Before and After Archives - Page 9 of 25

accessories, Beach, bedroom, Before and After, decor, Decorating, framing, Kids Room, milk paint, mirrored glass, ReNew, thrifting, Tutorial, Upcycling

Racing Stripe Mirror Makeover

While my sister and I were renovating the Topsail Beach condo we had a strict budget. Finding a large mirror for less than $15 was challenging until I found this mirror with potential. I know my sister was doubtful, but I had a vision. Some red milk paint, lattice and glue would make this racing stripe makeover complete!

To transform the mirror, I disassembled the top and cut off the panel portion using my Dremel MultiMax. I salvaged the top crown moulding and re-attached it to the new top of the mirror with glue and finish nails.

Then it was time to add stripes.

Materials (some links are Amazon affiliate links):

Lattice scraps
Miss Mustard Seed Milk Paint (Tricycle)
Miss Mustard Seed Milk Paint (Ironstone)
Gorilla Super Glue, Single .11oz Tube
ScotchBlue Painter’s Tape
Weight for drying
Tape Measure
Small block or Combination Square
Wet rag

Instructions:

Tape off the edge of the mirror where it meets the frame. Paint two coats of Miss Mustard Seed Tricycle red paint onto the frame. (See this post for painting with milk paint.)

After the paint dries, wax it or leave it unfinished. Mark the center of the frame at the top and bottom of the mirror.

Cut pieces of lattice to fit the mirror frame width. (I used three pieces of lattice and cut a fourth piece in half for the outer stripes.) Pre-paint the lattice pieces ironstone (white) and let dry.

Wet the frame and the back of the lattice. Apply a small amount of Gorilla Glue to the backs of the lattice.

Line up the center lattice piece with the pencil mark. Attach it and the other two pieces beside the middle lattice.

Use a ruler to create a space between the middle stripe and the outer small lattice piece. Glue the outer pieces in place.

Set a weight (or paint can) on top of a scrap board and the lattice pieces while the glue dries.

Remove the weight. Paint the top and bottom edge of the mirror frame white to create the illusion that the stripe continues around the frame edges. Distress the lattice pieces with sandpaper if you want a rustic look.

Hang your mirror on the wall and admire! Not bad for $15, two coats of paint, and some scrap lattice!

The mirror hangs happily in the twin bedroom at the Topsail Beach Condo. Click here to see the rest of the condo!

Hope you never turn down a $15 mirror again ;-).

Pin for later!

January 9, 2015/4 Comments/by Brittany Bailey

Before and After, Decorating, Door, Fix It, hole filling, hole repair, Home Decor, painting, Painting & Antiquing Techniques, priming, repair

Good Day Sunshine – Yellow Painted Doors

Benjamin Moore Yellow Highlighter Painted Interior Doors | Pretty Handy Girl

I painted my interior front doors Benjamin Moore’s Yellow Highlighter. It’s my way to start my day off on the right foot. When I get up in the morning and head downstairs, I see my front doors and immediately Good Day Sunshine starts to play in my head!

Let me tell you how this happened. Remember when I was in the middle of the DIY project from HELL?! I tried to paint our front doors on the outside and the paint was peeling off. I wanted to curl up in a ball and cry. I wanted to run down the street screaming. Instead, what did I do? I decided to create a cheerful view when I go downstairs every morning. I put stripping the outside of the doors on hold for a day or two and focused my efforts inside.

The solid wood doors are original to our house and had cracks in them.

Instead of replacing the doors, I fixed them by scraping the edges until they were smooth and devoid of bumps. Read more

September 22, 2014/30 Comments/by Brittany Bailey

Rustic IKEA Hack Cabinet Transformation | Pretty Handy Girl

Rustic is not usually a word used to describe IKEA. IKEA is better know for their modern furniture, simple lines, meatballs and funny Swedish words. Today I’m going to change how you perceive IKEA furniture forever! Are you ready for this? Well, hang onto your hästes (Swedish for horses) because you’re going to see a transformation nothing short of amazing! You too can customize your plain jane furniture by adding legs and cladding the exterior with reclaimed picket fence wood.

This tale starts with a hunter green stained IKEA storage chest that I bought for our first apartment and stained myself (can you tell what decade it was? Hint: hunter green, honey pine, throw some burgundy in there and I’m sure you’ll be guessing no more.) It moved from room to room each time we settled into a new home. But, it never really fit in.

The cabinet was short and not very deep. Plus, it bore the mark of the popular 90’s hunter green. It was ugly. Why didn’t I get rid of it years ago? Maybe I was attached to it because it was the first piece of furniture I ever stained myself. And it brought back fond memories of calling the fire department because I smelled gas. Turns out you aren’t supposed to use an oil-based stain indoors, especially if you have a gas stove. Lesson learned.

Fast forward two decades and it’s still hanging around. The other day as I was lamented the fact that our foyer is too small to fit a cute dresser, I found myself looking at this sad little IKEA chest. I picked it up and put it in our foyer. The fit was perfect in the small space behind the front door! But, it was short and let’s not mention the hunter green again. Plus, it just wasn’t cute. And it doesn’t reflect my warm and weathered style. But, you know me, I wasn’t deterred.

I did some mental gymnastics and began to hatch a plan to create a marriage that would last longer than two decades.

It began with some pieces of old picket fence that I found by a dumpster. They were perfectly chippy and rustic! Luckily the 3M Lead Check results were perfectly negative. I carefully took the fence apart and removed all the nails.

Ready to see how I convinced the two polar opposites that they belonged together — rustic and modern — to create a match made in heaven? Let’s explore this couples’ counseling further:

Updating a Nightstand {Lowe’s Creative Idea}

Updating a Knotty Pine Nightstand | Pretty Handy Girl

The best way to give your room a makeover on a budget is if you can use your existing furniture. Notice that I didn’t say using it “as is”. Heck no! Update your solid furniture by adding moulding, paint and new feet!

(Pretty Handy Dog is already staking his claim on his preferred spot on the new bed.)

When I decided to build our new bed, I wanted to use our existing nightstand and vanity to save money. But, the nightstand was a little too short for the new bed height. By adding new feet and painting it the same color as our new bed, I was able to give the knotty pine nightstand a second life.

(I’ve included affiliate links for your convenience. I earn a small percentage from a purchase using these links. There is no additional cost to you. You can read more about affiliate links here.)

Materials:

Optional:

Scrap 2×4 pieces of lumber to brace base
Kreg jig and pocket screws
Drill

Instructions:

Start with a solid night stand. She may have some dated curves, but that’s nothing a little baseboard moulding can’t fix!

Remove the drawers. Clean out any dust bunnies and lost love letters out of the back.

Cut an interior facing 45 degree angle into one end of the baseboard moulding. Line up the bevel against one end of the front of the nightstand. Mark the opposite corner of the base where you need to cut. Read more

August 25, 2014/24 Comments/by Brittany Bailey

Before and After, board and batten, Build It, creating moulding, DIY, Door Hardware, framing, kitchen, Kitchen Renovation, moulding, renovation, Tutorial

Beef Up Door and Window Casing with Back Band

Want an easy way to add more architectural interest to your standard colonial door and window framing? Adding an extra piece of moulding, called back band, can add that extra boost of architectural interest.

Add Architectural Interest to Casing | Pretty Handy Girl

And the good news is that you can do this to your existing trim moulding. No need to remove or start fresh! The only thing you will need is paint on hand to paint the moulding after you BEEF it UP! In essence, We’re gonna PUMP it UP!

Materials:

Back band moulding
Finish nailer
2″ finish nails
Caulk
Paint
Miter saw or hand saw with miter box

Instructions:

There’s really not much to this tutorial. Line up the back band against your existing door or window frame. Measure or mark the back band where you need to cut your miter. Read more

August 18, 2014/16 Comments/by Brittany Bailey