Trash to Treasures

Chairs that didn't sell

2010-09-02T09:19:00.000-07:00

Got these dining room chairs from the thrift store. I liked the frame and even the cushions weren't so bad. But we never had a place for them and after keeping them in the basement for 2 years I decided to sell them on craigslist. Might as well get our money back. No interest. So one day I said, let's see what lies under these cushions, perhaps we can reupholster them and keep for ourselves until we have a bigger dining room. The metal base was actually perfect for building a wooden frame so now we can use them outside!

The backs were tough, given only two notches to hook up. So we put two pieces of 1x3-s and I sewed cushions for making the back more comfortable. My husband constructed all the wooden parts I think he is becoming a really skilled craftsman :)

before

after

Three Lamp Makeovers

2010-08-25T10:40:00.000-07:00

Here's another "before" and "after". We haven't been lucky finding good lamps lately from the thrift store. This was the latest lamp makeover I did in spring. I m still not crazy about it but it definitely looks better than before. This is also sold.

Unfortunately I don't have a "before" picture of this lamp. I painted the foot white and removed the outer layer of the lamp shade. Underneath I found this ribbon which I reused to go around the frame. Sold to a friend.

Too bad "after" picture doesn't do justice for this lamp but here it is. Sold at the garage sale

Some Older Makeovers

2010-02-08T06:10:00.001-08:00

We used to have a tiny apt in Fort Lee (love that town!) We needed a tiny couch and we found this yellow one and turned it into a cow. I know I know, cow print is long overdue,.. still :)

Before

After

This was a fun little side cabinet.

Before

After

This long ottoman we made by using plumbing pipe parts for legs

Felt Fun

2010-08-25T08:18:00.000-07:00

I bought a roll of natural felt from Estonia last time I went. So I made these rustic looking candle cozy's and some felt bags for gifts

Anneli in Design Sponge

2010-08-25T08:03:00.000-07:00

My knitted pillows were finally featured in the Design Sponge (my bible!) in March. Check it out here !

Little Garden Project

2010-08-23T08:09:00.000-07:00

This chair came with the house, we found it in the basement. I gave it a new coat of paint to prevent rusting and, removed the bottom and planted the ever happy Purple Heart.

Got Fork?

2010-08-16T08:29:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I decided to paint a giant fork on my kitchen wall. Our cat freaked out when she saw it for the first time. I should've filmed that encounter :)

From the Mama Bear's House to My House

2010-01-14T11:17:00.000-08:00

This wooden candleholder must've belonged to the house with three bears when I found it in the Thrift Store. LOL! Price - $1.00

So I cleaned it, spray painted it black. Drilled little holes on the bottom of each loop, screwed in tiny screws with little loops and hang wooden flat circles, previously spray painted.

Before

After

Magazine Rack Makeover
Salvation Army find again. I just sewed a new fabric on it and spray painted the wooden parts white.

Two Dressers,One Black, One White

2010-01-14T12:59:00.000-08:00

This is probably the most amount I have ever paid at the thrift store. $70.00 for a beat up dresser seemed like a good idea at the time. I actually thought it was antique until some guy told me that this was 1930's dresser and has potentially no value whatsoever. It was really in a very poor shape and I kept it in a basement for a year before finally taking the challenge. .

My friend helped me to sand it down. We repaired the holes with a wood putty and stained it with ebony stain. I also kept the original hardware, cleaned and reattached. I love it and it's a keeper.

Before

After

My brother was working on this one, I think he did a great job. It was also a Salvation Army, solid wood find but we made it strictly for selling.

Before

After

Some Older Benches and Chairs

2010-01-14T11:48:00.000-08:00

These came out so cute. Those 50-s little side tables are sold at every thrift shop. I think $1.00 a piece. I glued a little cushion on it and covered with natural felt which I sewed with red thread to make it sturdier.

Before

After

This was our first project together. Too bad we didn't take any "before" pictures

Scrap Wood/Coffee Sack Bench

2010-07-29T07:52:00.000-07:00

Construction on the second floor is on hold for now. It's literally like a sauna up there now in the summer. But we can salvage a lot of scrap wood from that room and make new cool things out of it. Like that chest. I think that came out so awesome.
I posted on FB that I started collecting vintage grain sacks. Some friends brought me the Basmati bags, the other friend got me this large coffee bag from Netherlands. She does a lot of traveling there buying old furniture for her store (www.mooblisahver.com). Thanks Piret!
So first we made a box using 2x4-s and 1x2-s from the construction room.

The coffee sack material is sturdy but very sheer and wimpy, I sewed a different fabric under it to make it sturdier by sewing a grid all across the material.
I get foam from work, we pack heavy stuff there so foam is free. It was a pain to make the trim. It sheared like crazy. But in the end it looks pretty neat I think. If the cats start scratching that I will be very very mad.

Tray Table Makeover

2010-01-15T10:39:00.000-08:00

This table had such a great potential to be an ottoman instead. I re-stained the legs, cut a cushion out of foam and covered with heavy plaid upholstery fabric. Sold to a friend.

Before

After

Hexagon Beaded Table

2010-01-14T13:09:00.000-08:00

Too bad I don't have a "before" picture of this little table. Brian spotted it and I tried to talk him out of buying it. It was dark brown and not even made of solid wood. Just a nasty looking thing.

I got the idea of gluing some glass half-beads on the sides. We painted it white first, then I scratched the surfaces to make it look more interesting for clear beads. I used Elmers Glue to hold the beads in place. The next day it was ready for a grout. I love the way it came out. Simply stunning. Love the original hardware. Eventually a friend bought it.

Fun Legs

2010-01-14T11:27:00.000-08:00

Loved the legs on this one. Thrift Store price - $10.00.

I sanded, stained and changed the fabric on the cushion to dark brown fur. This one is a keeper!

Before

After

A Chair Reborn

2010-01-14T11:41:00.000-08:00

This chair screamed potential when I saw it at the thrift store. Price $15.00

It was hard to sand the detailed wood so I spray painted the wooden parts. I used Ikea fabric for the seat and a different monochrome for the back. Stapled that in and trimmed the overlay with 1/5" black upholstery trim.

It was bought by a friend.

Before

After

Just the Frame

2010-01-14T13:26:00.000-08:00

$10.00 at the Thrift Store! It actually had padded covers on it so I spotted it on the second time when I saw the back of the chair. I removed the heavy padding at the store and "Hello awsome frame!" I left the padding at the store and took just the frame. I don't think anyone noticed.

The bottom was very rusted. I used wire brush but it still remained quite coarse when closely examined. Then some spray paint and I used this cool printed fabric for padding. I wanted to make it narrow so the frame could be visible all over. I figured, when somebody wants to sit on it, they can just put a pillow under?

Before

After

Chicken Chair - not ready yet

2010-07-21T09:32:00.000-07:00

I finally started reupholstering this giant chair I got for free. No this is not leather, if you are wondering.
So we totally stripped it and cleaned it from millions of staples. Took the legs off

Then I was on a mission of finding a cool fabric for it. I found this natural, black printed chickens on it. It's closest what I had originally planned.

Brian stripped the legs but surprise surprise, part of the leg structure is plastic! I wanted to have a natural unpainted look. Now we are a bit stuck. But will see. To be continued...

Ginko On the Wall

2010-01-14T09:18:00.000-08:00

I decided to paint a giant Ginko Biloba leaf on the wall. I printed out a few samples from the internet and started working. I first made dimensional guidelines using the blue masking tape and then hand drew the image on the wall with a pencil. After that it was just the coloring job. It was fun, one bottle of Pouilly Fuisse and 4-5 hours precise brush handling.

Now it looks like a whale

The cats are never too far when doing a project

Ready!

It Gets Crazy! And Stays Crazy For A While

2010-01-13T13:58:00.000-08:00

Meanwhile,

This was our kitchen:

And this was our living room!

Kitchen Tile

2010-01-13T14:05:00.000-08:00

We decided to go with the tile on the kitchen floor. The cheapest kind from Home Depot. Just neutral gray, It worked well later with our gray Ikea Kitchen. It looks like Im doing some bizarre aerobics.

Check out the fancy kneepads!

A Little Masonary

2010-01-13T13:32:00.001-08:00

Our brand new sliding door needed new wide steps below. This we did together with Brian, Mixing cement by shovel, bag by bag and pouring into the frame we made using the scrap wood. In those steps are the kitchen walls, all kinds of leftover scraps from the demolition. It made a great fill.

Astonishingly I dont have a good picture of the steps. Here is one "after" picture

First Spring In The Yard

2010-01-13T14:13:00.000-08:00

Our backyard looked pitiful. First we had to remove a large tree that was dangerously hanging over the soon-to-be porch area and being half dead, posed a bit of a threat. So we bought a chain saw, asked a friend to lend a hand and down it came.

We have funny neighbors across the street, a large indian family. They cant stop staring at us, Not even hiding the curiosity, always on the window looking at our mad construction activities. We felt a bit exposed. Solution - tall fence for some privacy. I was shocked at the poor quality of the plastic fences here in the US. Not too many options either. Coming home with it , one part fell on the highway.

Plastic fantastic

Project-Sliding Door

2010-01-13T13:20:00.000-08:00

We had this tiny metal door going from the kitchen to the backyard. I can't believe it but we demolished, cut and framed the new opening and put the damn door in together with the help of just one friend who is not a carpenter! Pretty crazy!

Back door Before

Totally dark but just the frame is in.

Sliding door in!

Yup, we bought a house, August 2007

2009-10-29T12:14:00.001-07:00

That was about the third place we went to see with the real estate agent. I liked the street and the fact that it was a corner lot. Brian liked the bar in the basement. So it was decided. Boy did we know that for four months w had to wash the dishes in the bathroom sink and that we had to live like pigs in a sawdust and cook oatmeal outside and eating from the paper plates for a while? No but it was all good fun to think back. The worst is over but the project "House" continues.
Here are the first pictures of the house we bought.

Pink kitchen! Before

Living Room/Kitchen wall Before

Demolition

2010-01-13T13:07:00.000-08:00

We started removing the wall between Kitchen and the Living Room

Bare bones

One day we had a bright red sticker on the door "Stop Construction, Not Approved" - "Yours Truly: The lovely Teaneck Township

So I had to sit down, draw the plans and get the permit from the town. We were extremely annoyed!

Here are the plans: