crystals hanging from each light and down the shaft. It was love at first sight with this beauty! and it remains hanging in my entry way!

The last little bit of light that I'm excited about in our house is a bunch of white stranded Christmas lights stuffed into one of those fabulous glass blocks that you can buy at the craft store for about $12. I have two that sit on a buffet that we refinished. At Christmas time I decorate the blocks with bows and ribbons, and during the year I remove them for a classic look.

I am amazed at the difference that our new light fixtures make in our home. When wanting to change something, and you're not sure what or you work on a limited budget like us, check out simple lighting solutions. You'll be amazed at how you can "light your own way" by making a few small changes!

Comfort First

I bought a living room table to prop my feet up on while I sit on the couch at the Cornelius ReStore. Step one, getting a foot rest, went well. Step two, making it comfortable, is in progress.

This is the table upside down being primed. I spread out some old towels and a plastic drop cloth then flipped the table over. I wanted to make sure I got the bottom painted well. The top will be covered in fabric...soon. I used "Kilz" primer as a base coat so the paint would stick to the table better.

Once I primed the table inside and out, I moved on to painting it black. I applied two coats of black paint. Once it was all dry, I flipped it back over and now it is waiting for the next step. More to come...

--Jessica, Youth and Volunteer Associate at Our Towns Habitat