This post is sponsored by HomeRight. All opinions and project ideas are 100% my own.

Make sure to scroll down to enter the giveaway!

Yellow Spring Mantel Decor

What do you think of when you hear the word "spring"? I think of new green growth, sunshine, tulips, and finally hearing birds chirping again.

I didn't have a lot of yellow decor, so I used the magic of paint to transform some inexpensive pots.

I have really been itching to paint again and do more projects outside. I was happy when the temps finally hit above 50 one day. I took full advantage of it and set up my spray shelter.

I used my HomeRight Quick Finish sprayer since it is perfect for smaller projects. I love using the turntable for smaller projects too. So fast and easy!

My all time favorite thing about this sprayer is that when you are done, the motor part detaches which makes it super easy to clean.

I used the same golden yellow color that I used for the metal card catalog. It is so cheery without being too bright.

Yellow Spring Mantel Decor

The bird picture is from Michael's. I bought a few that I am going to paint and use for something else later, but decided I liked it for this mantel too!

HomeRight is offering up one Quick Finish sprayer to one lucky winner. Enter below using the Rafflecopter widget.

You must be at least 18 years old to enter. You must be a resident of the USA to enter. The giveaway will go from March 29, 2021 until April 5, 2021. A winner will be chosen by random.org and will be notified by email. The winner will have 48 hours to respond before a new winner will be chosen. The shipping of the prize is the responsibility of the company, in this case, HomeRight.

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This post is sponsored by HomeRight but all ideas and opinions are 100% my own. This post contains an affiliate link.

Before:

Sorry for the crappy cell phone picture...

Painted Twin Bed

I am a big believer in kids sharing rooms. I think they learn a lot of things by sharing a space that will help them later in life. So when we suddenly went from four kids down to three, if we would have kept them in their current rooms, one would have their own room while the others shared. I am also big on being as fair as possible so we moved our third oldest into the other room. Once upon a time, all four shared this big bedroom so having three in there didn't even phase my kids. In fact, all four were sharing this room up until 3 years ago.

To make it work without disrupting the current room layout, we simply moved the two arm chairs out and put the twin bed in their place. Even though the painted twin bed sticks out a tiny bit farther than the chairs, there's still a good 5 feet before the dresser (across from it) so there's plenty of room to walk & play.

The arm chairs got moved out to the garage attic fort. The boys were using our outdoor metal ones and were excited for the upgrade!

Painting the bed could not have been easier!

Painting The Bed

Patch any dents or scratches with sandable, paintable wood putty. Wait for it to dry and then move on to the next step. Since this bed is only 3 years old, I didn't have any damage to fix.

Sand the bed using a 120 or 220 grit sandpaper. You are not trying to remove the previous finish, you just need to scuff the surface so the new layer of paint has something to grip. Sand the whole thing. Sanding also helps by removing residue and dirt.

Wipe off the dust and make sure it is really clean. Paint doesn't stick to dirty surfaces were well. I usually only use a damp rag unless it is very dirty. If you use soap, don't over do it. Paint doesn't stick well to soap residue either. After cleaning with soap, wipe with wet rag. Allow to completely dry before moving on to the next step.

Tape off any parts you don't want on get paint on them or remove. I should have taped off the casters (I had the tape right there next to me) but I forgot. Sometimes I get going on a project and plow ahead. Luckily for me, the metal casters were basically the same color and barely got any overspray on them at all.

Protect your work space but laying down a tarp or covering anything nearby. Since I am using an unfinished corner of the basement, I didn't put a tarp down, but I did drape one over the things stored down there.

Honestly, the prep always takes longer than the actual painting. I used my Super Finish Max paint sprayer and coat number one was done in less than 5 minutes. Since it was on casters, it was easy to rotate it around to get both sides.

Once the first coat was done, (it almost didn't need another coat) I applied a light second coat. I was happy to see that the sprayer got all the way into the cubbies. I wondered if the center of the inside would get painted or not, but the spray goes really far and covered it all!

Can you imagine how long it would have taken me to do this with a brush? And how awkward it would have been to try to reach all the way in the small cubbies?

The perk of having the headboard off and the bed pushed against the wall is that now (as a daybed) it can also function as a couch! Instead of two kids sitting in chairs, all three can fit and watch shows.

I am trying to decide if I like it without ↑ or with ↓ the rug . Help me decide!

I'm curious... How do you feel about shared kids spaces? Are you pro sharing? Or do you think they should have their own space?

Also, since the two boys moved out of the other room, stay tuned to a reveal on how we are using it now!

This post is sponsored by HomeRight but all opinions and project ideas are 100% my own. It also contains affiliate links.

I grew white pumpkins in the garden this year and my kids were excited to harvest them and use them in the decor.

Who doesn't love the movie Hocus Pocus? A little nod to a Halloween classic :) I've only ever done one other Halloween mantel, which was also black and white, and I used a few of the same elements.

I added my sign in my TV frame but you could prop it up on the mantel as well. I cut some hard board to the size of the inside of the frame.

I used my HomeRight Quick Finish to paint it all white.

Quick Finish sprayer

I used vinyl lettering that I cut out with a machine as a kind of reverse stencil but you could also use store bought stencils for this next step.

Wait for the basecoat of paint to completely dry before adding tape to vinyl so you don't risk peeling it off when you remove the stencil. Apply it to the sign the way you want it. If you stencil is not big enough to cover all the area you want, use painters tape to finish covering what you don't want painted.

I sprayed a layer of black over the stencil. They key is to do a thin coat. If you get the paint too thick, it will be harder to get the stencil off without pulling paint off with it.

As soon as the top coat of paint isn't tacky anymore, remove the stencil. If there are areas that the top coat is too thick and you are having a hard time peeling off, use a box cutter or X-acto knife to score along the edge.

The kids are happy with it and are ready for our Halloween night at home :)

GIVEAWAY!

HomeRight is giving away one of their new Quick Finish sprayers! I love sharing these sprayers with you and get excited each time one of you get to try one of these out for yourselves.

Enter below using the Rafflecopter widget. Email me if you have any issues.

You must be at least 18 years old to enter. You must be a resident of the USA to enter. The giveaway will go from September 30, 2020 until October 8, 2020.  The winner will be chosen by random.org and will be notified by email. The winner will have 48 hours to respond before a new winner will be chosen. The shipping of the prize is the responsibility of the company, in this case HomeRight.

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This post is sponsored by HomeRight but all opinions are 100% my own. This post also contains affiliate links.

Ever since we re-landscaped the front yard and got rid of one of the flowerbeds, it has seemed a little plain over by the fence. I like that I don't have to weed that long flowerbed anymore, and the grass seed came in nice and thick. But the lawn area was practically begging for a garden bench. I finally found one I liked that fit all my requirements. It needed to be lightweight so one person could move it when it was time to mow, it needed to be inexpensive, and I really wanted something simple and not too traditional. It just needed a tiny makeover!

Tips For Painting Metal

Tip #1

When prepping anything for paint, I think it is a good idea to lightly sand it. It helps gives the surface a texture that the paint can grip. This bench had a powder coated surface with a matte texture, and one could argue that sanding wasn't necessary, but it doesn't hurt to take a few extra minutes with a fine grit sandpaper. If your metal surface is shiny, you will most definitely want to sand really well.

Tip #2

Put your project on a tarp to protect your work area. I am shocked at how many painting videos I see on instagram and Facebook where people are painting on their sidewalk or deck without anything under their project. Even though this time I did it on my grass, I still didn't want to live with painted grass until the next time I mow. Plus, the tarp protects my project from getting dirt or grass on the wet paint.

Tip #3

Don't paint metal outside when it is HOT. When metal is in the sun it heats up quickly and if you apply paint while it is hot, the paint will bubble. If you are doing a project during the summer like me, find a shaded spot and/or do the project in the morning or evening when the temperatures are cooler.

Tip #4

Put scrap wood under your project so it is elevated up off the tarp a bit. This will keep your project from sticking to the tarp. If you have ever skipped this step, you probably have gone to lift your project off the tarp and took a thin layer of paint off the tarp with you. Then you have to scrape the paint off the edge or your project. I have been there!

Tip #5

Use an oil based paint. I have used water based enamels for metal before but only if the piece was going to be used indoors and it wasn't a highly used piece that wouldn't get lots of wear and tear. Since this bench will get sprayed by sprinklers and get lots of handling, it needed an oil based paint.

Tip #6

Use a quality paint sprayer to apply the paint. I used the Quick Finish sprayer from HomeRight this time because of how easy it is to clean. Cleaning oil based paint up is a bit of a pain, but is SO MUCH EASIER with this sprayer since all the washable parts detach from the non-washable motor. GENIUS!

Quick Finish Sprayer

I chose navy blue to match the window boxes and planters around the house.

Tip #7

Let the paint dry completely. If there happens to be any drips because you got to close with the sprayer, lightly sand then down and then spray a little more paint over that area.

Look at that finish! So smooth and pretty :)

Now the lonely stretch of grass in front of the fence has a cheery blue garden bench. It s a perfect place to sit in the shade while watching the boys show off their skateboard tricks and bike jumps.

The other side of this fence is my Secret Garden!

Giveaway!

HomeRight has offered to giveaway one of their NEW Quick Finish Sprayers! Enter below using the Rafflecopter widget. Email me if you have any issues entering. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

You must be at least 18 years old to enter. You must be a resident of the USA to enter. The giveaway will go from July 26, 2020 until August 4, 2020.  The winner will be chosen by random.org and will be notified by email. The winner will have 48 hours to respond before a new winner will be chosen. The shipping of the prize is the responsibility of the company, in this case HomeRight.

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This post is sponsored by HomeRight but all ideas and opinions are 100% my own. Some links within this post are affiliate.

I have an embarrassingly large amount of scrap wood in my garage. It takes up more room than I'd like to admit. So for this project, I decoded to use as much of it as I could.

I used up some of my plywood scraps for the center of each panel, 1x4s for the frames, 2x4s for the bottom, and 2x2s for the feet.

The 1x4s I had on hand were the furring strips and not the nice kiln dried sanded ones. I made it work by filling knot holes and sanding but if you are buying supplies you may want to buy the nicer boards. Cedar would be a good choice too.

For being made of scrap wood, I think they look pretty good!

DIY Outdoor Planters

Start out by cutting your 1x4 boards with 45 degree cuts on the ends. I wanted my panels for each side to be 15" x 20".

I drilled pocket holes using my Kreg jig and screwed them all together. Make sure to drill the pocket holes on the least pretty side so the nicest side will be the front.

Once the frames were all made and sanded well, I nailed the pieces of plywood onto the back side of each frame to create the panels.

Since brad nails don't hold up well over time on outdoor projects alone, I caulked around each panel (front and back) with paintable caulk. The clear paintable caulk is easier to work with in my opinion. It goes on smoother and shrinks a little so when it dries it hardly looks like there is any caulk there at all.

Once all the panels are made, I nailed them together to form a box. I decided for this project that I would just butt them up against each other since it didn't matter if it was 100% square. But in the past, I have also used the table saw to cut each side at a 45 degree angle. You can see an example of that with my X planter box in my book.

Just like with the panels, I used caulk to "glue" and seal the panels in addition to the nails.

Since the plants will just be set inside these planters and not directly planted in them, I made the bottom have large slats so water can easily drain and not collect in the bottom.

I screwed these into place and puttied over the screw holes. I inset them a bit so the feet could be braced in the corner a bit.

After all that work, it was time to PAINT! I used the HomeRight turn table for this project.

Because I did this in on the grass, I put a scrap board under it and because the planter was bigger than the turn table, I added another one to the top. It made it so easy to paint! You can see how fast and easy it was in a video on my DIY instagram stories. 

I chose the same navy color as my window boxes and front porch planters. It always startles me when it goes on bare wood because it seems so bright. I chant in my head "It darkens as it dries" so I don't second guess my paint color.

After spraying on the first coat with my Finish Max Super, I lightly sanded it again. The paint raises the grain and makes it feel rough. Doing a quick sand will make it super smooth and allow the second coat to go on perfectly.

I added a couple of leftover pavers in the bottom the help raise up the pots the bushes are in and to give it even more weight. Hopefully these planters don't blow over!

Have you ever made planters? What kind of outdoor projects do you have planned this year? Let me know in the comments!

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This post is sponsored by HomeRight but all ideas and opinions are 100% my own. This post also contains affiliate links.

The Before

The Storage Bench Makeover Reveal

The slanted walls of the fort are going to be black and the love seat is a dark yellow so I decided to go with a bright white for the storage bench.

I think paired with these pillows it will be the perfect addition to the boy hang out place.

Makeover Details

Giving a piece of old furniture a face-lift is easy! And it can easily be done in a day or two. Here's how!

Step 1:

Sand the surface with a medium grit sandpaper like 120. This will make the surface a little rough and the paint will adhere better. It will also help remove any dirt and grime.

Step 2:

Clean the whole thing really well with a damp rag. As soon as it is dry and dull, it is ready for the next step!

Step 3:

Make any repairs that are needed. Fill dents and scratches with paintable putty. I needed to nail some trim back on and calk along a seam. It really wasn't in too bad of shape all things considered.

Step 4:

Remove any hardware and tape off anything you don't want to paint. I decided to keep the the inside dark so I covered the opening. Place the furniture piece on a tarp to protect your workspace. I like to place the furniture on scrap wood so that it doesn't end up sticking to the tarp.

Step 5:

The best way to get a smooth finish is to use a paint sprayer. I love the HomeRight Finish Max Super. I loaded it with my favorite white paint and added a thin coat. Several thin coats are better than one or two thicker coats.

HomeRight Finish Max Super

I like to use a semi gloss paint on things that will get a lot of wear and tear and will need to be wiped down a lot. Since this is going in a garage attic with a bunch of boys, I'd say it will be getting wiped down quite a bit.

Do you have any painting projects on your to-do list? I'd love to hear about your summer projects :) 

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This post is sponsored by HomeRight but all ideas and opinions are 100% my own.

Metal Card Catalog Makeover

They started out gray and black. They were scratched, dented, and had some rust.

Step 1:

Sand them with a fine grit sandpaper. It will rough up the smooth surface so the paint will adhere better and will remove any dirt and grime.

Step 2:

Wash them off really well. Allow them to completely dry before moving to the next step.

Step 3:

Tape off the handles. Cut off the excess with a box cutter to get a nice clean edge.

Step 4:

Place the catalog pieces on a tarp to protect your work area.

Step 5:

Paint them with a paint sprayer. Test out the spray on a piece of cardboard to get the spray to the way you want it. You can adjust it with the dial by the handle. Multiple thin coats are better than one or two thick coats.

I was able to test out a NEW sprayer from HomeRight called the Quick Finish! It is perfect for smaller projects. It has a really cool feature that I'm obsessed about. All the parts that need to be washed, detach from the motor so you never risk getting the motor wet. How fantastic is that?

There is a 70's gold colored love seat that will be in the garage attic fort for the boys. That is why I went with this mustard yellow paint for the card catalog. I really love it! Plus I recently wrote a post about crushing on mustard yellow and have been looking for a place to use this color.

It is perfect to hold all of the boys' treasures.

I can't wait to see it in the kids' space!

HomeRight is offering to giveaway one of their new sprayers! Enter below using the rafflecopter widget to win a Quick Finish sprayer.

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You must be at least 18 years old to enter. You must be a resident of the USA to enter. The giveaway will go from May 8, 2020 until May 15, 2020. A winner will be chosen by random.org and will be notified by email. The winner will have 48 hours to respond before a new winner will be chosen. The shipping of the prize is the responsibility of the company, in this case, HomeRight.

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This post is sponsored by Homeight but all ideas, opinions, and bad Coronavirus jokes are all mine ;) This post contains affiliate links.

BEFORE:

This multi-shaded orange beauty was dated and in need of a refresh.

Behold, the power of paint! My sister requested that I paint it the same color as her kitchen island. I think the dark gray was perfect.

How To Get a Smooth Finish When Painting

Proper preparation is a huge part of getting smooth results. This dresser had lots of dings and scratches that needed to be fixed before I could even think about cracking open the paint can.

Step 1: Putty & Sand

Putty any dings, dents, or scratches with a sandable wood putty. Overfill since most putties will shrink a little when drying. Allow it to full dry before sanding. Sand it down until it is flush with the wood surface.

Sand the entire piece. Paint will stick better to a non-shiny surface. Plus, this helps get rid of slight imperfections such as shallow scratches or water marks as well as any dirt or grime. Start out with a 120 grit and then go over it wit a 220. If you sand with a heavy grit sandpaper, it will leave little lines that will become obvious when paint is applied. There's no need to use a sander. Hand sanding is fine. You are not trying to remove the previous finish. Make sure to sand the same direction as the wood grain.

Step 2:  Clean

Wipe off the dresser and make sure to get all the dust off. Paint sticks much better to a clean surface.

Step 3: Set Up Work Area

Even though the Super Finish Max has very little over spray, you will want to protect your driveway, garage, basement, etc from any paint. If you are working outside, this Spray Shelter also protects your project from getting leaves and such blown onto the wet paint. The set up is fast and easy. It is large enough to hold furniture with room to spare!

Step 4: Paint!

Choose a good quality paint, especially if the piece will get a lot of wear and tear.

Using a paint sprayer is going to be your best bet for a super smooth finish. No matter how talented you are, you can not get this quality of a finish by brushing on paint. If you want a factory finish (or what I like to call baby butt smooth), then you really do need to use a sprayer. I used my Super Finish Max.

It is much better to paint several thin coats of paint rather than one or two thick coats. If you apply it too heavily, you run the risk of the paint running and dripping. Apply the paint in long, even strokes going the same direction.

Once it has dried completely (I like to let mine cure a minimum of 24 hours) you can add the hardware back on. I updated this dresser by getting new hardware.

Can you see that baby butt finish? Aaaahhhh. Love it.

I had to photograph it in my house instead of my sister's new guest room due to the Coronavirus and the Stay Home order. But I think it looks pretty cute here, don't you think?

Now for the giveaway!

HomeRight is giving one lucky reader a large Spray Shelter! Now you can paint in your shelter while you "shelter in place". Too soon? ;)

You must be at least 18 years old to enter. You must be a resident of the USA to enter. The giveaway will go from April 3, 2020 until April 10, 2020. A winner will be chosen by random.org and will be notified by email. The winner will have 48 hours to respond before a new winner will be chosen. The shipping of the prize is the responsibility of the company, in this case, HomeRight.

Enter below using the Rafflecopter Widget:

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This project is sponsored by HomeRight but all ideas are 100% my ow. This post contains affiliate links.

Under Bed Storage Drawers

If you remember from the reveal, there are two beds in this symmetrical space. Each bed got two drawers.

There is a reason these under bed storage drawers didn't make it into the reveal post. I had cut out the wood for some under bed storage drawers but when we assembled the bed frames and set the side tables next to them, I quickly realized I had made a big mistake. I had made it so that both drawers were 32" by 32" and didn't account for the side tables being in the way of one of the boxes being able to slide out. So it was back to the table saw for round two! After they were cut down, I was able to assemble and paint them.

Building And Painting

I built them using left over OSB board and plywood. The fronts are 1x10 boards that I bought. They are very simple boxes with but joints. Nothing fancy since you won't see anything other than the fronts most of the time.

I painted them the same color as the side tables. Raw wood soaks up paint really well so it took three coats of paint. I used my favorite paint tool, the Super Finish Max! It makes the job

The grain raises when it gets wet with paint and when it dries, it stays that way. If you want a smooth finish, you will need to sand it down with a fine grit sandpaper before adding a second coat of paint. Make sure to use a damp rag to wipe off any dust before painting.

The Super Finish Max gives me a really smooth finish every time! Once the paint was all the way dry, I added casters to bottoms of each drawer so they would easily slide out from under the bed when needed.

Leather Pulls

For handles, I made these leather pulls. They were so easy!

I still have leather left over from when I skinned our sofa  so I cut strips that were 8" long and 3" wide. I folded them in half and sewed along the edges using my sewing machine with a leather needle.

I hammered a nail through the ends so I could screw them onto the drawer fronts.

I bought these screw caps from Amazon. The threaded collar slips over the screw head and then after you screw it into the wood, the cap just twists right on to cover it!

Giveaway!

You must be at least 18 years old to enter. You must be a resident of the USA to enter. The giveaway will go from March 5, 2020 until March 12, 2020. A winner will be chosen by random.org and will be notified by email. The winner will have 48 hours to respond before a new winner will be chosen. The shipping of the prize is the responsibility of the company, in this case, HomeRight.

Enter below using the Rafflecopter Widget:

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Super Finish Max

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Our garage makeover journey actually started last Fall. This is what it looked like back then. A real beaut, eh?

Since I have a 3 step ladder rule (I hate heights!) Shane was the master behind the scraping, sanding, caulking, and painting the top portion. I made the basketball hoop backboard and he attached it for me.

As lovely as the top half looked, it made the doors look all the more faded and shabby. And then one day we lost a poorly applied replacement panel so I knew we had to move this garage door makeover project to the top of the to-do list.

Garage Door Makeover

Step 1: Make Any Necessary Repairs

The top two rows of panels are original as well as one on the third row. But the others are scrap pieces of particle board that were screwed on from behind and were obviously deeper than the others. I took off all of the bottom panels and removed the recently broken glass (thanks to the basketball hoop).

I added a thin piece of plywood to the backside of the door. It was almost a full sheet of plywood. That allowed me to be able to have something to attach the new panels to. I used liquid nails to adhere ½" plywood squares and then caulked around them.

Step 2: Scrape and Sand

Here's where the elbow grease comes in. Doing this project when it was hovering around 100 all week was not the best. Also I should note that if your garage door is as old as mine, you need to do a lead paint test. They are inexpensive and easy to do. If you are lead paint free, you can proceed!

Because of how many thick layers of paint were on this bad boy, even after scraping off the loose paint, there was still a big difference between where the raw wood was showing through and the top coat of paint. Sanding these transition areas will help lessen it but it will still show after being painted. It is what it is. This makeover is a temporary fix. The other option was to strip the paint off of the door and trim but that would have been more costly and more time consuming. The quality of the wood and the shape it was in after 80 years in the sun didn't warrant it.

Step 3: Clean it Well

After all the sanding, I needed to clean the dust off. I chose to hose it down. Anytime hosing something is an option I do it instead of wiping it down. Outdoor furniture, kids...

Step 4: Tape and Tarp

When the door was completely dry, it was time to protect the areas around the door. Since the overspray of the Wagner Flexio 5000 is minimal, I chose to use the thin plastic tarp with tape already attached. I ran it along the sides and along the bottom.

I chose a good exterior paint with UV protection.

Step 4: Paint!

Before you turn the sprayer onto your project, first test it on a large piece of cardboard. It was my first time using the Wagner Flexio 5000 and since it has more settings than the HomeRight sprayers, it took me awhile to get the feel for it and to fine tune the adjustments for the paint I was using. The iSPRAY nozzel that I was using also puts out more paint since it is meant for larger projects and is not a finish sprayer. That took some getting use to.

*Side note... Some of you may be wondering why I am all of a sudden using a Wagner Sprayer when I have been using HomeRight sprayers for 7 years. Guess what?! Wagner and HomeRight got married :) They merged earlier this year and I now have the opportunity to test our the Wagner line as well. 

One other cool feature is that the motor is on a housing unit on the ground so you can have more paint in the container and it isn't as heavy. No more tired arms as you spray back and forth.

Holy cats you guys! Look at my garage door makeover! It kind of looks like new! All the panels are firmly attached and are the same depth. No more gaps and tears. I went ahead and gave the regular door the full Wagner treatment as well.

I added plexiglass to the windows instead of glass. Since the basketball hoop is right above, I didn't want to risk the windows getting broke again. I know there are pros and cons to plexi, but it is our best bet for now.

I also removed the paint from the original lock and handle so they stand out in all their brass glory.

After a week of scorching temperatures, the day I was finishing up and trying to take photos it was a DOWNPOUR. So much rain. The trim paint is actually still wet in the photos because of the humidity. But the wet paint and wet driveway don't take away from the fact that this garage looks a heck of a lot better than it did a week ago.

I'm not done!

Part 1 was painting the top half, part 2 was painting the garage door and trim, part 3 is still to come! One more big project that I have the supplies for, I just need to get up the courage. Stay tuned!

Giveaway!

HomeRight/Wagner are offering to give one lucky reader a Wagner Flexio 5000! That is a $215 value. This includes not only the iSPRAY Nozzle that I used (meant for broad surface projects) but also the Detail Finish Nozzle for smaller projects and a super smooth finish.

You must be at least 18 years old to enter. You must be a resident of the USA to enter. The giveaway will go from August 1, 2019 until August 8, 2019. A winner will be chosen by random.org and will be notified by email. The winner will have 48 hours to respond before a new winner will be chosen. The shipping of the prize is the responsibility of the company, in this case, HomeRight.

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Shane was in charge of taking the before picture since he was taking the roof off while I was working in the garden. He failed. But you can see how worn the plywood was at least in this shot.

This photo was about 7 years ago after we repatinted it to spruce it up a bit.

We started by taking off all the old plywood. The we took the top part of the coop off of the base. I built a new base that had more wood beams going across the bottom to better support the chicken wire. We like having a couple layers of chicken wire for the bottom because then we never have to clean it out. Everything eventually falls through and can be cleaned up easily.

We added new plywood siding and a new roof. The base got legs too!

Before we added the shingles, I sprayed the whole thing white with my Super Finish Max paint sprayer (affiliate link). It was done in no time at all. Then I laid a tarp out and sprayed all the trim a dark gray to match the new shingles.

I hated it.

I only got a couple of trim boards up before I knew I didn't like it at all. When I looked at it, it looked like a cheap shed. My husband didn't mind it and I know it isn't the ugliest thing ever, but it was not the look I was going for.

I took the trim off and painted it white.

Much better! The little door I built was the cherry on the top. I have always wanted a white chicken coop but held off because of the potential for it to always be dirty. And guess what? I may hate it later on and regret my choice. But it is just paint. It can be changed. I am hoping with the legs keeping it up off the ground, that it will help. We also are going to lay down straw all over the ground to cover the dirt. We did that for years but recently got lazy and stopped.

I built a new ramp as well. I had tried to just paint the old one but it was badly warped and once I changed the color of the trim, I didn't want the ramp to be gray either. I'm hoping the brown will hide the dirt better!

Our chickens had stopped laying in the coop. They kind of just laid all over the pen in the dirt and the haystack. Now that the coop is fixed, they all lay in the nesting boxes!

You can see the wire floor as well as the 2x4 that runs the length of the coop opposite of the nesting boxes for them to roost at night.

And even with the addition of legs, our youngest can still reach in and collect the eggs.

HomeRight is offering to give a Super FInish Max paint sprayer to one lucky reader. Enter below for your chance to win!

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You must be at least 18 years old to enter. You must be a resident of the USA to enter. The giveaway will go from May 20, 2019 until May 28, 2019. A winner will be chosen by random.org and will be notified by email. The winner will have 48 hours to respond before a new winner will be chosen. The shipping of the prize is the responsibility of the company, in this case, HomeRight.

I'd love to hear what you think about the changes I made to our coop. Do you have chickens? What is your coop like? 

And if you are curious about raising backyard chickens, I wrote a post all about it HERE!

This post is sponsored by HomeRight but all ideas and opinions are 100% my own!

I wanted to make it easy to use so it has pegs that you move around as you score. My youngest had just as much fun moving the pegs as he did playing the game!

DIY Outdoor Scoreboard

Supplies:

*links are affiliate

Plywood cut to desired size

⅜" wood dowel

2 large wood beads  (or cut out 2 3" circles)

Paint

Stain

Foam brushes

Painters tape

Stencils

Helmsman Spar Urethane

Rope

It really is very easy. Even the pegs! I had some large wooden beads left over from a previous project. You can find them in any craft store or online. I cut 3 inch pieces of ⅜" dowels. I had to use a ⅜" drill bit to make the holes in the beads a tiny bit bigger. Then I used a hammer to fore the dowel all the way through to the other side. I spray painted them when I was done.

For the actual scoreboard, I cut a scrap piece of plywood to 20" x 30", sanded it, and stained it a warm brown.

Once the stain was dry, I stenciled the letters and numbers.

To help the number stand out, and to tie in the black stripes, I outlined the numbers and letters with a black marker. It was tedious and definately optional, but I think it really took the scoreboard up a notch.

I waited to drill the holes for the pegs until I had the numbers on so I could make sure the holes were centered under the numbers. You have to be careful when drilling large holes in plywood. Plywood tends to get ripped up while drilling. Two things help with this. Drill slowly and put painters tape over the area before drilling. I forgot about the tape trick until I had already drilled one hole. I added tape for the rest of the holes.

The holes got outlined as well with a black marker.

It still needs to be sealed. I couldn't find my Helmsman spar urethane (outdoor sealer ) before it was time to take photos for this post. Of course I found it as soon as I was done. Go figure!

My kids didn't waste any time putting the DIY outdoor scoreboard to good use. As soon as it was put up on the fence, they were shouting "I'm team blue!"

Here are the other talented ladies who are participating in the outdoor game challenge. Head over and see their creative DIY games!

Addicted 2 DIY

RemodelaCasa

The Created Home

Anika's DIY Life

The Inspired Workshop

The Awesome Orange

Stacy Risenmay

My Repurposed Life

Ugly Duckling House

100 Things 2 Do

Joyful Derivatives

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Since I was making four ( and I love them so much I might make even more!) I wanted them to be as simple as possible but still provide comfy seating.

Outdoor Movie Theater Seats Tutorial

Like I said before, I wanted these to be as simple as possible in case I ended up making a ton of them.

1. I cut plywood that I had on hand into 24 inch by 18 inch pieces. The cushions were about 17 inches wide so that is why I made them a tiny bit bigger.  For every seat you want, cut two boards.

2. Then I primed them with a tinted primer I had on hand. White primer would be fine as well. I primed them because plywood is SO porous and soaks up a lot of paint. I didn't want to go through a million cans of spray paint.

3. I used hinges to attach the two boards together. I used two hinges per seat. Thicker plywood is best for this project for the fact that the screws will go all the way through the board if it is too thin.

4. I had some 1x2 that I cut to fit on the inside of the boards. I cut two pieces per seat. I screwed them onto the inside of the bottom. I then screwed a 5 inch screw all the way through the 1x2 piece. These get pushed into the ground to make sure the seat doesn't move when you lean back on it. There were four (one on each bottom corner) per seat. Then I painted the 1x2 piece as well.

We went super casual and added a crate as our "side table" and mason jars for the drinks.

Outdoor movies aren't just for kids! Why not have a girls night?

Because of the hinge, you can adjust these outdoor movie theater seats to any height you want. You can sit up or make it open more so you are laying down more.

Does your family ever have outdoor movies? Have you ever thought to do it as a couple's night? Or a girl's night? I would love to hear your stories!

Why chickens?

Well, it is pretty simple. I grew up in the country. We had horses, dogs, cats, chickens, and ducks. We also had an occasional other farm animal if I batted my eyes at my dad and pleaded while doing a head tilt. My husband also grew up in the country. And I want my kids to experience a little bit of what it was like even if we do live in a "city". I think having animals to care for as a child teaches you so many things. Here are my top reasons why we have chickens.

*Teaches children responsibility

*Getting to watch eggs hatch (for us it is ducks and not chickens since we can't have roosters)

*Fresh eggs (Organic baby!)

*Low maintenance pet (Food is cheap and we just have to have a neighbor kid feed them when we leave somewhere. Pretty easy!)

*They eat bugs  (We sometimes let them loose in the garden to eat slugs and earwigs)

If you are thinking of getting chickens there are some things to consider.

Make sure that your city or town allows them. Also decide what type of pen or coop you want and if you have enough room. Different types of chickens have different types of temperaments. Some are more prone to pecking each other and some are so laid back they don't really. Our neighbors had some that literally pecked each other so much they all had huge bald spots and scabs. After much research I chose Buff Orpingtons. They are so mild that they say that if you have them, to not have other types of chickens because they won't even peck back in defence. They let my kids pick them up and pack them around. We also like silkies. They are very sweet as well and get along with our Orpingtons :) What are the predators in your area? Do you have coyotes, snakes, weasels, foxes, or anything else that might steal eggs or harm your chickens? That may determine whether you want to have them or at least how to construct your coop. Another thing to consider is your climate. Some are not as well suited for cold.

This is the chart I used way back when we were decided on what breed to get. It tells you all sorts of information about the most common breeds. I also love the site called My Pet Chicken.

So basically I am telling you that just like with any other pet, you should do your homework.

The Coop

Since it takes up a bit of space, we have tried to make it look as nice as a chicken pen can look. I still have a few things I would like to do to make it even better but let's be honest, a chicken pen is not high on my to do list. Especially when my basement is unfinished. But we have made it pretty decent so far.

My husband and don't fight a lot but one of our biggest arguments was over the design of the chicken coop. I wanted a glorified doghouse that was simple and easy to build. Mr. Architect drew up plans for a 3 level chicken condo (Not really, but it was very elaborate). I realized it was our first building project at our new house and his first chance to design something for us, but we were planning on having four chickens, people. Four. They didn't need guest rooms for visiting relatives. Now if you look at the coop we ended up with you would think I won that argument. But not exactly. Our budget won.

After buying a house and moving from out of state we didn't have a lot to throw at a chicken coop. Especially when our house needed so much work. We actually used wood from a shed my dad had built a LONG time ago. My mom no longer has horses so she had the scouts tear a lean-to and a shed down on her property. We also had some 2x4s that we had ripped out of our house. And when we moved in we found a pack of shingles in the garage left over from when they re-shingled. We painted it with leftover paint from painting the trim on our house. So we really only had to buy the trim and the chicken wire for the bottom.

Keeping things "Clean" and Fresh

Since I had had our whole marriage up until this point to think about one day when we would have chickens, I also had a lot of time to think of the perfect chicken coop. I wanted the chickens to have a lot of room to roam but I didn't want poop in my grass and everywhere else. I didn't want to have to walk into a stinky chicken coop either. So I decided I wanted one that was small and didn't require you to walk in in order to get the eggs. So a small coop and a large pen (to contain the poop) was the perfect setup for us.

On the topic of containing the poop..... We have a plastic bin full of "chicken coop shoes" just outside the pen. They are really just my husbands old sneakers. You have to wear them in the coop and then they go back in the bin.

I also use our garden tiller and till up the dirt in the pen several times a year to keep it "fresh".

We made the roof lift up by using a piano hinge all along the seam. There are 4 nesting boxes along that side. The other side (that doesn't lift up) has a 2x4 for roosting.

The bottom has two layers of chicken wire so that the poop can fall through. We dug a pit below. Then once or twice a year we tip the coop on it's side and shovel the poop out. P.S. I can't believe I am writing a post about chicken poop....

Along with raising backyard chickens, we also have a couple of ducks. Why ducks? Because they are stinkin' cute. We use to have a smaller house, that really did look like a dog house, that they slept in. But once we built the lean-to last year they didn't really use the duck house any more. A word of caution...Ducks are messier than chickens so if you don't want to deal with that, stick to chickens.

I had a lot of small scrap pieces of old fence pickets left over from past projects. I made reclaimed wood floating shelves, the barn wood cabinet, added some behind my dining room mirror, and many other little things. So I decided to use them to cover the plywood side of the lean-to.

Would you ever consider raising backyard chickens? Do you have chickens?

Do you have any other advice? I would love to hear your thoughts!

Today is the day! I am finally sharing my sister's kitchen makeover. I have painted serval kitchens before and my own twice. This was the biggest kitchen I have ever painted and it took a little longer than I thought. I was planning on painting the doors and drawer fronts in my sister's unfinished basement since it is so cold and snowy here. But her contractor started mudding drywall sooner than expected and I had to bring them to my house and paint them in my one unfinished room. I had to paint the doors in shifts since there was so little floor space in there. But despite the bumps along the way, I got it done and I love it! Today along with the reveal, I am sharing my tips for painting kitchen cabinets.

Right off the bat, I am struck with how much brighter her kitchen looks. I love light and bright kitchens!

My sister did not want to paint her walls (even though I offered to do it). I understand because the whole house is the same color and it is an open floor plan. So since the wall color was staying, we needed to pick a color that was complimentary. She wanted a really light gray and we found one that was warm enough to pair with the wall color while still being gray enough. It is called Tanglewood by Behr but mixed in Sherwin Williams enamel paint.

W also wanted it to look good with her granite countertops.

Tips for Preparation

1. Place hinges and screws and any other hardware in sandwich baggies and label them if necessary.

2. Label the cabinet doors by writing on the inside of the holes where the hinges went. Then place a piece of tape over it. When you are done painting, remove the tape and you will know where the cabinet goes.

3. Clean the cabinets really well with soap and water to remove and food, grease, or dirt.

4. Use a deglosser (liquid sandpaper) to get rid of the shine on the cabinet bases, doors and drawer fronts.

5. Lightly sand with 220 grit sandpaper. Nothing major, just a little bit on the places that will get the most wear. Wipe off any dust.

6. Tape off walls, ceilings and floors. Lay down tarps or paper on the floor and cover counters with a plastic tarp.

I chose to only spray the sides of the cabinets. The fronts of the cabinets I hand painted so I didn't have to worry about covering and protecting the insides of the cabinets. To ensure a smooth finish that would match the sides and the doors, I added Floetrol to the paint (it extends the dry time and helps it go on smooth) and used a quality foam brush. Multiple thin coats are the key to a smooth finish.

I added some 1x4s to create and X on the sides of the island that didn't have cabinets and drawers. After I nailed and puttied it, it was ready to paint!

Tips for Painting Kitchen Cabinets

1. Use a paint sprayer. It is faster, and you get a much smoother finish. I have brushed and used a roller on cabinets over the years and trust me, you don't want to tackle a whole kitchen full of cabinets without a sprayer! I love the Finish Max Super. I use the green spray tip for a super smooth finish.

2. Make sure to thin the paint to the right consistency. Thick paint will come out splattery and possible leave bubbles. Even though the Finish Max Super says that most paints don't need to be thinned, I still have thinned all my paints to be on the safe side. How much will depend on how thick the paint starts out.

3. ALWAYS test the sprayer on a piece of cardboard or scrap wood before spraying it on your cabinets. Make sure the consistency is right and the flow is not set to high. To get a super smooth finish, you need the output of paint to be pretty low. The goal is to have a semi fine mist.

4. Slow and steady wins the races and thin and many make a smooth finish. Don't let your impatience get the better of you. Many thin coats will be a much better result that a couple thicker coats.

5. Make sure to let the paint fully dry in between coats.

6. Paint the backside of the cabinets first. Let them dry overnight before flipping over to do the front. Sometimes the first side painted get a little buggered up so it is best to have it be the inside of the cabinet door instead of the pretty side. You can easily touch them up with a foam brush later.

The island is painted with Mined Coal by Behr. I used the Finish Max Super paint sprayer.

Let's address the clutter in the before picture verses the minimalist decor in the after. To be fair, my sister was trying to store all her craft supplies in the kitchen until her basement was finished. So by simply moving her craft stuff down into her new craft room, we solved 90% of the problem. She also was hanging on to every cup, bowl, pan, and baking tin that she had ever owned. I told her her glass/cup cabinet looked like a thrift store because she didn't really have any that matched and there were soooooo many. She laughed and laughed, got slightly offend for a minute, and then Marie Kondo-ed the heck out of her cabinets and got rid of all the things that didn't bring her joy. She literally hadn't used half the stuff in YEARS. It was time.

If you missed the dining room table makeover I did for my sister last month, you can see it HERE.

Have you ever tackled a kitchen makeover? What did you do to freshen it up? If not, what would you LIKE to do to your kitchen?

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Ever since I took the plunge and painted my interior doors navy about 4 years ago, I have loved having non-white doors! Maybe it is because it is winter or maybe it is the 4 year itch (hey, that could be a thing...), but I decided to change things up and paint my interior doors a dark gray. While it is only the 3rd time I have painted our doors since buying our house 13 years ago, I have helped a lot of people with their homes and have painted a lot of doors. I thought I would share the things I have learned that make it easier. Here are my tips for painting doors!

Every time I get the camera out, Kevin thinks he needs to be in the shot :)

Real quick, let's see a few after shots!

The kitchen door gets the most wear and tear of all our doors. I keep the extra paint on hand in case I need to do touch ups down the road. That and magic erasers help keep it looking good for years!

The other interior doors never need touch ups but I do wipe them down often. Especially the ridge along the bottom. Maybe the dust will blend right in with the new gray color!

The paint color is Astronomical by Behr

Tips For Painting Doors

While I know it is tempting, especially to us "spur of the moment" project people, to just grab a paint brush and start painting, it really is best to take the time to remove the door and remove the hardware. I promise it is much better than trying to tape around the knobs and hope the awkwardly stretched tape doesn't leak and then scraping paint off the door knob when it does.

I leave the hinges attached to the door frame. I put the screws and hardware in a baggie so it all stays together and I don't lose any screws.

I apologize for the next few photos. Since it is cold outside and snowy, I painted in my basement and there are no windows. The photo quality leaves much to be desired.

I lightly sand the doors. This will allow the new coat of paint to adhere better. I also fill in any dents with putty. When all the sanding is done, clean with damp rags.

Lay out tarps to protect your work surface. I like to paint my doors while they are laying down so I usually use plastic totes stacked up to create a base. Saw horses also work. I have painted many doors with a brush before I got a sprayer. I will NEVER paint a door with a brush again! Especially if they have lots of details and panels. Such a pain. To get the best looking finish and be able to knock it out quickly, use a paint sprayer. I used my HomeRight Super Finish Max. It has a large capacity cup and I never had to refill it while painting all the doors.

Use a quality paint that will hold up to lots of touching, wiping, and other wear and tear. Doors, tables, and cabinets all need a good quality paint. Once the paint has completely dried, flip over and paint the other side.

After the doors were done I added the knobs back on and put them back up on their hinges. I am loving how they look with the original brass knobs!

In summary, here are my best tips for painting doors!

• Remove the door from the hinges and remove the hardware.

• Lightly sand and putty any dents or scratches

• Clean it really well before painting

• Lay out tarps to protect your work area

• Lay the doors flat. It is easier to paint and it helps avoid drips

• Use a high quality paint that will hold up to wear and tear

• A paint sprayer instead of a brush is faster and gives you a smoother finish

• Make sure it has completely dried before hanging the door back up

GIVEAWAY!

I have a Super Finish Max up for grabs for one lucky winner! Enter below using the Rafflecopter widget.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

You must be at least 18 years old to enter. You must be a resident of the USA to enter. The giveaway will go from December 18, 2018 to December 27, 2018. A winner will be chosen by random.org and will be notified by email. The winner will have 48 hours to respond before a new winner will be chosen. The shipping of the prize is the responsibility of the company, in this case, HomeRight.

I have been slowly helping my sister transform her new house over the last year. We have tackle a few rooms and a few small projects. This dated oak dresser that was in her bedroom didn't match anything else. It was the odd (orange) man out. I knew all it would take was a little paint and new hardware. I love how this grey dresser makeover turned out!

After removing the hardware and lightly sanding it, it was ready to paint. I used the Super FinishMax  with the green tip. I had some leftover paint from when I painted my kitchen cabinets so I used that. My sister's room has a lot of grey accents so I thought it would be perfect.

I can't wait to see what it looks like in her room!

Even though the cabinet had that deep oak grain, the Super FinishMax was able to get a nice, smooth finish.

This grey dresser makeover is one of my favorite furniture makeovers because of how much different it looks just with changing the paint.

HomeRight is giving away a Super FinishMax to one lucky winner! Enter below using the rafflecopter widget. 

You must be at least 18 years old to enter. You must be a resident of the USA to enter. The giveaway will go from October 30, 2018 to November 7, 2018. A winner will be chosen by random.org and will be notified by email. The winner will have 48 hours to respond before a new winner will be chosen. The shipping of the prize is the responsibility of the company, in this case, HomeRight.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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I wanted the wall mostly white to "blend" in a bit more instead of having a high contrast between it and the rest of the walls. This wall is so hard to photograph because of the window across from it, and the wall looks a lot better in person. It adds to the urban vibe I was going for, for this teen and tween room.

I bought those inexpensive faux brick panels from Home Depot. I screwed them on to the wall.

The bricks were a bit on the orange side and since I knew I would adding a deep red rug to the space, I decided to paint them a dark red.

After the paint was dry, I added a thin layer drywall mud to the bricks.  If you follow me on instagram and saw my insta story about this process, you know it looked a bit pink when I plastered over the painted bricks. For the most part, it dried normal. There were spots where the drywall mud mixed with the paint (it reconstituted it) and it made pink streaks. If I were to do this project again I would have either used a semi-gloss latex paint instead of a flat craft paint or I would have sealed it with a clear polyacrylic before plastering.

After the plaster was dry, I used a damp sponge to remove the plaster from some of the bricks. Drywall mud (or spackle) wipes off easily so it went pretty quickly.

Because the mud wipes off with a damp rag or sponge, you need to seal it somehow. You can use a clear polyacrylic or, the most common way, is to use watered down paint.  I tried to avoid the painting the exposed bricks and kept a wet rag handy so I could blot and wipe away the paint if I accidentally got some on the red bricks. I had about 50% water and 50% paint and applied it with a foam brush. The paint also covered any areas that may have seemed a bit pink.

I wish you could all come over and see in in person. There are times when I realize how limited my photography skills really are and trying to shoot my dining room and this wall are both times I pull my hair out.

If you missed the post from last week revealing the beds I built, you can see them here:

DIY Modern Beds

I have one more tutorial post and them I will be revealing the whole room! I can't wait to share :)

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