Arlington Handyman: February 2016

Monday, February 29, 2016

Bob Vila's $5,000 Outdoor Heating Give-Away with Infratech

As we inch closer and closer to the warm-weather seasons, many of us start to show symptoms of spring fever—an ailmen...

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Closet Makeover Reveal (Phase One)

A while back I shared that I was going to work on a little mini closet makeover, with plans for a larger overhaul (reconfiguring and adding shelving, etc.) in the future. I’m happy to say that phase one of the closet makeover is complete and ready to reveal! (Source list can be found at the end of the post.)

First, here is a reminder of what the closet looked like before.

Our closet is L-shaped and quite large (you’re seeing about a third of it here), so I really wanted to take advantage of the space and do something fun and different. And feminine. (Sorry, hubs.) Here is the mood board I designed when planning the space:

The closet goes back farther to the right but I am omitting some of it from this post since we haven’t made over Chris’ side yet. Here is (my half of) the closet NOW:

I used the Tan Fawn wallpaper from Walls Republic for an accent on the window wall and backing the shelving as you enter the closet. (P.S. I know that wallpaper is definitely an investment, but this one is on sale right now, so if you’re thinking of taking the plunge, now is the time!) I love the texture and whimsy it adds to the space. I feel like a closet is a good spot to go a little more wild than usual since there is a ton of freedom to play around with whatever look you want. As for the closet, in the words of my husband, “Umm ….. it’s feminine……”. Haha! I think that means he loves it? To be fair, I did not feminize his side of the closet. And I totally get that this might not be everyone’s cup of tea. It doesn’t have to be! Anyway, I feel like Carrie Bradshaw would approve.

I added a little dressing area with a ghost chair—the perfect place to hide from my children, read a magazine, and eat chocolate. Haha! Kidding. Kind of.

When you first walk in, there are built-in shelves on the right-hand side, so I decided to use that space for my jewelry and some of the shoes I wear most often.

I love the brass hooks, which were provided by D. Lawless Hardware.

Straight ahead are my clothes, and then if you hang a right, the closet continues and the rest is mostly my husband’s stuff. (Not pictured.)

The light fixture is a DIY project and we made it using this brass figurine. (Tutorial coming soon!)

Oh, and guess what? I totally didn’t glue that wallpaper to the walls. And I didn’t nail or tack it up either. No holes poked, no glue, and it is easily removable without damaging the walls—I cannot WAIT to show you how I did it! Stay tuned for that tutorial soon too.

Closet Makeover Sources:

Wallpaper from Walls Republic
Ghost Chair from Amazon
Faux Fur Pillow from Target
Brass & Quartz Accent Table from HomeGoods
Brass Jewelry & Purse Hooks from D. Lawless Hardware
Sunburst Mirror from Hobby Lobby
Blue Bowl from HomeGoods
Candle from Rust & Honey
Wooden Bowl from the thrift store
Brass Bowl from the thrift store
Brass Platter from the thrift store
Small gold sunburst frame from HomeGoods
Geometric Brass Figurine (used for light fixture) from Target
Small white trophy bowl from Home Decorators Collection
Small wire baskets from Target dollar spot

And for my accessory-loving girls:

If you like this closet makeover, I would love it if you would share it on Facebook or Pinterest! (Or Twitter or StumbleUpon or Snapchat or whatever else the kiddos are using nowadays.) I’ll also be sharing our master bedroom makeover as part of the One Room Challenge this spring, so look out for sneak peeks of that along the way!

Thanks for visiting!

-Erin

The post Closet Makeover Reveal (Phase One) appeared first on DIY on the Cheap by Erin Spain.

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Saturday, February 27, 2016

Solved! What to Do About Flickering Lights

Q: Help! The lightbulbs in our fixtures keep flickering on and off. As far as I know, my house isn’t haunted, but I’m...

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How To: Unclog a Garbage Disposal

When faced with a clogged garbage disposal, most people would agree the easiest solution is to simply call a plumber....

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One System to Save You Time and Money—and Water

You're standing over the kitchen sink or next to the shower, all the while waiting, waiting, and waiting for the hot ...

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Bob Vila Radio: Solving a Ladybug Infestation

This winter, you may find yourself with uninvited guests—orange-red Asian ladybugs. Imported to combat garden pests, ...

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Friday, February 26, 2016

Life and Stuff

Hi guys! I just got home from a two week trip to Idaho. I helped with some projects while there but this post is more about life happenings than projects so I’ll share some project photos another time. Some of you have been hanging out with me for the whole 6 years that I’ve been blogging and you’ve watched Madison grow up. I don’t share as much family stuff as I used to when Madison was a little girl. Madison was in grade school when I started blogging. At that time a lot of the projects I created revolved around her; Halloween projects, building things like a playhouse under the stairs and other crafty projects that we did together or I did for her class as a “room parent”.

Well Madison just turned 17! Can you believe that? Her birthday is part of the reason I went to Idaho. Wha? Idaho? Why? Well let me tell you… Madison - 17 going on 30

Once upon a time…

Sandra met Wes, they fell in love, they married and 5 years later they had a beautiful little girl, Madison. Wes and Sandra loved and nurtured Madison and she grew into a lovely young human being; smart, strong, thoughtful and intentional about life and her place in the world. Madison has many strengths and talents and has always loved learning. She chose her career path around the age of 5 and it has never wavered. When Madison started high school last year (10th grade here) she hated it. She is an old soul and very focused on life goals and not so much interested in “silly teenager stuff”. Having her sights set on becoming an author has helped her through some difficult times. Having a long term goal helped her not get lost in herself when the social scene was very difficult after moving to TN in middle school. Yikes! THE WORST TIME in a girls life to leave all her friends and move to a new town and school.

Socially, school was not fun. Intellectually, the structure of her new school seemed to be holding her back. So 3 months into her sophomore year, Madison withdrew from conventional school and started “homeschooling”. That is what they insist on calling it here even though she was enrolled in an online high school program. So Madison got to do school on her own terms and timeline. This allowed us to take road trips and vacations while she was literally in school! Cool! Madison is very driven. She managed her own program and did her work on her own. She owned it. Road Tripping

Since she could work at her own pace she pretty much blew through it. Madison graduated from high school in December, two months ago; with a 4.0 GPA and a year and a half ahead of schedule… So now what?

She wanted to go to college in England but there was NO WAY we were going to send her off to school in another country at 16! So we planned on her taking some classes here in TN for a year (or so) and then pursuing England. My sister invited Madison to come live with her in Boise, ID for a while and we all thought that was a great plan. Move across the country instead of across the globe and “dip your feet” into the well of independence before you dive in head first.

So in October, Wes and Madison road tripped from Knoxville to Boise in the car that is now deemed “Madison’s” and she has been living in Boise since then.

Road Trippin'

She got her first job and is taking one class at BSU. We’re calling this her gap year (even though it’s only a half year and she’s actually taking a class but Astrobiology is just for fun so…).

She has been doing really well in Boise and will stay until May when she finishes her class. Then she’ll be moving back home and going to school here in TN. At least for the next year or two. My sister, Julie has been a great surrogate parent for Madison while in Boise but Julie is moving to CA this summer and we aren’t ready for our 17 going on 30 year old, little girl to live on her own. Instead of waiting another whole year to go to England, she is going to dive in and get her BA degree here. England will still be there when she’s ready to get her graduate degree in 4 years (or so). With Madison, we never know what to expect so we just kinda’ keep an open mind and try to figure out what’s best for her as each life transition arrives. It’s a journey. On a side note, she did get accepted into all 5 schools she applied to in England so she’s hoping she’ll get accepted again when the time comes. Our little smarty pants. Literally, she is quite a smarty pants at times but she is a teenager so I guess that is to be expected…

College at 16

And now you’re basically all caught up! I’m back home and ready to dive back into my craft room. Though I have to clean it up first. It was quite a mess when I left.

See you soon with some project updates!

craft_room_mess

The post Life and Stuff appeared first on Sawdust Girl®.

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Thursday, February 25, 2016

3 Fixes for Oil Stains

Cooking oil appears in many forms—olive, vegetable, canola, etc. —and is a necessary ingredient for almost anything y...

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The Dos and Don'ts of Tiling a Small Bathroom

Thanks to the abundance of design and colors on the market today, choosing tiles that can visually expand a small spa...

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How To: Get Rid of Bagworms

Notice an inexplicable mass destruction, yellowing, or defoliation in your evergreens? A close and careful look throu...

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DIY Like a Boss #8

Do you DIY Like a Boss? Well if so, you’re in the right place! And if not, well you’re in the right place too. (Wink.) We have TONS of amazing inspiration for you, as usual!

If you’re new here, I’ve partnered with four other amazing bloggers to bring you a fabulous party where you can share all of your amazing DIY and home decor projects! This party is meant for home decor and DIY projects–DIY home decor projects, DIY furniture projects, DIY craft projects, DIY sewing projects, etc. (No food or fashion here, sorry!) All you have to do to join in the fun is scroll to the bottom of this post and use Inlinkz to submit your work! We’re so glad you’re here and can’t wait to be inspired by your #diylikeaboss ideas!

DIY Like a Boss- The only DIY and home decor link party where you will be featured on 5 blogs + Hometalk! #diylikeaboss

DIY Like a Boss will open at 6 AM ET every Thursday for you to share what you’ve been working on with a chance to be featured the following week. When you link up at DIY Like a Boss, your projects will be seen across 5 DIY and home decor blogs. Every week, we will choose features that will be featured on all five blogs + Hometalk giving your awesome work some serious exposure. So if you want to grow your DIY or home decor blog, THIS is the link party for you!

And now…without further adieu, here are the featured #DIYLikeaBoss projects from last week’s party! This week’s features were selected by Emily from Table + Hearth! If you love these features, be sure to click through to the source blog before pinning them!