The Crate Table... I did it!

Well, it took a little while for me to find the time, but I finally attempted to make the Pinterest idea I mentioned on our Facebook page... the Crate Table.

Here's the original post I found about the crate table (click on picture to view):

These are the things I needed to complete it:

4 crates (I got these at Home Depot for $1 each on clearance awhile ago)

Stain (I used English Chestnut for mine)

4 casters

4 two-foot long 1x3 planks of wood (bought cut already at Lowes)

Lots of nails and screws

basket insert

Wooden stir-stick :)

All told, even with the $1 crates, it probably was a $40-$50 project, but it's so cool and I can say I did it all by myself (yes, that sounded like a kindergartener proud of his clay pinch pot, but I don't care.)

First, I reinforced all planks on the crate.  There seemed to be some loose ones (perhaps why HD had these so daggone cheap?), so I added one nail to each end of each plank.  For those math-minded people (like me)... that's 104 nails... 13 planks per crate, 2 nails per crate, four crates.  And I only bent and messed up maybe two.  :)

Second, I stained each crate individually... I opted not to put any fancy labels on the sides and just keep them plain.  I had debated putting "wine" decals on them, but seeing as though this was join in my kids' loft space, I couldn't justify cute alcohol-advertising labels.  Since these were purchased, they had big stickers on the sides.  I did rip off what I could, but I didn't worry about the label/pricestickers leaving some gooeyness... I just made sure those ends were the ones butted up against other crates.

Here is the stain I used:

It was a rich, dark color that looks just awesome!

Then I assembled the four crates, with the opening pointing out.  A few screws at each "crate-butting" held them together.

I needed a base to add some sturdiness and to give me a place to screw in the casters.  I hate using a saw, and Lowes' associates were busy that day.  To my surprise, I was able to find four two-foot-long planks that were 1x3's.  They were exactly what I needed to make a 27" square.  (I believe the crates, assembled, made a 29" square.)

I also stained those and made a square frame for the bottom:

Here's a closer view:

 This is a straight-on shot of what the frame looked like.

 I wanted to put a basket in the middle (I had measured to find that the middle opening was around 8.25" per side and found the blank "trashcans" at Hobby Lobby were exactly the right fit to set inside.)  I wanted something to secure the basket to keep it level at the bottom.  Since I forgot to find something for that purpose, I simple stained and used a wooden paint stirrer stick!

Then, I attached the casters:

 Then I stained the plain trashcan I bought:

 I had also found a cute little metal planter at Ross that would work as well...

 Here is the basket, in place inside the hole of the table:

However, since I really wasn't sure what I'd stick in there that would be THAT deep, I decided to see if the planter would fit inside of that trashcan well.

And... it did!

So, now the middle "hole" wasn't nearly as deep and could hold things... oh, like the REMOTE that is always somehow disappearing... or the Wii controllers... or DVDs... or pretty corks like the picture at the top... or whatever!  Hmmm... wouldn't it be cool to fill the metal planter with ice and chill a wine bottle in there??

Anyway, here is the final project:

I apologize... I was just too excited to be done with it, that I didn't "stage" it like a proper decorating blogger should do.  I did take the time to set the remote in the middle.  No cutesy stacks of books in the cubbies;  no corks or flowers or ice-chilled-wine-bottles in the middle.  Nope.  Quite frankly, it's in need of a nice sofa to go with it, too, rather than the current Ikea chairs... but that's another day and another post.  (I hope!!)  One word of caution that my hubby warned me of... tell the kids they cannot SIT on this table.  Despite it being wood, the planks at the top would never support a child's weight.  Mine have been warned MANY times now... here's hoping it lasts!!

How stinking cute!  

So, I do believe this goes in the "I did it and it worked" category instead of the Pinterest-Fail category.

What do you think?

The Letter "H"....

Quick post today....

The letter "H" seems to be a common theme around here....both mine and Christy's last names start with it!  =)  How convenient!

So with the recent "re-done" buffet I just did, I needed some fresh decor to put on it!  What else better to represent than the letter "H"!?

They have these paper mache letters at Jo-Ann Fabrics...Take a look here....

I took some of my leftover Martha Stewart glaze and painted the letter....Here it is...

Here's how it turned out!

 

 

Pinterest Inspired: Scarf Rack

So today I was doing a little organizing in my closet.  I'm always doing a little reorganizing in my closet.  It's a decent sized walk-in closet, and frankly until I pay to get some nice organizing system in there (Rubbermaid, Closet Maid, Elfa, etc.), I am always going to be reorganizing.  I'm just never happy with what I do in there.  

It's a room full of clutter... and I hate clutter.  This is the room where everything accumulates... the Easter stash;  the Christmas stash;  vacuum;  Amazon boxes waiting to be opened;  etc.

I bought a couple of dressers at a yard sale recently (Ikea brand) and wanted to pop them in the closet, so I was really moving things around.... i.e. tools were involved (ripping out builder-installed generic wire shelves), baskets were tossed around, clothes were displaced, and shoes and scarves were all over the place.

As I walked into the garage to grab a pair of pliers (have you ripped out those little wire-shelf brackets lately.... geesh, what a serious pain!), I happened to glance over at a wooden curtain rod in the corner.  Poor little thing had been sitting there since last summer, when it unsuccessfully tried to be purchased at our yard sale for just $5.  I can't believe no one wanted it.  Well, I suppose the odds were low.  When you live in the country out a dirt road, your yard sale traffic is greatly diminished, despite the advertising.  

I stopped and stared at the rod.  And then it hit me.  I'd been searching for towel rods to attach to my closet door to hold scarves (thank you, Pinterest, for the idea!)... and here was the perfect substitute,... and it was already here (read:  FREE).

So, I attached it under the window in my closet (which is on a wall I don't want to really put shelves on.)

Ding. Ding. Ding. Ding. Ding. Ding. Ding.  We have a winner!!!!

I barely fit my scarves on the 36" wide rod.  Yikes!  I guess if I get any more, I'll need to get rid of something.

On another note, here's a before and after of the one wall in my closet.  This is, by the way, in no way finished... it's just a start, but I'm loving the nice clean lines of the dressers... even if I am the only one that will walk into this room on a regular basis.  :)

BEFORE:

AFTER:

Yep, my secret stash of Thirty-One organizers is coming in handy now!  Hopefully this summer I can finish by installing some more shelves and painting the walls.

When I first bought the dressers and hauled them home, I started to worry that they were a big pain... and not going to work.  It cost me $40 for both.  I just sold a lot of the old baskets and such for over $100.  Hey... I made money on this deal!  Cool.

I love it when that happens.

Quick ReStore-ReDo Idea

I love thrift stores, yard sales, online yard sales (does your area have cool Facebook yard sale pages too?), and the ReStore.  If you aren't familiar with the ReStore, it's a place for donations of building material, furniture and household things.  Every so often I'll browse around, and usually walk out of there with something in hand.  

I found a tall cabinet door (approximately 3' tall) for just $5.  It was already painted off-white.  

So, I snazzed it up a bit... painted the inside area with chalkboard paint, "distressed" the edges with Distress Ink, and then used a white chalk pen to write the lyrics to one of our favorite church songs.  

It was fun to make... and so easy!