Another Repurposed Bed Frame turned into Bench

Posted by on Apr 9, 2013 in Blog, Furniture Restorations, Upcycling & DIY | 0 comments I don’t know how many benches form headboards I have built in the past, but I know that they sell like hotcakes! And I enjoy building them A LOT. I just can’t pass a bed frame at the curb. Here are some of my benches I have made and sold over the past two years (I know I made more but I sold some even before I had a chance to take a picture…): And the bed frame I found last...
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Things I am Selling at The Third Monday Trade Days in March

Posted by on Mar 13, 2013 in Blog, Living & Design, Upcycling & DIY | 0 comments Here are a couple of items I will have in my booth this month at the Third Monday Trade Days in McKinney, TX. I’ve been busy curb-shopping, upcycling, cutting, sanding, painting and creating. I hope I can make it all fit into my booth! This month, I have: coffee tables, kitchen & dining tables, school chair, newly upholstered chairs, pillows, frames, framed potato sacks, pallet...
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DIY Turquoise Chevron Dining Table

Posted by on Feb 26, 2013 in Blog, Upcycling & DIY | 0 comments I’ve built several tables before but I haven’t done a kitchen table yet entirely from scratch. So, I got these beautiful poles and my hubby came home from work with some great wooden boards that were used to ship equipment from overseas. And so here it is, a kitchen table with turquoise chevron pattern. I first built the frame for the table, then added the poles and finally attached...
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Repurposed Futon: Now it’s a Bench

Posted by on Feb 24, 2013 in Blog, Upcycling & DIY | 0 comments Here’s my little photo tutorial, how I turned a futon into two benches. First, I deconstructed the heavy futon. Then I cut some of the wood, which I used for the seat later, in half and reassembled it with wood glue and strong screws. I added legs and supported the seat with a plank underneath. Then, I painted the entire bench with silver oil paint. After it was dry, I added a coat of...
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Crocheted Summer Blouse & Pattern

Posted by on Feb 22, 2013 in Blog, Upcycling & DIY | 2 comments After rediscovering crocheting (which I learned partially in elementary school and from my mom decades ago…) last October -I made christmas ornaments and little things. Then I made bigger items like doilies, bracelets and headbands and then I got even more ambitious and decided to crochet a summer shirt just to see if I could do it. I found a pattern on pinterest which lead me to a Russian...
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Diy – How to Give Yourself a Haircut

Posted by on Feb 7, 2013 in Blog, Upcycling & DIY | 0 comments Is it a good idea to cut your hair yourself? Absolutely yes! Who needs a hairdresser when you have scissors, a mirror and a sink? It’s not the first time I have given myself a haircut and it’s never been so bad that I needed a big hat or decided to shave the remaining hair. So maybe you can learn something here. Step one: Wash your hair Step two: brush your hair and get sharp...
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Turquoise Chalk Paint Table with Chevron Pattern

Posted by on Jan 16, 2013 in Blog, Upcycling & DIY | 3 comments I got this not-so-beautiful coffee table from my mother-in-law that she’s been using for years as a bench to sit on. A while ago, I asked her if I could store my finished furniture in her empty garage, which would be a relief for me because I am running out of space!! I am selling my furniture on a monthly basis at the Third Monday Trade Days in McKinney since I don’t have a...
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Crocheted Headbands, Belts, Collars….

Posted by on Jan 14, 2013 in Blog, Upcycling & DIY | 5 comments For some reason I got back into crocheting which I haven’t done in (oh man, am I that old already?!?) more than 20 years… I don’t even remember really when and what I made back then. All I remember is that I once learned it either from my Mom or in elementary school, or from both. Never finished anything really but I still know how to do the basics. While I was at home with my...
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Diy Wooden Candle Holders Pottery Barn Style (just nicer!)

Posted by on Jan 12, 2013 in Blog, Upcycling & DIY | 0 comments I wish I still had a photo from those two church pews that I picked at the curb a couple of months ago. All I have is a picture I took after I turned them into two wall tables; I had them in my booth at the antique market in McKinney last month. They didn’t really grab anyone’s attention -if I don’t sell an item one month then I’d usually bring it back the next month, but...
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DIY Burlap Pillows, Ruffled Pillows, Pillows from T-Shirts…

Posted by on Jan 6, 2013 in Blog, Upcycling & DIY | 0 comments As I am going through my stash of collected fabrics (old bedsheets, T-shirts, old clothes, burlap, old chef’s jackets, and much more) and I look at the pillows I currently have on the sofa, I started mixing and matching colors and began to think outside the box a little more. So, I am combining all kinds of fabrics with one another but I am keeping in mind that I they need to be washable...
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Christmas Star Ornaments from Scrap Fabric

Posted by on Dec 13, 2012 in Blog, Upcycling & DIY | 0 comments Two months in Germany, taking care of my Dad who was in hospital with brain surgery! Between hospital visits, I helped my Mom getting work done in their house and she asked me if she should get rid of their sofa but I suggested that I could re-upholster it for them, so we went to look for fabric… Which was a trip itself already. We went to IKEA on a rainy Saturday morning when fall break...
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Ugly Chair Redo

Posted by on Sep 30, 2012 in Blog, Upcycling & DIY | 1 comment I love finding ugly things and turning them into useful and beautiful items! A couple of weeks ago I found 2 of these chairs in my neighborhood (two houses down). Not very pretty but I can look beyond and see what they could be, they definitely had potential. So here’s what I did… The most interesting part here’s to figure out how the chair goes apart (and remember later how to...
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Aquaponics Project in our Backyard – Fish & Veggies!

Posted by on Sep 7, 2012 in Blog, Food, Green Stuff | 1 comment It was my husband’s idea to start with aquaponics in our backyard. What a great idea!! I had no idea what it was and when he explained to me, I was hooked. We have raised vegetable beds, but with the heat, most of my plants stop growing after June, so my harvesting time is usually over by then. But with this concept, we could have fish AND veggies all year round in our backyard. This is...
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Upcycling an Old Teflon Pan to Clock

Posted by on Sep 2, 2012 in Blog, Green Stuff, Upcycling & DIY | 2 comments I know how harmful teflon is to health, so I decided to get rid of my teflon pans as soon as I found out (better alternatives: stainless steel, cast iron). They were still good and didn’t have scratches but why wait until they’re gone bad? If you want to make some healthy lifestyle changes, I don’t think you should use up all that crap that’s sitting in your kitchen,...
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How to Build Rustic Wood Frames

Posted by on Jul 31, 2012 in Blog, Upcycling & DIY | 2 comments Here’s some more projects I do with all the deck and fence wood I gather from the street. I think it’s one of my best-sellers: rustic picture frames. Some of my piled wood inside my garage, waiting to be transformed or upcycled: I just cut 4 pieces with each 2 sides the same length at a 45º angle, then I glue them together and staple them on both sides: A coat of white paint (I get...
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Rocking Chair Fix my Style

Posted by on Jun 28, 2012 in Upcycling & DIY | 2 comments So here, I found a rocking chair at the curb -in fact I found parts that may have been a rocking chair. I still picked it up, you never know, one day I might use it or may need the wood for something. The back- and armrest was already used for a bench that I built, but the feet, what am I going to make with those? Some of my material sits in my garage for quite a while until I have an idea what...
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Shabby Chic Glider Chair in my Repair Shop!

Posted by on Jun 26, 2012 in Green Stuff, Upcycling & DIY | 2 comments A couple of weeks ago, I found a glider chair for nursing moms in my mother-in-law’s neighborhood. At first, I didn’t really know what it is until I had it at home and had a closer look. It didn’t seem to be broken, just a few cosmetic things had to be done. Then I found out how EXPENSIVE they are (starting at $300)!! How can one throw something like this away?!? I am glad I...
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About Suburbia, My Undies & Saving Money

Posted by on Feb 29, 2012 in Blog, Green Stuff, Living & Design | 11 comments It’s this season again and my laundry can’t wait to smell the fresh spring air! If there’s one thing I really like about Texas, then it’s the short winters and the free clothes’ dryer. Even though we live in suburbia (which I can’t stand, I think I’ve said it before?! Counting the days to leave…) and there’s a homeowners’ association...
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What to Make With an Old Window Frame

Posted by on Jan 12, 2012 in Blog, Upcycling & DIY | 10 comments No, I did not make a square hula hoop out of the old window frame… I always get so excited when I drive along the streets and find stuff that screams at me “no I don’t want to end up in the landfills, rescue me!”. The ugliest things get my attention because I see their value; I would say that 80% of what most people throw away could be reused, up- or recycled in some way....
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Upcycling Project Kids Rocking Chair

Posted by on Nov 27, 2011 in Blog, Upcycling & DIY | 2 comments Did I say I am not going to upholster again? I guess I did it again. My last chair was such a frustrating project that I decided this was it, no more. It’s only been a few weeks but I guess enough time had passed to forget how much I got annoyed by the project. This time, I have a small kids’ rocking chair, its backrest was broken and the fabric outdated. It used to be my...
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