Moving forward, but keeping a part of the past

My parents lived in their home for over 50 years.  They recently sold their home to a developer to move into something easier to manage. The home will be torn down and I am happy for my parents to be in a new place.  It's also a little sad to know that the home will soon no longer be there. Before the home was sold I took lumber from the home because I wanted to make Christmas gifts.  A piece of the old home made into something new.  These are the items I made:  a superhero kids bench, 3 kid sized adirondack chairs. a couple of birdhouses and a centerpiece.

laptop / drawing easel

My son gave me a challenge.  He wanted a table top laptop desk / easel.  For the life of me I could not find a plan that I had all the tools, supplies, etc.  I found one finally that I thought I could make but there was no tutorial (of course).  I am not good with moving parts so to make an adjustable one was hard for my brain to figure out.  This is what I came up with supplies I had on hand. (1) 15  3/4 X 11 1/4  3/4 inch piece of pin, for the top (2) 5 3/4 X 11 1/4 X 3/4 inch pieces of cedar fence slat, for the bottom. (2) large door hinges, to connect top and bottom (1) small hinge, for adjustable angle (1) 4 3/4 X 5 X 1/4 X 1/2 inch cedar slat, for angle (2) 11 1/4 X 1 1/4 X 3/8 inch oak molding, to connect the bottom fence slats together (2) 13 1/2 X 3/4 X 3/8 inch oak molding, to hold cedar angle in place (8) felt sticky circles to protect table and of course wood glue and screws.  (1) 15 3/4 X 1 1/4 X 3/4 inch piece of pine, for the front rest. You can use whatever, this is what I already had for supplies. My son wanted it natural in color, so I just added 4 oats of water based polyurethane to finish it off.  Total cost for me 0.00

Centerpiece for all occasions

Like many people I see something I like, but cannot afford.  I wanted a centerpiece that I could use for any occasion. Something simple that had a driftwood kind of look to it.  People always ask me "hey do you want this".  I usually say yes because somehow I might find a use for it.  This project was completely free for me.  I used one old fence slat.  I cut 2 pieces to 11 inches in length (you could custom to any length).  I then cut the other 2 pieces to fit the width.  I used small wooden blocks for the legs. (you could use anything, or not even add legs.  I used wood glue and screws to attach all the pieces.  I attached underneath so you couldn't see the screws.  I hand painted a branch silhouette and when it dried, I

simply sealed with 2 coats of water based polyurethane.  I attached 2 nickel drawer pulls.  It's close to Christmas so I placed a candle on top and other holiday decorations

DIY portable Gaming / Laptop table

We have a super small space.  My daughter is a gamer and asked me to make a table for her to set her keyboard on when she was playing Final Fantasy.  I couldn't find any tutorials that would work for my space, so I had to come up with my own plan.  I have plenty of lumber from recycling, but not a solid wide light weight piece.  I am a cheap skate, but I reluctantly went to Lowes.  I found a rounded edge 48 X 11 1/2 X 1 inch piece of pine that would work perfectly.  while I was there I purchased a 2 x 3 stud.  They offer up to 4 cuts for free.  The table top was cut to 30 inches.  The legs were each cut to 23 inches long. I do keep anything that I believe with be eventually useful.  I already had 4 3 inch tall castor wheels in my garage.  I also has 4 brackets to strengthen the legs.  This was very simple to build.  I used the rest of the pine for the bottom.  It measured 18 inches in length.  I placed the legs on top and used wood glue and screws to attach.  I then attached the top piece also with wood glue and screws.  I added the brackets next.  Finally I attached the castor wheels.  The height of the table is 28 inches.  It is the perfect height the fit under her chair.  I let her pick what she wanted on top.  I then hand painted the images.  For the final step I used a water based clear polyurethane (several coats) to protect the painting.  My final cost was less than 15 dollars.  I do have paint supplies that people have donated to me over the years.  I also buy the small oops paint when they have a color I like.  If you already have the lumber it could be cheaper or even free.

making small spaces work

We have a very small place. 5 people in 1100 square feet.  My goal lately has been to make spaces functional.  I have been making custom pieces to fit our lifestyle.  My boys share a room.  They are avid guitarists.  5 guitars and 3 amps.  Needless to say the room gets messy all the time because of the furniture they had and nothing fits.  I decided to make a custom piece that they could store the amps permanently out of the way.  I also decide to hang the guitars.  I changed out the dresser and nightstands.  Made custom boxes for misc. items

I changed out their long dresser for a thinner taller dresser to optimize space

custom boxes I made for misc. storage

custom boxes I made for misc. storage

custom boxes I made for misc. storage

 have not completed all the storage boxes yet with their favorite bands

front view of the entertainment center

full view of the entertainment center

had to place 2 other  guitars in stands on the dresser

custom painted night stand

Rock my garden please

before

So I had a wasted space in my yard.  It gets not enough sun and a giant tree root system that takes all the plants nutrients.  The hubby and I thought a rock garden would work.  We decided that the cheapest way to do a fence would be out of pallets.  I simply cut the pallets with a jigsaw like a picket fence on both sides.  I used left over stain from projects to stain the fence.  I have made stepping stones over the years.  I arranged them in some sort of pattern.  We also had the mid sized rocks already.  We did actually buy the pea gravel at home depot for the pathway.  It was 4 for $10.00 we needed 5 bags.  We borrowed a friends truck (thanks Dustin) to get the larger gravel for free,  Found it on Ksl.  I had most of the garden decorations already.  Just had to buy 1 shepherds hook. $9.00.  I do like good plants and did buy them from the nursery.  It was my biggest expense at $90.00.  they will fill out nicely.  Total cost for project was $130.00

after

Giving and old bed a new use

found this metal headboard at a thrift store for $10.00.  You should have seen me put it my car.  I thought a bench would be cute to make with it.  Now this was a simple project.  I did buy redwood so it would last.  The bench was $20.00.  (I have enough left over to make a small bench also with the leftover piece).  The 4X4 was also $20.00.  Long wood screws were used.  The tricky part was drilling through the metal of the bed frame.  My hubby added the stain and waterproofing.  I love it and it provides extra seating for my yard.  Total cost $50.00, but in the end I will get 2 benches out of it.  One larger 5 foot bench and the other 3 foot bench. Much cheaper and more sturdy than the ones you buy at the store. Thanks  Earl

before

after

after