The pantry….
HERE I shared how I “organized” my pantry. I’ve even managed to keep it in order this past year.
I still love all the baskets and bins but now it is time to change things up a bit.
This will be a full fledged “gut job” so I need to crack some knuckles, stretch some muscles and dig out the crow bar!
So stay tuned…I’ll share my inspiration, my plan and the reveal!
FIREPLACE MAKEOVER!
I have known from day one that I wanted to give each of the fireplaces a little makeover.
HERE I shared the den fireplace….
Now it was time for the living room fireplace.
The original fireplace wasn’t totally offensive. It just wasn’t “my thing.” Whatever that is! A little dated…just blah.
My original plan was something like this…
I really loved this “cove molding” look but this surround is stone…and SUPER expensive. I decided to try to recreate the look with wood.
First thing I had to find was the “cove crown.”
I found it HERE. The only issue I had with it was the fact that it is a “polyurethane” material…basically styrofoam with a plasticish shell…hum. I did some research and it is SUPPOSE to withstand heat up to 200 degrees. That should hold up to the heat put off by my fireplace….should. I guess I’ll find out next year!
So as I mention HERE, I found my inspiration, took measurements and made a tentative plan.
What is the old saying about “best laid plans?”
No matter how carefully we plan, not all will go right.
Case in point.
So I started by removing the old surround….
TIP! When you remove wood trim from a wall, first score the joint between the wood and the wall with a utility knife. It should have caulk between the wood and the wall and if you don’t score it, you may tear the paint finish. If there is still caulk on the wall, just take a chisel or putty knife and gently scrape it off. Also use a board behind the pry bar so you don’t bust through the sheetrock…I did it just for demonstration purposes…NOT!
When I removed the old surround, I discovered this….
I forgot this room originally had carpet. When they added the hardwood, they had to work around the existing fireplace surround which sat on the slab, so of course when I removed it there was a gaping hole in the hardwood flooring.
“Best laid plan” #1….
Not a big deal for me. First, I always keep “spare.” The problem was remembering where I put the spare pieces of hardwood. Once I dug it out from behind all the stored Christmas decorations I went to work patching these floors. Since much of it was going to be covered by the new surround, I didn’t worry about “lacing” it in like you would a prominent area. I glued and laid some 3/4” material as a subfloor, then cut a few pieces of the oak and glued them to the subfloor with construction adhesive, using wedges between the wood and the wall to fit them tight until the glue set up. I sanded and applied one coat of polycrylic before installing it. After installing it, I used wood filler to fill the gaps, gave it a light sanding, then applied another coat of polycrylic.
Hardly noticeable…or as my daddy use to say, “You’ll never notice it on a passing train!”
I decided to build the surround on the wall vs. building it as a unit and then attaching it to the wall. Just personal preference honestly.
I used a stud finder to find all the studs and marked them on the wall.
I put up 2 x 4 “bracing/supports” on the wall using THIS construction adhesive and deck screws. I was able to hit a few studs, but not as many as I would have liked…hence, the adhesive. I like this construction adhesive better than most because I have found it is tackier and less likely to “slide” before it dries.
Since these were the “supports” that all else would be attached to, I made sure they were perfectly straight and level.
I strongly suggest priming and sanding all your materials before installing it…this will save you from a serious dust storm IN the house! First course of business.
I began building the surround by attaching 1x material to the supports I had secured to the wall, using adhesive and nails. I used 1 x 8” poplar material on the outside and faced the edge with 1 x 2 poplar. I attached a 1 x 4 pine on the inside of the supports. Then I added spacers between the two to provide additional support and nailer for the trim.
(At this point the cove crown is just “propped up”…not attached.)
My “best laid plan” was to use crown between the outside board and the inside board….
Okay, here is the problem and where my “plan” completely fell apart.
I was THINKING I would just take plan ole’ crown and “cope” the inside corners. Works on a ceiling, right?
Right…but on the inside corners of a wall/ceiling, you have two pieces of crown joining in the corner, both laying “horizontal.” On the inside corner of this fireplace, you have one piece laying horizontal and one piece laying vertical.
Now, you might not think that is a big issue.
Well it evidently is. I googled, I cut, I made mock ups…I spent an entire day trying to make this work. Evidently this is not a “doable” thing…at least not what I could find.
This might explain why ALL my inspiration pictures were stone or masonry.
I think the reason it worked a bit with the cove crown ( I say a bit, because there were still gaps I had to sculpt with putty and caulk) was because it didn’t have the “fancy” profile of a crown. Smaller cove molding will cut on a 45 on inside corners without coping. The larger cove molding had minimal “gaping.”
If you know anything about cutting trim and coping you know exactly what I am talking about. If you do not, do a TON of research before attempting to trim inside corners…or you too will learn the hard way!
Soooooo….best laid plans.
I rarely just give up, but…..
Time to punt.
I found another “inspiration” that appeared to be “less decorative.” I decided to give this look a shot since it would entail using basic 1x material vs. crown.
Truth is, this is one of those “happy accidents.”
I like the look more than I did the original plan!!!!
I used a 1 x 4 material, then stacked on a 1 x 3 material, then a small cove molding…LOVE.
Moving forward….it was time to attach the large cove crown.
First issue. In all my inspiration photos, I really like the “one piece” look. Since again, they were all stone, the material adjacent to the fire box was the same as the surround. If I recreated that look I would have to use painted wood adjacent to the fire box, and I just didn’t feel comfortable with that. Not that this box gets terribly hot, but it does get a tad warm.
Soooo….what to do. I really wasn’t loving the look of high contrast tile between the box and the surround.
When I was looking at tile, I found a split face travertine tile I really liked.
If you remember the Lankford house den fireplace I installed split face travertine…and I LOVED it. I still do…so I went with it.
Now, travertine is not “all the rage.” So this is a prime example of doing something I LOVE vs. doing the in thing.
Since I decided to go with tile, I used a 1x material for the inside of the cove crown to sit on…just to give it some lift so that the tile wasn’t butting up against it’s 1/4” edge. I glued and nailed 1 x 4s on the wall, then installed the cove crown on top of that.
Second issue…since the cove crown is “polyurethane” and not wood, I couldn’t attach it using a trim nailer. Trust me, I tried. I had to use construction adhesive, then tape it and constantly “press” it until the mastic finally set up. Pain.
Once all that was done, I caulked all the joints, puttied holes, gave it a little sand and then painted it BEFORE I installed the tile surround.
I used a latex paint because my research said that latex is a better product to use in areas where “heat” might be a factor…I guess it has a tad more flexibility. Makes sense.
Don’t forget the Floetrol…makes a world of difference in your paint finish.
After the paint had cured, I installed the tile. Again, there are amazing tutorials out there for installing tile…find one that makes sense to you! Installing tile around a fire box is NOT a difficult DIY project. But you want to make sure you have the right tools (wet saw, properly sized trowel, etc) and that you use a thin set or mastic that works with the type of tile you are using and is heat resistant. RESEARCH!!!!!!
There were a couple of scuffs and marks on the black fire box from scraping the old mastic off. I used a black Sharpie to cover those…works like a charm.
And presto, bingo….a new fireplace surround.
I like it much better than the old one. Bigger but simpler. Not quite so “traditional” looking. Again, I like it much better with the “stacked edge” than I would have with the crown. See, no mistakes, just learning as I go. A lifetime of doing this stuff and I am still learning!
I am EXHAUSTED (just look back at all the projects in the last few months) so I doubt I will be starting any new major projects anytime soon. Course I say that and I am already eyeballing and sketching a few things I have been thinking about starting. Hum….
So until next time…
One of the first things I did before moving in was paint all my doors black. It just made our new house feel like “home.”
One thing about my old house I have aways missed…the swing pergolas.
I had one in my front yard and one in the back. I loved them and I used them all the time!
Working on my neighbor’s deck gave me a “bug.” I have wanted another swing pergola and now I want to do a little manual labor outside.
Okay, so I didn’t REALLY want to do manual labor. My poor old body was still recovering from the deck build. But like everything else, I want what I want and I know to get it I have to put in a little time and labor…and sweat and tears and pain and agony.
HERE I posted a pretty good tutorial for building a swing pergola. And as I said HERE, if you want one, JUST DO IT!!!
I have built a few of these so for me it was a labor intensive breeze. I will say I use to be able to build these for around $200…thanks to inflation, this one cost upwards of $350 (not including the swing). And it was 8x4 vs the 8x6 I usually build.
But again, I wanted it, so I built it.
And if you want one, I know you can build it!
So a few pictures…..
I just love it…THIS is a link to the swing. Super comfy, perfect for napping!
One major change from my other swings.
Usually I put flagstone under the swing. Quite an expense…roughly $150-200 just for this little space.
Last year the City of Lowell tore out an old one-lane bridge near a house I built and we lived in when my boys were young. They removed HUGE 2” thick 16’ wood planks. My son managed to wrangle a few of them, cut them down to manageable (relative term) 8’ lengths and brought me a few. They have been stacked behind my shop…just waiting on inspiration.
And “inspired” I was. I used the planks to create a “deck” beneath the swing.
I put it down just like I would rock. I excavated about 4” of soil, put down a 2” sand base, then cut and laid the boards just like I would rock. I filled the gaps with sand and soil.. The boards are “rough” and that is okay…gives it character.
The flower pots are ones I have had for eons…they use to be “teal” when teal was all the rage. I spray painted them black and filled them with flowers. Lovely.
i am contemplating staining the pergola black. I have seen a few pictures of black pergolas and I really like the look. Fortunately treated wood needs time to “dry out” before you stain or seal, so I have a few months to mull that over.
In the meantime I have a perfect spot to sit and ponder!
That was last week’s project…this week’s was my living room fireplace. I mention HERE that I wanted to make changes. The changes are made and I am very happy with it. I had to make a few “design changes” due to issues I’ll discuss in the reveal.
So until next week when I HOPE to have the fireplace reveal….
This is not a “feature.”
This is not a “tutorial.”
This is to encourage you…IF YOU WANT IT, JUST DO IT!
Wow…that should be a product motto…lol!
But seriously, if there is something you envy…a beautifully painted room or piece of furniture, (this blog is FULL of painted furniture!) a flagstone walk, a swing pergola…JUST DO IT.
I know you can!
A few weeks ago my neighbor asked if she though it was possible to put new boards on her deck…her’s was pretty old and rotted and the railing was a hazard waiting to happen.
The deck is off her bedroom…she likes to sit out there in the morning and drink her coffee. The original plan was to tear off the existing 2x4 deck boards and replace them.
She and her husband decided they wanted to drop the deck a bit, add a step and add steps to the back yard. That was a whole nuther project…and required some serious planning and rebuilding.
Probably a good thing we decided to redesign and rebuilt the entire deck because even the frame was pretty rotted. It ALL needed to go.
The hitch…the only “muscle” we had were 5 housewives/retirees…myself being the youngest…everyone else was over 60.
But by goshy, WE DID IT!!!!!
We demoed the original deck (man was it showing its age!) and replaced it with a brand new one with access to the back yard!
The only thing left to finish is the railing and she decided she wanted black iron railing…so that is on order. When she gets it finished I’ll post some better pictures!
For now, she has a beautiful new deck!
We are not young. We are not strong and we are certainly not “deck design” experts.
I have a little construction knowledge but I have never actually designed and built a deck.
We have the internet.
Between the five of us we managed to work together to lift the heaviest boards.
And we were able to “tag team” so when one got tired, another jumped in.
Two construction dudes could have knocked it out in a day…it took us a week. But by goshy WE DID IT!
It was a labor of neighborly love.
This was certainly the result of a bunch of “old women” giving what we have.
This week I am building ANOTHER swing pergola….I guess working on the deck gave me “the bug.” When I get it finished I’ll post pics. For now, if you want a swing pergola, HERE is a great tutorial. YOU CAN DO IT!!!
