Another pantry makeover....

There was a time when I loved DIY projects and was constantly working on something…everything from room makeovers to furniture rehab.

Unfortunately the time came when my back and fingers just couldn’t take the daily beating. And truthfully I’ve pretty much done everything to this house that can be done. Except the yard…I’m still out there designing and planting and digging…when it is not 100+ out!

One of my favorite DIY projects are pantry makeovers and those I can’t resist.

HERE I shared my pantry.

HERE I shared the pantry I revamped for my son and daughter in law.

Some serious reconfigurations can make a huge difference in the functionality of the space.

My stepson and daughter in law have talked about giving their walk in pantry a makeover for years…actually since they bought the house.

Over time, it became a disorganized disaster….

The shelving was the typical “builder grade” shelving…bull-nosed MDF spaced a good 16-18” apart which leaves a ton of wasted space. Few pantry items need more than 14” head room and a great majority of it just need 10-12”. Just by reconfiguring the shelf layout you can often gain at least 2-3 additional shelves.

Okay in all fairness and in her defense she has a very rambunctious 17 month old and a 2 week old, 5 week premature baby.

So she is a little preoccupied.

Which is all the more reason to get this space in order. With a growing family, having an organized pantry is just a must.

So when they announced a few weeks ago that they were finally ready to get serious about revamping their pantry I jumped on the opportunity to go to work!!!!

First things first…find your inspiration. I did what I always do…searched “pantry” on Pinterest. Here are a few that caught my eye…. (again, no links…I cut and paste pictures and put them in an “inspiration” folder on my computer.)

Of course it all had to be approved by the home owner. (I hate it when other people think they should have an opinion…lol!)

Fortunately, she liked many of the same looks I liked.

The most appealing thing in all the inspiration photos is the appliance tower. LOVE!

She loves the counter top look with natural wood tops. She loves the look of the floating shelves in the last picture…but she wants natural wood shelving and will paint the base black. I think it will look awesome!

So time to roll up my sleeves and go to work.

First up…take measurements and make a plan….

My plan is to make the cabinet and shelving across from the door “pretty.” This is where she would like a black base cabinet and natural wood floating shelves. They always have the door to the pantry open so we think it would be perfect to make it aesthetically appealing….pretty.

The shelving and the cabinets to the left will be “utilitarian.” A place for all their “food stuffs.” And then of course the coveted appliance tower to the left of the door. Since they have 10’ ceilings we were able to add a ton of shelving space just by reconfiguring the spacing of the shelving.

While this paper plan may make absolutely NO sense to anyone but me, it is what I need to figure out how I can reconfigure the space and what materials I will need.

After I got plan approval from my daughter in law, Brian and I went to Lowes and bought all the materials and had my son precut all the plywood for shelving and base cabinets with his table saw.

The construction of the shelving and bases will be very similar to what Lindsay did in her pantry space. She has a great tutorial for building everything so again, I am not going to reinvent the wheel. As I always say, find a tutorial that makes sense to you and use it.

Day 1….demo!!! I had my DIL empty the entire pantry and my stepson and I went to town with sledge hammers and crowbars and took out everything from top to bottom!

When you remove the existing shelving you may find sheetrock damage and you will notice that you have “lines” where the existing trim (shelf supports) was…primarily because the trim was caulked then the walls are painted…and the walls behind the trim are raw. So you will need to skim those areas with sheetrock mud, sand smooth, then spray with canned wall texture. If you don’t do this, you WILL see the lines where the old shelving was…so do it right… fix the walls, then repaint the walls before installing the new shelving.

TIP: If I am going to paint the shelving I usually paint the walls and shelves the same color…it makes it easier to paint the shelving without having to tape everything off. I use a different grade on the cabinets and shelving vs. the walls, but the same color.

I always prime and sand all the new wood before I cut and intall it…that way I don’t have to do major sanding in the house.

Right now I am still priming, cutting and installing so we have a few more days of work!

Hopefully I will have a big reveal in a week or so!!!!

Another pondless water feature...

I love my swing…

It is one of my “happy places.”

But as I was hobbling back to the house after expanding my back floor bed….

…I realized it was missing something really special.

A water feature!

I shared HERE how I added two pondless water features next to the front porch and by the screened porch.

Relatively simple little features but I wanted something bigger next to the swing.

I would love to have an open “pond” but again, too many leaves….so another pondless feature it is…but this time BIGGER!

First thing…find some inspiration. Pinterest never fails. This is one of many I found (again, didn’t keep the link, just the pic…sorry!)

One of the first hurdles is electricity…the water pump has to have electricity. No biggy for me because I have minimal electrical skills. But if you do not, and there isn’t a power source close by, you may have to hire an electrician.

In my case I have power on the other side of the swing at the house. I ran romex through PVC underground from one side of the swing to the house. I ran the romex underground through PVC because I created a flower bed along the back of the swing and I knew that over time I would be digging around in it and don’t want to risk nicking romex. Then I added a plug (similar to THIS) to the end of the romex. I connected the other end to an exterior electric outlet attached to the back of the swing pergola.

TIP: ALWAYS put romex that will be under ground in conduit. They make a conduit specifically for electrical wiring. It is usually double the cost of plain ole’ PVC. I use plain ole” PVC.

I bought a larger tank at the livestock store. One with a bigger diameter so I could use bigger rocks and build a bigger feature. (I use livestock tubs…less expensive, better size selection and actually sturdier!)

I found a livestock tub that was about 5’ x 3’ which was the perfect size to fill the area next to the swing.

Marked the area where I wanted to put the tub and started digging. (I make this sound easy…it was not…I honestly believe we live on a rock quarry!)

CURSES! Right smack dab in the middle of my planned placement I ran into an irrigation line! Since it was a main line I really didn’t want to mess with relocating it!

This is when I had to stop and punt…in other words, best laid plans got tossed!

I relied heavily on THIS great tutorial…it is one I found that was most similar to what I was trying to accomplish.

I used a pond liner rather than a tub. A pond liner will give you flexibility on size and shape. I found a really good quality one HERE. More expensive than a livestock tub and more expensive than the pond liners at places like Lowes and Home Depot. However, this one is 45 mil thick which is double what you can buy at the big box stores. I figure if I am going to go to all the time and expense of building this thing, I want it to last. The thicker liner reduces the chances of tears or punctures.

Without the limitations of a specific tub size, I could dig the hole any size I wanted…I ended up digging a “two level” hole to work around the irrigation line.

One change from the tutorial…I don’t ever like to use wood under ground if at all possible. Eventually it will break down. So I used some scrap treated plywood to create a rigid box, then lined it with styrofoam board. They say it takes 500 years for styrofoam to decompose. I figure by that time the ground around the liner will have settle and compacted well.

In the picture you may note I did not “frame” the upper part of the reservoir…I went back later and added a “frame.”

I added the frame, then added the sand on the bottom so that it would hold the frame in place and create a nice “cushion” for the liner!

I dug out around the form about 4” deep and 8-10” around it and added small pea gravel…kind of creates a little “french drain” around the pond. This keeps dirt and silt from washing into the reservoir if there is heavy rain. The rock is 1-2” below the frame.

I used my taper to make sure the pea gravel and sand was compacted well.

I liked the way the tutorial used the cinder blocks for additional support. I used THIS metal gate as a grate and reinforced it with 1/2” rebar to set the rocks on.

After I laid the liner in the hole, I filled the pond with water to get the liner to kind of “form” to the bottom and sides.

I reset the cinder blocks, measured to make sure they were the right height and level, then placed the grate and rebar.

If the cinder blocks are too high or too low to support the grate level, you can easily reach under the liner and remove or add sand as needed. You may have to drain the pond to do this but make sure you refill it…the weight of the water will “fit” the liner to the space.

I use a shop vac to drain the water when needed.

I trimmed the liner back, topped the liner with more pea gravel, put the pump down in the water, reset the grate and rebar and then covered it all with THIS galvanized mesh. This will keep any smaller decorative rocks from falling into the reservoir.

I waited to cut the access hole for the pump until after I got the larger rocks set…I wanted to make sure I would have access to the pump without moving the large rocks.

I set the pump down into the reservoir and I ran 1/2” water line from the pump to above the grate. I knew I wanted both a waterfall and a bubble rock so I actually split the water line into two lines. I connected one line from the pump to this splitter, then connected a 1/2” line to one side, and another to the other.

Two water lines from one pump!

I made one major change from the original water features. Since I had plenty of room in this larger reservoir, I put the pump in one of THESE filter boxes….

I had a pump in my water feature at the other house in one of these. I found that the actual pump (THIS one) was less likely to clog and loose pressure when it is in a filter system box. (BTW, you will want to get a water pump for YOUR needs….the size of your feature and the flow you want)

I picked up a variety of rocks at the rock store…some flagstone, native stone, and smaller decorative rock…then I started playing with it.

This is where a little creativity and some serious muscle come in handy. Again, I knew I wanted a waterfall feature as well as a bubble rock.

I ran the water tubing through the back of the rocks for the waterfall but I had to drill a hole for the bubble rock. Not a biggy…I just used a 3/8” masonry bit…takes a little time and muscle but it is doable.

Only after I got the majority of the larger rocks placed did I cut an access into the grate with a metal grinder. I didn’t want to have to move large rocks to get to the pump. (I have learned the hard way to make the access big enough that you don’t shred your arm when you have to stick your hand down into the reservoir.)

After I cut the access I covered the hole with the wire mesh.

Once the big stones were set in place, I adjusted everything to make sure that all the water flowed back into the reservoir. This can take some time…even days. You have to watch the water level and make adjustments as needed.

TIP: When you get rock, pick up some slivers of flagstone to use as shims!

After all the adjustments, I sucked out all the water and cleaned the pond well and then I filled it with fresh water. Placed all the decorative rocks….added some plants!

After some more adjusting this is the initial placement I came up with….

It may take a few days of adjusting to make sure that all the water is flowing back into the reservoir. This is super important because you don’t want to have to be constantly filling it! Watch and wait.

Honestly, I wouldn’t even put rock over the access hole until you are certain that it is all flowing properly!

As you can see in my final pictures, I actually removed all the small rock from the top of the access and placed a few larger pieces of flagstone. Now instead of moving a bazillion little rocks, I just pick up a few larger rocks to access the system…much easier! Just make sure that any water that flows onto those rocks, flows back into the reservoir!

A few weeks after I got the feature running, I decided to create a little “walk” around the swing and feature. It ties into the walk I had added between the house and the swing….

I added a little flower bed behind the swing so I would have space to put hosta splits next spring. Unfortunately three of my hostas were getting stomped by dogs so I went ahead and moved them here…now I only have room for 2-3 hostas next year. Curses, I will have to build another bed!

I added outdoor lights behind the fountain so that at night the lights shine through the waterfall….so pretty. Unfortunately, my photography skills don’t allow for a good picture…trust me, it’s pretty!

I love this little space! The sound of the water is so soothing.

While the project itself takes a little muscle (digging, moving rock) it is certainly a doable little project. Maybe a hair more extensive than these water features. If you feel intimidated by the scale of this feature, maybe start with smaller ones first!

You don’t have to pay thousands to get a pretty water feature in your yard…and in my opinion it should go down as a mental health expense. All in all this one probably cost me less than $1000.

Nothing more soothing than a relaxing evening in the porch swing next to a water feature!

BTW, in one of the Facebook groups I am on someone was commenting about how much of a hassle a pond is to clean and maintain. It would be soooo easy to turn an open pond into a pondless feature. After all, the hard work of digging a hole is already done!!!!

These little pondless features are relatively easy to maintain. I drain them before the first freeze, cover them with plastic and then in the spring I just remove the plastic, clean out the reservoir, fill it with fresh water and fire it back up. So much easier to maintain than my open pond that had to be drained and cleaned several times a year!

Just a thought!

Where in the world have I been?

I can’t even believe I have not posted since February. Seems like so much has been going on…baby showers, trips, projects…so much!

When last I posted THREE MONTHS AGO I was working on this project…hiding the wart!

I started out by building a “screen” around the “wart.” My original plan was to lay the flagstone first, then build the screen. Honestly, building the screen first worked out much better!

I decided to go with the “louver” look (see HERE for a link to a really good tutorial) so I built two inserts to go between the post I set. They have to be removable so we can service the generator once a year. Built the inserts then attached them to the post with carriage bolts. Threw down a few inches of sand and thats where I left off for a few months….

I needed to give the sand a little time to “level” and pack down…and I also had to get ready for a very special day for my very special son and daughter-in-law! Their baby shower….

Again I was honored to make their cake and desserts…so much fun.

Then it was off for our spring vacation. Brian had to attend a conference in Vegas so I flew to Vegas the last day of his conference, we rented a car and toured the five national parks and one state park in souther Utah. Again, I am not a travel blogger….but if you have never seen these AMAZING National Parks…just go! They will take your breath away!

I can assure you that no photo I took…or have ever seen…does them justice.

Then home for a ton of projects.

Refinishing an antique dresser for the nursery….

I used THIS process and I promise it is hands down the best process for refinishing any piece of furniture…regardless of the existing finish!

I built new shelving in my workshop…..

Not as fancy as some I have seen on the webisphere but functional for my purposes!

I finally laid flagstone around the wart screen and now I am waiting a few months to stain the screen black to match the pergola swing….

New drawers for under the bar storage cabinets. …

I have no idea why I didn’t have my cabinet guy do this when he built these cabinets. I store all my seasonal dishes and service ware under here and it really was a pain to have to shuffle things around to get to the stuff in the back. LOVE!!!!

Now that the weather is warming, I have been planting…nothing new except I decided the flower bed I added last year wasn’t big enough…so I am making it bigger!

I have moved the edging out, weedeated all the existing grass down to the nub, sprayed it with Round Up and next week I will fill it with compost and mulch. I already have a few plants in mind for this space but honestly I need some space to split hostas again next year!

While I wait for grass to die, this is the next project I am contemplating..

A screen around these gawd awful utility things. They have bugged me since day one and with the addition of the “wart controls” to the right, it has gotten worse.

My “plan” is to build a box kinda thing around them and face it out with hinged doors so that it can all be accessed if needed. I want to build it out of treated wood then stain it black to match the swing and the wart screen.

That’s the plan…we will see.

As you can see, it is never ending! Unfortunately, as I have said many times, I am a baaaad blogger. I rarely think of what I do as being “content worthy.” But hopefully the changes I make will inspire you to roll up your sleeves and make changes to your home.

I don’t do good tutorials but there are TONS out there on the blogesphere…anything you want to learn to do can be found on the web!

As I have said before…my daddy didn’t teach me how to build a wart screen, or build cabinet drawers, or bake a cake….what he taught me is how to figure out how to do something I want done.

Will you make mistakes….ABSOLUTELY! I still do and I have been doing this stuff for a lifetime!

So…GO FOR IT!!!

Because until you are willing to roll up your sleeves and dive into whatever you think you want to try or change in your life, you will never be able to ….

Another Christmas....

Ever year I feature my Christmas decor…every year I think not much has changed.

But it does change…a tad here and there.

Last year I shared a few little changes…same this year…a few things here and there.

So what did I change this year? Probably the biggest change is the mantel decor….

Last year THIS soft touch garland was ALL the rage…everyone wanted it. Which is why it was sold out and on Ebay for mega bucks. So I waited until after Christmas and bought it when it was back in stock. Problem was, I forgot I bought it, several times, and by the time I brought down all my Christmas decor I had 10 strands of it along with three soft touch wreaths I have NO idea what to do with!

No biggy…while it is a beautiful garland, you really have to layer it to get a good thickness. On my living room mantel I have 4 5’ strands and 1 15’ strand.

In the den I layered 5 5’ strands….

I used Command hooks about every 1-1 1'/2’ and floral wire to secure it.

I added a red velvet ribbon and these awesome bells….

I would love to link to the bells but as usual I have NO idea where I got them. I know I ordered them but from where? Not a clue!

Last year I layered the berry picks on the mantel…this year I layered them on top of the garland…just plain ole’ picks you can get at Hobby Lobby…four on each mantel.

Another new addition is this wood Santa….

I know WHO influenced me to buy it but have no idea WHERE he came from. I follow a couple of great ladies on Instagram…Deb and Danelle…and as influencers go they get me every time. Their style isn’t necessarily my style but they feature elements I love. Truthfully I think that is where the bell inspiration came from!

What drew me to this Santa was his “girth.” He’a skinny.

Okay, so here is the deal…ALL my Santas are skinny. I have NO idea what that is all about but it seems like every time I am drawn to a Santa he is on the anorexic side.

I kid you not.

Another element I added to my decor this year are the cabinets wreaths….

For several years I have wanted to add “mini” wreaths to my upper cabinets. I finally found am inspiration for what I wanted, but honestly, when I put it all together they came out a hair too big. Hardly “mini.”

So be it…maybe next year I’ll try again…for this year it is what it is….

The precious train!

This train was a gift from Brian’s grandfather to his dad in the 40’s…it was used then. Last year we displayed it above the dining room. This year we got it up and running and put it around the tree in the office.

We didn’t put it around the main tree in the living room because 1) too many gifts under that tree and 2) the SLIGHTEST bump derails it and the living room is a high traffic area.

Not sure Callum is really old enough to appreciate it but I sure love it!!!!

And now the pièce de résistance…the final tree in my life long dream of having a tree in every room!!!

For years I swore if I had the time AND the money, I would put a tree in every room of my house. Last year the goal was complete.

The master bedroom tree!

I added a few little knick knacks on the highboy. Just a few little things from Home Goods…nothing fancy.

The office….

The wreath is new…a tad over powering. Again, I tend to “go big” and then I’m not so thrilled with the result. Meh…next year I’ll change it!

The dining room….

This is always one of my favorite rooms to decorate.. I love the neutrals even though I am drawn to all the vibrant holiday colors in the other rooms.

I like to keep the place settings out even though we don’t usually use these dishes because they have to be hand washed. Simple but elegant.

The sunroom….

I have shared this room before. It is my “Stewart plaid” room in honor of my “Stewart family.” Love it and I am always looking for more Stewart plaid elements to put in here. This year my sweet friend Carrie brought me this precious decoration from Italy!

The den…

The breakfast room….

Not all the trees have decorations…some just have lights. That’s okay. They are still pretty and the four that are decorated take enough time!

The entry…

Little has changed here…added some little wooden trees and a Christmas sign on the trim…another PJ pillow. Love the view into the office!

The screened porch….

And of course the main tree in the living room….

All these trees are connected to remotes (THIS is one I use and LOVE) and are turned on every day. I don’t even want to tell you what my electric bill is for the month of December. Suffice it to say it is cheaper to cool this 3500 s.f. house than to light it up…lol!!!

But I love it and as long as I am physically able to do it, I will. Then I may hire it done!

I love this holiday and it seems that year after year I do indeed add something new. I hope something I did will inspire you to add a little more to your home.

Starting a holiday tradition...

It is never too late.

Time flies.

Before you know it, decades have passed and that little thing you started doing 20-30-40 years ago is now a treasured tradition that will be passed down for generations.

Even if you didn’t realize it at the time…it was just something you did every year.

I’ve shared this story before…when my oldest (now 42) was a baby, my mother started giving her a few precious ornaments every Christmars. She did the same for the boys when they were babies (now 34 and 35) and again with my baby (now 26). After 40+ years of giving my 4 children a couple of special ornaments every year, my tree is bursting with heirloom treasures.

There are the wooden ornaments she gave them from her and my dad’s trip to Yellowstone…

The ornament from the year Katie and I went to New York…

College graduation….

Our trip to Georgetown, Colorado….

A Lenox moose representing the year Katie shot her first deer….

Every single ornament on my tree has a special meaning….ornaments representing every milestone in our lives and souvenirs from our travels and my parent’s travels.

Even after giving Sarah all her ornaments, I still have a tree full. And now that my children are growing and creating their own homes with their own trees, they have begun the “tradition” of gifting me with ornaments with special meaning. Once all my kids have their own trees to decorate, mine will still have special ornaments from my travels and my children.

My mom is no longer here but I have carried on this little tradition she started 42 years ago. Every year I give each of my kids and grandkids an ornament from our travels or one representing something special in their lives. Baby’s first year, college graduation, a cruise to Alaska…..anything and everything special and memorable is represented on our Christmas trees.

It is never too late to start a “tradition.” We do PJs and ornaments.

What tradition will you start this year? Remember, every “tradition” starts somewhere with someone…give your children, grandchildren and great grandchildren a tradition to charish!

Getting ready for the holidays!

It’s been a minute.

I really haven’t had too much going on project-wise…little to share. I guess I could have shared the new water line I ran from my seasonal meter out front to the back yard. Or maybe the repairs I made to a neighbor’s kitchen island or garbage disposal. Could have shared the cute cupcakes the little girl next door and I made and delivered to our neighbors.

I could share the Alaskan cruise we went on in September. I’m not a travel blogger…just go! I promise you won’t be disappointed.

But seriously, no major projects. I have a few in the thinking/planning stage I will share in the coming months. One will be a room makeover for a very special “delivery” coming in May! Stay tuned!

So for now I will just share what is coming this weekend….CHRISTMAS!!!!!!

Yep…for the first time ever I am actually doing a little Christmas decorating BEFORE Thanksgiving!

Why? Well, it has been a lifelong dream to have a tree in every room of my house…and last year I finally achieved that dream.

It started with the “black and white” Christmas tree I put up in the office….I share that HERE.

This year we are going to set up the vintage train set around this tree.

Callum, our youngest grandson, will be 10 months old and he will LOVE it! This is the train set Brian’s grandfather gave his dad when he was a little boy…so Callum will be the 4th generation to enjoy!

The Stewart plaid tree is one I added to the sunroom two years ago…..I shared it HERE!

And for the first time ever, I decorated the master bedroom for the holidays….

What I didn’t share is the large red and white tree I added to this room later in the season.

So with these new additions, as well as ALL the Christmas decor through out the house, I just don’t think I can get it all done the weekend after Thanksgiving….the main tree in the living room takes an entire day!

So for the first time ever I am breaking my hard fast cardinal rule of NO CHRISTMAS BEFORE THANKSGIVING! I love fall decor and I really want to enjoy it for as long as I can. So I have decided to decorate the office, master bedroom and sunroom for Christmas since those rooms don’t have a lot of fall decor!

So stay tuned…at some point in the next few weeks I will share all the holiday decor….again. Little changes from year to year but it is my hope that something I do, and have done for years, may catch your eye and give you a little “Christmas inspiration!”

Happy Thanksgiving!

Stone step and front yard makeover reveal....

HERE I shared the start of this little project!

The stone steps were a major part of this little makeover…and in all honesty the hard part. Moving these stone steps into place took some serious planning, preparation and muscle.

Now all it needed was a little topsoil and sod!

No biggy right?

WRONG!!!!!

The retaining wall was there for a reason…to keep the yard from having a severe slope and prevent serious erosion.

This was day one…

…after new soil and sod three years ago….

So it was super important to make sure that after I removed the retaining wall the grade was gradual.

First I used the leftover backfill to create a solid base where we removed the block retaining wall.

Then LOTS of topsoil and some very careful grading….

I used quality shifted top soil and made sure it was well compacted and level before putting down sod. After I installed the sod I noticed a few “low” spots, so I pulled back the sod and added a little soil.

This yard is primarily shade so I used fescue sod which is what we had put down three years ago. Fescue is a pretty grass but it does require shade and annual reseeding, unlike bermuda.

So…how did it all turn out….

I LOVE it! Love it!

By spring the new sod will bed down and seamlessly blend into the existing lawn!

Still debating what to plant to the right of the steps where I expanded the flower bed, but that will come in time. Maybe another dogwood…maybe a few azaleas.

It may appear as if the steps go “nowhere” but the seasonal water is a hair in front of them…I use the steps all the time!

My original plan included cladding the landscaping blocks to the right of the steps and behind the shade bed with native stone. Truthfully, I don’t even notice them now and I really think I will just leave it be for the time being.

Right now I am just focused on the sod….lots of water and a little bit of sun. So far, so good!

Fall is literally right around the corner so in the next few weeks the leaves will start falling…hoping the sod will be rooted and ready!

A small pantry makeover....

I love pantry projects…HERE I shared mine!

There is no shortage of inspiration on Pinterest for pantry makeovers…you will find one for every possible size and configuration!

My son and daughter-in-law, Hannah, have a great kitchen but a small pantry with typical poorly designed shelving placement…it was a MESS!

Soooo much wasted space!

For months we discussed giving it a little makeover, but they really wanted a house that is a tad bigger on a few acres further south. So there was a chance they would not be staying in this house.

Several months ago they found one, made an offer, got it accepted and were all set to rent their current home!

So the pantry project got nixed.

Unfortunately, the deal fell through because of a boundary dispute.

Hannah was bummed. (She had already started packing!)

So the pantry project was back on and a few weeks ago we tackled it!

The first thing we did was empty everything that was in the pantry and took measurements.

After emptying the pantry, we “demoed” EVERYTHING…shelving, supports, trim.

I usually repair and paint the walls, install the new shelving, caulk, putty, lightly sand, then paint the shelving. All the shelving is already primed and sanded before I install it so that I don’t have to do any heavy sanding in the house.

When designing the shelving placement in a pantry it is super important that you identify EVERYTHING you may want to store in the space and then measure it.

If you think you want baskets, bins or jars, figure out what will go in what and how many will fit in your space BEFORE you go buy them…or at the very least keep your receipt!

Take measurements of EVERYTHING!

These measurements are important because you can then design your shelving placement based on how tall everything is. You don’t want a bunch of wasted space.

Case in point…can goods stacked two high are less than 9” tall…why would you dedicate a shelf with 12” clearance for canned goods. Paper towels are generally 12” tall…why dedicate a 15” shelf for them.

Add up 3-4 shelves that are 3-4” taller than they need to be and next thing you know you have lost an entire shelf…critical storage space for a small pantry!

In this case we gained an entire shelf. Crock pots and the insta pot are stored low because they are heavy…the extra coffee pot and extra paper towels are stored up high.

We built a shelf 4” off the floor…not necessary for actual storage but they have a dog and her hair inevitably blew under the door and ended up all over everything that was sitting on the floor.

I made the shelving out of 1/2” plywood, the bullnose and supports out of pre-primed 1x2s. All the shelves were 14” deep, except the top…it was 12” deep.

We also built a door shelf system that is perfect for aluminum foil, plastic wrap, storage bags, etc. (HERE I shared one I made for my house on Lankford…I built two for this house! One is in the garage and the other is used for my cake pans and baking supplies.)

You can buy wire door storage system but building one allowed us to place shelves as needed for specific items.

The end result is amazing! Neat, clean and organized!

I am a big fan of clear plastic bins vs. baskets. I use both since there is some stuff I don’t want to see that can be stored in pretty baskets (open chip bags, storage containers, etc) but the baskets are labeled. (Again, check out my pantry HERE!)

She loved it so much she tackled her kitchen cabinets and organized them with storage bins and jars.

Organizing a space (whether it be a pantry, closet or drawer) not only frees up space, but I have learned that if a space is pretty, clean and organized I tend to want to keep it that way.

When everything has a place and everything is where it belongs it makes my life so much easier!

(HERE I share my trips and tricks to getting and staying organized!)

And remember, you don’t have to take on a big DIY project to get a space cleaned and organized…and not every space in your house needs to be done in a day, a week or a month.

Commit to take one space a month…or even every other month….purge, clean, organize. I think once you get started and realize how much easier it makes your life, you will want to keep organizing every space in your house…just like Hannah!

I may not be around for several weeks…this is our vacation month and this year we are going to take a VERY special vacations! Can’t wait to share!

The den window reveal!

From day one…three years. That is how long I have wanted to put a window in this room!

It was a cave. There are windows and a door on one wall but they are covered by the enclosed sunroom so the natural light is seriously defused. (HERE I swore I was through with major projecting on the house…HA!)

I crave natural light. This house has TONS of windows, but the majority are adjacent to a sunporch, screened porch and covered front porch. All which I am grateful for…I just wanted a hair more light in the den.

My original thought was to put a window on both sides of the fireplace. Unfortunately, the guest room closet extends out behind the bookcase to the left of the fireplace…so that is a no-go. That’s okay…I need the built in bookcase. (HERE you can check out how I refaced the fireplace!)

(Obviously I did not take “before pics” and the only picture I have of this space is from Christmas!)

A window on the right of the fireplace is doable….for someone like me with a bit of experience. Personally, I don’t think this is a “novice DIYer” project. If you are hell-bent, watch TONS of tutorials first and be prepared with a stand-by sheetrocker, framer, electrician, trim carpenter and brick/siding expert just in case you find yourself in over your head.

Even then, if you don’t have a basic understanding of how a home is constructed, I wouldn’t even attempt it. (HERE I posted a little bit about framing for a door or window)

Also, I highly suggest you check your local codes. You may need to pull a permit to modify framing.

As you can see from the post when I modified the laundry room opening I knew I was going to have to put in a header and maybe a few extra studs. Since I was only installing a 32” window, I figured I could just get by with a 2x4 or 2x6 (at the most) header.

Nope. When I opened the wall I found a support that was FOUR 2x4 sandwiched together…have no idea what that was all about. I went into the attic to see if maybe they loaded the roof rafters or something onto that area…not as far as I could tell. But what is there is there and I wasn’t about to assume it was just over kill.

Which meant I needed to put in a 12” header which meant I had to move the exterior light to make room for a bigger header, cut out way more sheetrock than I anticipated and add more stud supports.

CURSES!

All that being said, again it is doable. So if like me, you just HAVE to have a window (or even a door), go for it!!!

And go for it I did.

Again, I am not really a tutorial kinda person…there are tons out there, why reinvent the wheel. And honestly, every project will be different depending on what is behind the sheetrock.

Case in point.

After all this “rough in” framing was done, I drilled through the corners of the opening (using a wood bit to drill through the plywood and a masonry bit to drill through the brick) and marked where the actual opening would be.

My brick guy then came and cut out the existing brick 3” from the mark where the actual window opening would be….

You can see in this picture where I had to move the existing exterior light!

While I was waiting on the brick guy I was able to get the sheetrock repair done…HERE I shared a little tip about sanding sheetrock in the house!

When the window finally came in, I cut out the plywood…MAN OH MAN!!!!

If it weren’t 100 degrees out I would have just left a big ole’ hole in the wall.

There are TONS of tutorials on how to properly install a window…read them and follow them to a T. Find one that makes sense to you!

After the window was installed, trim and paint! The brick guy came back and installed a window “casing” with new brick around the window ….

This house is 23 years old so I can’t find the exact brick to match but I found one that was pretty close! (HERE I shared how I used this “good enough” brick on my shop!) This is why he cut the brick 3” around the actual rough in opening.

What a difference this little project made!

I LOVE IT!

Fortunately I originally bought matching sheers for the breakfast window and the den window. I couldn’t find sheers that matched them so I took the sheers from the breakfast window and used them for the new window and bought new for the breakfast window.

I love all the the wonderful light and the view of my flowerbeds! Blooming dogwoods in the spring and fall foliage in the few months!

Lovely!

How to sand sheetrock without a big mess!

My recent big project is one I have been eyeballing since day one.

Windows in the den next to the fireplace.

(Naturally I neglected to take a “before” picture so this is the only one I could find of the space…Christmas!)

My original plan was to remove the bookcase to the left of the fireplace but I discovered that the closet in the guest bedroom extends out so that part of the exterior wall is partially covered by that guest closet….poo.

So the only option was to leave the bookcase, which I honestly need, and just add a window to the right of the fireplace.

Why?

Well first, I love natural light…one thing I love about this house is the abundance of exterior windows.

The only problem is MOST are adjacent to a covered patio, a sunroom and a screened porch. So MOST of the natural light is seriously filtered.

Great for heating and cooling, not so great if you like natural light.

The den has windows and an exterior door, unfortunately both are on the wall adjacent to the sunporch.

Nice windows, but again the light is seriously defused. So the den was basically a cave.

ANYWHO, I wanted a window in the den…for light and for fresh air.

So, I busted out the sheetrock, removed the exterior brick, moved some electrical outlets and fixtures and framed in for a new window.

Sounds so simple. It was NOT!

First, you never know what is behind your sheetrock. In my case there was serious framing. Then there was the electric outlets and exterior light fixture. Of course insulation and brick and Lord I can’t even remember it all.

One a scale of 1-10 this is a 10 DIY project. For me, not that huge of a deal because I know electrical, I understand basic framing and I have a great brick guy. But for your average Joe, my suggestion is hire it done! And expect to pay dearly.

But even this old dog can learn a new trick. I saw this suggestion somewhere on the interweb but have no idea when or where. I had never tried it but because of some serious sanding needed on the sheetrock I decided to give it a shot!

Just duct tape your palm sander to a shop vac…then turn the shop vac on while running the sander.

(Palm smacking forehead!)

Boy did it work! I would say 95% of the sheetrock dust went into the Shopvac vs. all over every piece of furniture in my house.

A FEW TIPS.

Make sure the holes on the sand paper line up with the holes on the sander…that is where the dust goes.

Tape well between the sander and the Shopvac hose to prevent dust from creeping out. I used duct tape.

Make sure your Shopvac has a clean (preferably new) filter.

I have never used an electric sander on sheetrock in the house before…just waaaaay too much dust. This time, due to circumstances I won’t go in to, I knew a light hand sanding wasn’t going to cut it. Hooking the sander to the shop vac was a game changer!

Adding a window, whether you have brick or siding exterior, is doable. Just know that it is not a project for a novice DIYer!

Next time I’ll share the transformation! HUGE difference!