Crafty with Corks

As you have probably seen from my wife's posts, she is very creative with wine corks (you can see some past projects here and here).  We have saved them up over the years and she has come up with many interesting things to do with them.  I decided I wanted to give it a shot to see if I could also be as crafty with corks. 

I recently saw you could purchase a kit to make trivets out of wine corks.  This seemed a little ridiculous to me, especially when I saw the price of said kit.  I figured I may as well give it a shot and trying making a cork trivet using only the supplies we had on hand...making it essentially free. 

To start, I played around with the placing of the corks until I found a design that I thought looked nice.

I then glued a couple corks at a time to each other and clamped the corks while the glue dried.

 

*WARNING* Only use a small amount of Gorilla Glue!

Have you ever used Gorilla Glue?  This was my first time.  I have used many adhesives but never Gorilla Glue.  It's pretty great stuff and amazing at adhesion, but like I said, ONLY USE A SMALL AMOUNT.  I ended up with Gorilla Glue all over my hands and I could not get it off for at least a day.  Worst, Gorilla Glue expands as it dries and when used in excess, takes over your cork trivet project.

The glue worked quite well with the corks, however, and they were extremely secure.  Once I had the design completely glued together, I decided it needed some feet to add some additional interest and, well, feet.  I cut 2 wine corks in half lengthwise and used them as a base to raise the trivet slightly.

There we have it - a cork trivet made without a $40 trivet kit!

 - JOHN

PVC - Pipe is Very Cool

I know, I know!  That was a horrible acronym.  I did not want to just say Polyvinyl Chloride.  PVC pipe is a wonderful thing however.  Not only does it funnel your used water away from your house but it also is cheap and great for building various crafts.  I thought today I would share some of the many things you can make out of pvc.

The first non-aquatic project I used PVC for was to make a ladder golf set several years ago. Sets were being sold for exorbitant prices and friends had sets made out of wood but I decided to make one for $15 out of PVC.

The most recent project came from an issue that arose last week that I realized I no longer had a small microphone stand for recording.  I told Kristen I was headed to the music store to purchase one.  She said, "Why do you need to buy one?"  I responded, "I need a small microphone stand low enough to record guitars, guitar amplifiers, kick drums, etc."  She said, "You can't build one?"  Something about that statement screamed CHALLENGE to me.  Of course I CAN build one, I just don't want to take the time to build it when I need one NOW.  After a quick google search and a few thoughts I realized I could stick with my trusty friend Mr PVC!  I realized that not only would it be cheaper, but the music store is 40 minutes away and Home Depot is only 4.  I could go to Home Depot, purchase PVC, come home and cut the pipe and put it together in probably less time than it would take to drive to the music store.  Challenge excepted!

Supplies:
10 ft 3/4" in PVC
4 - 3/4" couplings
3 - 3/4" tees
1 - 2' 1/2" PVC 








I cut the 10 ft pipe into 1 - 19 inch section, 4 - 6 inch sections and 2 - 4 inch sections.  The longer 19" section serves as the height for the microphone.  The shorter sections were cut to be a base for the stand.  I used the coupling for the feet and the tees connected them all.

The 1/2" pipe fit into the 3/4" and I can slide it up and down for easy height adjustments.  I used some epoxy and attached an old microphone holder to it to hold a microphone in place.  I drilled holes through the pipe so I could stick a small dowel through to hold a microphone at various levels.  Unfortunately, I could not find a small dowel around our house so I found a small screwdriver that would work well and now he is doing two jobs for the moment!

Once assembled, we spray painted it black.  Although I plan on only using this for recording purposes and it probably will never see anything but a studio, the black looks a little classier than a white pipe with "Charlotte Pipe" written all over it.

Though I have misplaced my receipt, I know that I spent under $8.00. The cost of feeling like you won a challenge and saved money and time however, is priceless!

I have a feeling using this won't be the last time I use PVC for an awesomely creative and dirt-cheap project.  Speaking of awesomely creative, I recently came across this project - check out those kids playing in the awesome sprinkler! 

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This fishing rod holder is pretty awesome.  I have not done anything quite this extensive.  You can also make a great fly rod case out of pvc.  This is very helpful when traveling especially if you have to bring your fly rod on an airplane.  This website shows you how to make it very easily.  The best thing too is that it costs under $5 which is a fraction of what most fly shops would charge...it would be an awesome Father's Day gift!

Do you have any cool PVC designs you use?  Maybe you have some much cooler acronyms at least.  Please share!  If you're interested in other amazing PVC possibilities, this website has amazing ideas and inspiration.

 - JOHN

The Parsimonious Penny Pincher

Hello Turning a House into a Home readers, I am Kristen's husband John.  My wife has inspired me to take on some of my own diy projects lately and she has asked me to share some of them with you throughout this week.  I used to consider myself a cheap person.  That is, until I married my wife.  Frugal is an understatement when I describe her spending habits.  A parsimonious penny-pincher I think is a more accurate description (sweet alliteration, I know!).  I have friends with spouses that are big spenders and live outside of their means.  We definitely do NOT have that issue in our household.

One of the many things that my wife's frugal habits have shown me is that the small patch of woods behind our neighborhood is an untapped resource of creativity and a beginning to many diy projects.  It is the same as modeling clay is to a sculptor or blank canvas to a painter.  I will frequently make a "woods run" for more supplies (Yes, our neighbors do think I'm crazy as they stare at me and wonder why this man frequently carries branches back to his 3rd floor apartment).

When Kristen needed a new plant stand on our balcony, did I go to Home Depot?  Of course not!  I made a woods run!

I searched the woods until I found the right branches that I wanted to create a plant stand.  I wanted straight, long sticks that would work for the top and legs for the stand.  I also wanted some smaller pieces for supports.  All the wood I used I found on the ground and did not cut anything from a tree.  At the same time I did not want anything that had been down very long as it may have started to rot.  Once I had some supplies, I was ready to cut!

I began by cutting the branches into smaller pieces for the legs and the top.  Now, normally I like to plan how I'm going to make a project.  I will draw diagrams, look up different ideas, make very careful measurements.  With this project, I totally improvised everything as I went along.  In hindsight, this was not the best idea and I definitely could have benefited from a little more planning.  In fact, I ended up starting from scratch half-way through the first try.

Also, if you ever do this, use a miter block or a chop saw.  Your cuts will be much straighter than mine and
the time it will take will be drastically reduced (especially with the chop saw).  I did however know how large I wanted the top to be.  I wanted the top to be 12"x12".  I cut 2 - 10" sticks that I could secure the top to then I cut 9 - 12" sticks that I glued to it.  The legs were all cut at 14".  

Once I had my top and legs cut, I glued the top together.  I used screws to fasten the legs to the top.  From there I screwed in some supports.  The side supports I drilled holes into the legs that the supports could fit into and slid them in with a small amount of wood glue.  Overall I used four screws, some wood glue, and some gorilla glue to fasten the wood together.  I did not want to use too many screws as I think they take away from the overall natural look.

We now have a rustic plant stand for our growing container garden on the balcony. We have yet to decide if we want to stain it to match the bench we built out of branches as well or if we'd rather leave it natural.  Not only is my wife happy with the end product, the plants are loving it, too.

 - JOHN

Meet the Husband

In preparation for John's week of manly crafts, a week devoted to my husband's tinkerings and DIY projects, I thought I'd introduce you to John.

John is an avid outdoor enthusiast. He loves hiking, camping, fishing, and anything else that one can do in outside in nature.  We greatly enjoy camping and tend to go on hikes whenever we need to run away from civilization (which is fairly often).

An accomplished musician, John studied jazz and rock guitar through high school and college and is now getting his master's degree in classical guitar.  When I met him in college he was a full blown rock guitarist and even tried to woo me by inviting me to his rock shows (that is until he realized I really preferred silence to loud music).  Having toured the US, and even internationally, he decided he'd rather settle down and have a family - and boy am I glad!  I still love to watch him perform, even if it is more wedding and formal gigs these days.

He loves tinkering with tools and is the handy man behind the scenes of Turning a House into a Home. Since getting married, I've had to do a lot less leaky facet fixing, door unjamming, picture hanging, and clogged drain unclogging.

Lucky for me he also cooks a mean meal, has recently learned how to clean the bathroom, and always remembers the important dates (you know, like our anniversary and my birthday).

Be sure to tune in next week and see the unveiling of some projects John's been working on!

Where Everybody Knows Your Name

In the past week I've been to Home Depot an average of 1.4 times a day. This morning I made a Home Depot run at 8:25am and I'm hoping it's my last for quite some time. Here are a few reasons for the many trips to the place where people are starting to know my name.

There are some big plans being made behind the scenes of Turning a House into a Home. There are also some manly crafts being created, some finishing touches on a birthday present being tweaked, and some arms preparing for a massive sanding project.

Speaking of manly crafts, next week my husband John will be taking over the little blog and sharing with you some things he's been working on. I'm a little curious, a little scared, and a little happy for a blogging break.

Summer Fireplace Makeovers

The fireplace tends to be overlooked in the sultry summer months, at least mine use to be.  During the cold autumn and winter months it is filled with glowing embers, crackling logs, and promises of cozy evenings.  In the summer, however, my fireplace tended to look and feel like a big, black empty hole.  This spring, when I cleaned out the ashes and washed down the fireplace, I decided to bring joy to the could-be black, empty hole of a summer fireplace.

Having leftover wood from last winter, I decided to put some in the fireplace and then draped them with globe lights. In the evenings, it adds coziness and provides an unexpected focal point.  I've also placed several plants near the fireplace to bring in some green into the space (and because I am up to my ears in houseplants).

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A collection of tall and beautiful vases brings a touch of elegance to anyone's fireplace. Here tall and slender shapes bring interest to the small, square frames, vases on the mantel, and side table. A great way to show off some flowers from your garden - just be careful of kids and pets.

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This is my favorite fireplace decoration.  You know all about my love of sticks (you can read a little about it here or here) and this is a great way to add texture, nature, and warm color to a room.  I've also seen birch branches used which is also beautiful.

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Candles are a traditional way to bring light and warmth to a cold fireplace. Interest is added when you bring in varying heights of candles and many people use candelabras.  In a sense, candles allows fire to be burned all year long and gives those with non-working fireplaces a way to enjoy the warmth and firelight.

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Greenery and plants are a great way to summer-ize a fireplace. I like the juxtaposition of a winter-loving fireplace playing home to summer plants. Don't forget to add varying heights with the incorporation of some small stools or plant stands.

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I love this fireplace stuffed full of blooms...I'm picturing baby's breath or hydrangeas. Notice that it provides a little interest but allows the mantle to really shine. 

What have you done to summer-ize your fireplaces?

Weekend Reminiscing

I hope everyone had a wonderful and fabulous weekend holiday. John and I definitely enjoyed the long weekend and spent a lot of time relaxing, soaking up the beautiful weather, and working on various small projects. Unfortunately I was a bad blogger and left my camera in its case for the most of the weekend.

Lots of time was spent fawning over our balcony garden, babying it, and celebrating the first cayenne pepper and three flowers. I've never grown flowers before and they are beautiful! Our pepper is also the first real vegetable we've grown (aside from our annual herb garden) and it's exciting to look at it and think up the first recipe we want to use it in.  Oh, and we're thinking stir fry, in case you're wondering.

 Monday we spent some time at the pool and then enjoyed our balcony as we watched the torrential downpour in the evening. As soon as it let up, we headed to the city park to watch some amazing fireworks.

Layla loves fireworks - it's entertaining to watch her as she follows the spark of a tail up into the sky until it bursts into the beautiful explosion.  

It was a very nice, relaxing holiday and I'm a little sad it's Tuesday already.

 

The Home of the Free and the Brave

Fourth of July is almost upon us (I can hardly believe it is July 1st!) and I've been stumbling upon such cute decorations to make your backyard celebration beautiful and fun. 

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 Such a fun and easy banner made by cutting out several sizes of stars and sewing them together with some red thread. This would look cute on the front door, on the back porch, or anywhere really! 

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 I'm loving this simple but fun display.  Red glass beads are used as a filler to hold the simple white candles. To make this even more budget-friendly, try sand or white rice as a filler and a red candle.  Such a cute way to spruce up the backyard and add some light as the sun goes down.

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What super fun pom pom type sticks! They definitely add interest to this tablescape but would also make great favors for the kids to play with. I'm seeing 4th of July pictures with everyone waving these fun sticks. These would be easy to make using ribbon or paper.

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The Crafting Chicks is offering this free printable that is oh so patriotic and fun. 

Stay tuned for a tutorial featuring pinwheels...oh how I loved pinwheels as a kid!