DIY

Primetime, House Edition
July 30, 2013
White paint going up in Julia's bedroom.

We knew that priming our home wasn't going to be a lightning fast effort, if it took us multiple days, even a week, or if our schedules only allowed us …

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Bedrooms  / Dining Room  / DIY  / Living Room

Primetime, Dog Edition
July 29, 2013
Our loyal Bernese Mountain Dog, covered in paint.

We learned a few things this weekend: It takes approximately 34 man hours, three sheets of sandpaper, 5 cups of drywall compound, a 1/4 cup of lightweight joint compound, two brushes, …

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DIY  / Dog-Related

DIY Network: Creative Feats
July 25, 2013
Groovy soy candle wax, let's do this.

Gels, Geniuses, Gifts, I went all over the place last week in posts on DIY Network's blog Made + Remade. Catch up on these quick reads for yourself: 1. I demonstrated …

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DIY  / HGTV + DIY Network Projects

The Exposed Barn
July 23, 2013
Barn, exposed! Buh-bye, brush.

I know you guys can only be so interested in tales of laborious brush removal. I only care to think about it so much too. This is the kind of …

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Backyard  / Barn  / DIY

Testing the Top Three Sherwin-Williams White Paint Samples
July 2, 2013
http://www.merrypad.com/2013/03/26/stained-cabinets-a-6-month-update/

Sherwin-Williams graciously sponsored this post! We are so lucky to have them pitching in to help support our super summer of painting. If I haven't already made it very clear, …

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Bedrooms  / Dining Room  / DIY  / Living Room  / Supporting Sponsors

Dude, Dishwasher Duty
June 25, 2013
The sellers lived with the dishwasher blocking a drawer for a long time.

It was hard to take a weekend away from the house so soon after moving; the list of things that need to be done is really long, not to mention …

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DIY  / Kitchen

DIY Network: Five For Friday
June 21, 2013
A pretty and easy tablescape for summer parties.

It's our 10th day of new homeownership, and it's been the best kind of busy weeks. Though we hardly feel ready to take a break from it all (hello, there …

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DIY  / HGTV + DIY Network Projects

The Countdown To Landlord-dom
May 29, 2013
Installing the new kitchen faucet, sometimes a good place to nap.

When we set out to rent our home, we made ourselves a list with about 30 line items detailing what we needed to do to our current house to "make …

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Buying and Renting and Selling  / DIY

A Simple Recipe Storage Solution
April 16, 2013
Simplified recipe box.

In a totally anti-Pinterest technology fashion, I've been scheming up a new way to organize my recipes. Good, ol' fashion recipe magazine tear outs, you remember those, right? About once …

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DIY  / Kitchen

Diane’s Gel Stained Entryway
April 15, 2013
Diane's Java Gel Stain Door Makeover.

You wouldn't believe how many awesome emails I've received about the stained kitchen cabinets from people who were inspired, had tried it themselves (seemingly always with success!), or had taken …

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DIY  / Entryway

DIY Network: Found In Grandma’s Attic
April 5, 2013
It's a pretty vintage lamp from my Grandma. See how I rewired it in this post on DIY Network.

Grandma's attic (as in, my own Grandma's attic) hosts a seemingly endless selection of awesome, vintage everything. It's my favorite of all of the secondhand shops, although I'm never actually buying, …

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DIY  / HGTV + DIY Network Projects  / Lighting

The Springtime Wrap Par-tay
April 2, 2013
Playhouse by Lana from Making A House A Home

'Twas already last month when I was invited to join in on a little springtime project linkup with bloggers Lana, Roeshel, and Kim. My contribution was in the form of …

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DIY

Terrarium Transplanting
March 27, 2013
Summer terrarium using a vintage jar.

I had a whole bunch of little geometric planters leftover from our winter wedding, so many so that I ended up giving more away to family and friends who inquired …

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Decor  / DIY  / Gardening

Stained Cabinets: A 6-Month Update
March 26, 2013
Cracks in the stain on the doors caused by natural expansion and contraction of the oak.

You guys, I've received a lot of emails about my stained kitchen cabinets since revealing the finished result last September, and I'm excited that many of you were so inspired …

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DIY  / Kitchen

DIY Network: Drifty McDrifterson
March 14, 2013
DIY driftwood hook tutorial on DIY Network.

With the ice thawed off the beach, we've been anxiously trying to schedule daily walks in the sand. Just thinking about it made me reminiscent of all of the beach glass and …

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DIY  / HGTV + DIY Network Projects

The Chalk Challenge
March 13, 2013
Underneath shelf addition on our a-frame chalkboard.

Pete bought a chalkboard for Julia a few years ago – a real Pottery Barn Kids piece at garage sale prices. You've probably seen it in photos before, it was …

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Decor  / DIY

Join The Link Party (And See My Crafty Candlesticks)
March 5, 2013
It's a Spring Thing! Link party!

Last month, I was invited by my friend Lana at Making A House A Home to join her and two other bloggers for a springtime link party! Throughout this month, you'll …

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Decor  / DIY

DIY Network: Modern Veneer Planters
February 28, 2013
Real wood veneer edging becomes a modern wooden planter.

Wooden veneer seems to be a hot little item in the world of crafting these days. More than anything else, I've been seeing some really impressive DIY pendant lights, but …

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Decor  / DIY  / HGTV + DIY Network Projects

Block Party
February 27, 2013
Blocking original to our house.

This house was built in 1941, and the floors in some rooms are a bit bouncy. I addressed this ever-so-briefly when we talked about eliminating squeaks with these amazing countersink …

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Basement  / DIY  / Flooring