Archive | Do It Yourself! RSS feed for this section
Finally Doing it Right
If the leggy little tray table, above right, looks familiar it's because I featured it as a quick and dirty DIY in October 2011. Too quick and too dirty as it turned out. My Red Green, duct-tape method for attaching the legs lasted a few days before it all fell apart. Then I tried epoxy, which held on for about a week. What I really needed was a circular piece of wood into which to screw the legs, and then attach the tray to the wood. This is where Michael Greenwood came in, kindly providing me with a perfectly-cut circle of 1/2" plywood.
Full post and comments...Not So Ugly Duckling
Monday, May 28, 2012 by Chris
You couldn't really call it ugly; even with its goopey, brown stain the cabinet was too inherently glamourous to merit the u word. But the finish was appalling and so my friend Susan was determined to give the piece a makeover, ideally in a tasty, high-gloss colour to approximate the Tommi Parzinger examples below. Suz decided on canary yellow and set about sanding the piece down to prep it for spraying. Much to her surprise and delight a swan began to emerge almost immediately. Susan was stunned by the beautiful wood grain and thought the piece might be teak although the jury's still out on exactly what kind of wood she was working with.
Full post and comments...Craigslist Deja Vu
Thursday, December 15, 2011 by Chris
This morning I saw an ad on Craigslist that really took me back. This Duncan Phyfe is a dead ringer for the table that became my first big refinishing project, my trial by fire. Because of its condition, the table above is selling for just $30, which makes it an ideal candidate for someone like me with more ambition than brains who wants to get his or her hands dirty and learn a helluva lot about refinishing. And while I'm definitely tempted, I don't have the space or inclination to take this on right now. What about you? You might end up with a something you can be proud of, I know I was when my table, below, finally emerged from the fire.
Full post and comments...Chair Story
Monday, December 12, 2011 by Chris
I hadn't intended to revamp my high back chair at my upholstery class but the pair of mid-century beauties I coveted could not be secured affordably so I turned to this chair, which has languished in my storage locker for a year. My original plan was to do something totally "outside" like the wingbacks below, photo by Eric Roth from Glamour, Making it Modern. But I wasn't sure I'd actually keep the chair so I wanted it to appeal to as wide a group as possible in case I ended up selling it on Craigslist, hence my choice of the neutral, gray poly-blend that looks and feels like linen but is "bullet proof" according to the fabric store clerk.
Full post and comments...Upholstery Class Wrap Up
Saturday, December 10, 2011 by Chris
Last Saturday was a happy day, my upholstery class ended giving me back my weekends and I brought my chair home completed and comfortable, not perfect, but what is? And that description neatly sums up the class itself, which was frustrating in lots of ways but ultimately satisfying because instructor Robby, pictured, was able to guide me to a good result. In the end, I felt a lot of empathy for Robby and a bit of resentment toward the Toronto District School Board, which runs the class without nearly enough resources. There was one sewing machine and three staple guns for 11 students. Madness.
Full post and comments...
Sunday, March 17, 2013 by Chris
9 Comments