Looking to make your house look more like a home? Whether you just moved in to a new place or you are simply adding a personal touch to your preexisting place, these tips are bound to give your place a cozier atmosphere!
MASON JARS
There are a lot you can do with mason jars. This project, involves four mason jars, some paint, stencils and some flowers (fake or real, your choice) -- If flowers aren’t your thing, you can also put your kitchen utensils in the jars instead and put it on your counter! Paint the jars and let them dry -- you can paint each a different color or all the same, again it’s up to you! If you’re looking for a distressed look, rub a Brillo pad over the jar. Use some stencils and spell out H-O-M-E; if you’re feeling artsy get a stencil of the state you live in and use that in place of the “O”. Once the jars are completely dry, tie some twine around the neck of the jar and fill them with flowers! This project gives your home a country feel to your home.
TIKI TORCH
Tiki torches are a nice touch to add to your yard, especially if you are frequently spending time out there reading, hanging out or having BBQs. If you are looking to add a nautical vibe to your yard, you should definitely keep this project in mind. Take an empty wine bottle (clear works really well, but it doesn’t matter what color), peel the label off the bottle and scrub it with a rough sponge until the glue is completely gone. Using wood glue, glue the twine around the bottle from the base approximately half way up. Fill the bottle with fuel (about a few inches from the top) – if you don’t want to use this much fuel, fill the bottom of the bottle with pebbles or marbles. To hold your wick in place, use a brass coupling (the thickness depends on how thick the wick is). Push the wick through until about an inch/ 1 ½ is showing. Once the wick is in the fuel, let it sit for about 20 minutes or so, so that the wick absorbs some of the fuel. Place your bottle on a plate you no longer use and place seashells or sea glass around the base to give it that nautical look. Your torch is now all set for use! Put it in a covered area and if you want to make it bug repellent use citronella torch fuel instead of regular torch fuel.
Admit One
Keeping tickets from events you and your significant other go to can be tricky. Usually they just end up in the trash or in a box in the very back of your closet, but if you don’t have the room for another shoe box filled with memories, try this on for size: Try creating a shadow box that you can hang up and see your tickets! This will make it easy for you to admire your tickets in a cute way instead of adding to the clutter of your closet, plus you can keep adding depending on the size of the box you create.
The Hidden Table
This next DIY project gives you added space in your living room, to put lamps on, picture frames, plants or even your drinks! Well this table is exactly what you need. The length of wood you use depends on the length of your couch. You need a thin piece of pine board and 2 furring pieces to go underneath it. You’ll need a pair of clamps to hold the furring strips to the pine board. To prevent the wood from splitting, drill pilot holes approximately every foot along the furring strip (repeat on the second strip) to drive the screws in.
For the legs, you can make your own, or use old table legs or even recycle banister spindles (make sure the legs are the right height for the table and are tall enough for the table to be even with the back of the couch.
From here, you are going to turn the table right side up and drill pilot holes in the corners where the legs are going. Now take a larger screw bit and drive down a tiny bit over the pilot hole; this is to sink the screw head. Sinking the screw head isn’t necessary, however this process allows the screw head to sink beneath the surface of the wood, allowing you room to fill the hole with wood filler so you’re not left looking at screw heads.
Once you’ve drilled your holes in the top, flip the table upside-down and put the table legs on, driving the screw into the leg.
To make the table sturdier than it is, drill pilot holes on the outside of each leg. Using the bigger driver, create a pocket to sink the screw and drive a screw in the hole.
After you fill the screw holes, sand the table down so it is nice and smooth and then stain it in any color stain your heart desires! Depending on the stain, you may need to apply two thin coats of stain, but make sure you let the stain dry properly before you apply a second coat. To keep your stain safe, apply two coats of water based protective finish.
Stick your table between your wall and your couch and you are all set to go with this project!
Fire Pit
It can be difficult to determine what to do with yard space and a fire pit can be a great place to start! Pick a spot for the fire pit and design your yard around that.
For this DIY, you’ll need:
Approximately 98 wall blocks
1 Steel pit ring with tabs
1 Metal grate
Approximately ½ ton of sand
Approximately ½ ton of gravel
The retaining wall in this project was 12 inches wide, 4 inches high, and 8 inches deep.
Using either bricks, slate, field stone or landscaping blocks, build the retaining wall around the steel ring. Unless you want an exploding fire pit, make sure you’re not using stones that have been submerged in water to build the wall as the heat from the fire will make them explode. Also, make sure you are not using concrete blocks as they may deteriorate from the heat. You can also cement the outside of the stone to keep them in place as well as protect the stones from the heat; however, if you need to replace the stones, it makes it easier if they are not cemented together.
In the center of the pit, dig a hole 2-feet deep with a diameter of a fence post and fill it with gravel. This will help drain any rainwater that builds up in your fire pit. Once your stones are laid and your drain is dug, it’s time to install the grate, sit back and enjoy your new installation to your yard!