Join us at the 2014 Country Living Fair!

In the Northeast? Looking for a Fun activity this weekend?

The Country Living Fair is the place to be!
 

Last spring, one of the best events I attended was the Country Living Fair in Rhinebeck, NY, and I'm so excited to be able to go this year, too! It starts this Friday (June 6) and runs through the whole weekend. It's a fun, family-friendly activity where you'll find tons of shopping, how-tos, antiques, home decor... and plenty of design and decorating inspiration.

Outdoor Shower Enclosure

DIY Outdoor Shower House

How to Build Your Own Outdoor Shower Enclosure

Finally a post beyond simply "Getting Ready for Summer at the Cottage!"

When we first bought our cottage in 2008, I knew there was a lot of work we wanted to do, but the first thing on my list was an outdoor shower. I mean, how can you have a beach house without an outdoor shower? It was SO necessary, both in terms to charm and practicality. Husband agreed, and even hired the plumber to install. And I loved it. And we've used it every summer day for 5 straight years. 

How can I explain how useful an outdoor shower is? I don't even think you need to live near a beach to need one, but because we do, it's really the only way we can feasibly hose down the children (and ourselves) without getting sand all over the house. And not only am I avoiding sand all over the place, it takes care of bathtime, too! It's perfect: we come home from the beach, jump into the shower, eat dinner, PJ's and playtime, and off to bed. 

But although I had my outdoor shower, it was a little, well, exposed. You'd be trying to get clean (wearing your swimsuit) and people from the street behind us would be waltzing down to their beach and awkwardly wave hello to you. Neighbors would yell out, "Hi Guys!" as I was washing my hair.  It was all a little... well, unfinished. And thus, my heart was yearning for a shower house (as our 7-year old neighbor calls them, a term I have come to love). I really wanted to be able to have some privacy to take full advantage of the outdoor shower, but, at the time, it wasn't in the budget.

But here we are, 5 years later, and in May, my amazing husband agreed to build it himself: (a) to save some money; contractors bid it out at $2500 and (b) because he was sick of hearing me complain about it. But regardless of the reasons, he did it: he built it! And it's my favorite part of the house. It has cedar shingles and a teak floor... it's downright luxurious! And I can't thank him enough. So to "pay it forward," I'm creating this how-to post for all those others DIYers out there who may also be desperately yearning for a shower house.

So here we have a special surprise here at A Thrifter in Disguise; an unprecedented event; the guest post of the century... my husband is going to chronicle his DIY Outdoor Shower House Experience.

DIY Outdoor Shower House: Part I (by Ben)

Where to begin?  Well, perhaps a little about my background. I'm not a carpenter nor do I have much in the way of carpentry experience. I'm pretty handy at assembling IKEA furniture (and will be tackling our now IKEA kitchen soon - stay tuned!); however, if you've read my wife's blog post on my car history, you'll know I'm a weekend mechanic. So, I do have some mechanical and problem solving skills.  Since I am not a licensed contractor, enjoy this post for what it is - a homeowner trying to save some money and make his wife happy :)

The other important note here is why. Since we moved into our house, my wife wanted an outdoor shower. My first solution, which was quickly nixed, was to tap into the hose spigot and have a cold-water only shower. Two issues here - one, my wife would have to take cold showers. Second, it was in the wrong spot - halfway down our driveway in an alcove that faced the road.  So after getting some estimates for the plumbing, we put it on our to-do wish list and waited patiently. The plumbing alone was quoted at $1100 to run the new hot and cold water lines to the right spot and the end corner of the house where our small outside deck is. We opted for time and materials, and we lucked out at under $900.

Next it was time to hire a contractor for the enclosure. In addition to a reasonably sized shower enclosure, we also wanted a small wooden enclosure built with a lift able top to store things like beach chairs, kids sand toys, etc.  The estimate was staggering: $3500. Even with the other project, most of the cost was from the shower. We thought about using plastic fence panels instead if wood, and it would have saved some money, but it wasn't the look we were looking for at our beach home. Instead, I promised my wife it would be on the top of next year's to-do list, and is quickly forgot about it. I mean, the shower worked - did we really need an enclosure?  My wife reminded me that the girls were okay running around in their birthday suits now, but those years don't last forever.

On our somewhat regular walks around our neighborhood, we took time to look at other shower enclosures, took pictures, made notes, and agreed on generalities. Still, we couldn't stomach - or afford - to spend thousands on this project. Instead, with my wife's encouragement - and promise that she would love my mistakes - I found the courage to take the plunge.  I mapped out a plan in my head of what it would look like, sketched it out and showed my wife, made adjustments, and then took a preliminary trip to Home Depot to get some advice and price out some of the materials. 

One of the biggest concerns I had was the footings. Since the plumbing was already installed where our deck is, it meant some work removing decking, boring holes, pouring concrete, and setting the posts. Those steps would take at least two days (and I only have weekends off from work) and involve renting some equipment. Then a few nights later while I was laying in bed, I had an idea that ended up cutting two full days off of the project, made the install much simpler and cheaper, with no need to rent equipment, and we ended up with a nice, large, cedar shake shower enclosure for less than $600.

And with that, he leaves us hanging, but promises to complete his post soon. Hang tight! In the meantime, email me if you're starting to embark on a similar project and have some questions.

 


Featured on:

DIY Nautical Hardware Tutorial

DIY Nautical Rope Hardware Tutorial

An Inexpensive Option for Drawer Pulls and Knobs

I'm so happy I was able to finish my Vintage Chifferobe with a very easy DIY hardware project! When I finally got to the point where I was finished painting my cool estate sale find, all I needed was some new hardware. I popped out to the hardware store to check out my options, but I quickly realized that the knobs and pulls I liked were going to cost me about $40. Since I only paid $27 for the original piece, I couldn't bring myself to spend that much on the hardware. So I needed another plan.

At first, I came up with a temporary option, and since we have a "beachy" feel in our home, I thought about using rope for the drawer pulls. I planned to simply thread some rope through the hardware holes, and use that as the "pull." But I knew that could only be temporary, because the main people who would be using it are my kids, so the "hardware" was bound to take a beating. But I was willing to set it up as a temporary option until I came across something affordable. I just didn't know what I would do about the round knobs. But I bought some rope (I used Everbilt Manila Rope 1/4" x 50'), and decided to see what happened.  

Then when I came home and started to evaluate my plan, it occurred to me that maybe I could wind this rope around the original wood hardware. The rope was really stiff, so I had my doubts that it would hold, but I figured I had nothing to lose, so I got out my glue gun and gave it a shot! And it was thrilled when I realized it was going to work.

The original wood hardware was white, but I was worried it would show through under the rope, so I painted it brownish to try to avoid that. You can see, I didn't get too picky with that process... I just didn't want them to be bright white.

For the drawer pulls, I started with the front/face. I put some hot glue on the top corner, and then applied the rope on top. I held the rope in place for a good 10-20 seconds with this step so it was really secure. Then I applied more hot glue, put the rope on top, and continued the process around in an "oval" shape. When I got to the middle, everything got kind of meshed together, so it was easy to just cut the rope and sort of shove it in the remaining space (on top of a spurt of hot glue). You don't have to be very exact, because the texture of the rope covers little mistakes. Then I wound the rope around the sides of the drawer pulls to cover that space, too. Originally I didn't plan to do that, but I decided I liked it better when the whole thing was covered in rope.

The spherical knobs were even easier. Just start at the back and wind around to the front/center. Same rule applies for finishing: just kind of shove it into the middle.

The trickiest part for me was using the hot glue gun. It was hard to know how much glue to use, and you can see from the pic above, I definitely used too much at first (but you can't tell unless you get really close). You start to get the hang of it after a little while. But I think the most important part was making sure you hold the rope onto the glue until it really sets. I think 10-15 seconds is a good time frame. Otherwise you end up with lots of those stringy hot-glue threads all over the place, and they're a pain to clean up.

And really, that's about it! Just reattach the hardware, and you're ready to go! I was so happy to be able to reuse the original hardware with minimal expense (I think the rope was $5.60, and I have more leftover).

Even though I had the old hardware to reuse, you could also just purchase inexpensive wood knobs and pulls and do this to dress them up. The wood hardware is much cheaper than metal. I just did a quick google search and found the same spherical knobs for $0.99).

I'm happy with how the entire chifferobe turned out, but I'm even happier with the price :)

Vintage Chifferobe DIY Part I

Vintage Chifferobe DIY Project

...making some progress, at least

It's really hot here today. And I want to be productive, especially while the baby's napping, but I don't know if I have it in me to do any more work. Even if I started painting, it's so humid I don't think the paint will ever dry!

So today I am posting pics of my current project, in its current state. I picked up this chifferobe a couple months ago at an estate sale. 


It was the last day of the sale; a bunch of siblings were selling the last of the items from their parents' house. I really just stumbled across this sale, because I happened to see a sign on my way to church (rushing there after an early-morning free craigslist pickup). After church, I told my husband I would just quickly run by this tag sale, and since I offered to bring the baby with me (and we had driven separately anyway), he didn't roll his eyes TOO much, and I was on my way.

As soon as I pulled up, I noticed this beauty. I loved the shape of it. I wasn't sure what it was from the curb, it almost looked like an old ice box or something. But I didn't really care. The sign said "Vintage 70's Chifferobe -  $40." Well, I loved it. I didn't love the color (which I do think is cool, it's just not in my comfort zone). And thanks to the $10 bill my husband had given me for something (that I ended up not using), I had a solid $27 in cash in my possession (I rarely carry cash... it's sorta bad... I rely on my debit cards way too much). So I offered my $27, and they happily accepted... and helped me load it into the car and tie the trunk down (because it didn't fit with the craigslist chair also inside-LOL-apparently my husband's big eye roll was reserved for when I pulled into our driveway after this). The back story on the piece (I love the back stories): they'd had it in their house growing up, and that they used to hide inside the little closet part when they played hide-and-seek. And would you believe, after becoming accustomed to it in our garage for the past couple months, my kids have been doing the exact same thing. I believe it was meant to be :)

It sat in the garage for a while, but I think I'm finally ready to do something with it. I decided that, when I'm done painting it (and finding new hardware-maybe at the Country Living Fair next week?), it will live in our family room. I'm hoping it can be a pretty exterior to hide all the papers and toys and supplies that have a tendancy to make their way up from the playroom on a regular basis... and instead of fighting it all (I really wanted to keep the family room toy-free since we have a designated play room now), I will embrace it (but at the same time hide it).

There you have it, the Vintage Chifferobe, Part I. BTW if anyone know anything about this kind of furniture--how old it might be, what it was used for? Please let me know!

Operation Vinyl Tablecloth

Rope Bracelets via Made in a Day

Anthro-Style Rope Bracelets

made using Made in a Day tutorial 

 

When I first saw Kim from Made in a Day's Anthro-inspired rope bracelets, I was immediately in LOVE! I believe I called her a genius. And I could not get those beautiful bracelets out of my head! So off we (me and B3) went to the craft store(s).

First stop was Joanns. I got the rope there (in the by-the-yard trim section near the curtain materials). I got three yards because it was pretty cheap ($2.99/yd) and I used my 40% discount (I still have about a yard left after making these). I looked at the beads and stickers there, but I couldn't find anything that had a wide enough opening for the rope. So I plopped the baby back in the car, drove across the road to Michaels, and resumed my search there.

Michaels' selection was much better for this particular project (although I generally prefer Joanns--you can use more coupons, and I like their app better... but, I digress). I found the same beads Kim used, and I even used the same cardboard tube (from the neon bracelets in the $1 section). I couldn't find the same stickers she used, but I found these, and I was happy with them. I also decided to try washi tape on one, too (the blue ikat pattern). I used the floss/thread in the pic because I liked the colors and they were pretty inexpensive, but you could do it with whatever kind you wanted. 

And so, the process:

• Cardboard Beads: I had some issues cutting the cardboard neatly. Partly because I'm a bit of a klutz, and partly because our kitchen knives are really dull... should probably fix that, but thinking about sharpening them kinda freaks me out. Anyway, I got it done, but you can see in the pics the edges are pretty rough. Oh well. I used a glue gun to tape the stickers around (no glue gun for the washi bead, though). That part was pretty fun!

• Stringing the Beads: Pretty self-explanatory--just don't forget to do this before you glue the ends!

• Gluing Ends: I'm not very good at fine motor stuff, so the gluing of the ends was a bit messy for me, but the floral tape definitely helped cover up those messes (I'm not exaggerating--mess!). I'd never used floral tape before, but it was cool: very malleable and forgiving. I found in it an off-white color, so that was a bonus.

• Wrapping: Yep, Kim mentioned this: it's a little tricky at first. You can see from my pics. At first I was working with a complete knotted mess, and I had to stop to untangle every few rounds. Not too fun. But then I got into the groove and approached it a little more neatly (and slowly-see green thread example). It was tricky covering the tape with no gaps, so I just went back over it in the other direction to cover everything I missed.

All in all, this project was great! It was really quick, so pretty, and just in time for summer! I definitely like Kim's better, but I'm still happy with how mine turned out. I highly recommend giving these a shot if you're considering it. Here's the link to Kim's tutorial: Made in a Day DIY Rope Bracelets. And check out her whole blog while you're there--she's got so many beautiful projects!

Linking up to:  
Made You Look Linky
Craftionary
Frugal Friday
Do Something Crafty
Friday Flair

Laminated Cotton Tablecloth

Easy, Affordable Bathroom Update

Quick Bathroom Fixes that Make a Difference

Strictly DIY; no contractors needed for this bathroom redo!
 

I am all about getting things done in a quick and affordable fashion, and this bathroom was in need of a major aesthetic fix. At first, we considered moving the tub and sink around and even consulted a couple contractors about different options, but when it came down to it, we were looking at thousands of dollars for changes that weren't functionally necessary. So we scratched those ideas pretty quickly.

But I hated the way the bathroom looked (obviously). I felt a strong need to get it done, and quick (sometimes when I get something in my head, I can't get it out until I do something about it). If nothing else, I wanted it painted. And my loving husband obliged, even though painting the bathroom on a nice sunny day was probably the last thing he wanted to do. 

Rushing to take advantage of his offer, I picked a color from a paint card. He picked it up, and then surprised me by painting almost the entire room when I was out the next day. I came home and was so touched and grateful that he did such a nice thing! It was so sweet, so thoughtful... so... so... so... well, so Smurf-like. Yup. Smurf-like. It was the color of the Smurfs. And it was bad. Ut oh.

My husband, being the wonderful person he is, could see past my "happy" reaction, and, looking at me with a, I-might-kill-you, you-always-do-this, but-I-still-love-you stare, asked, "What? You don't like it?" GULP. And you can imagine the rest of the conversation. Fast forward... I immediately relieve my husband of any and all painting duties (with much gratitude), with a huge hug and kiss, and determine to fix this on my own.

VERTICAL STRIPES:
First task: covering up the smurf paint. Not as easy as you might think... that blue wanted to stay! But somewhere through the process of white coat after white coat, it dawned on me that vertical stripes would add some much-needed character. I wanted something more subtle than Smurfette, so I took my time finding the right color green. (the tub is in the same color family, but it's one shade darker, if I remember correctly). Painting the stripes on the walls was the trickiest part. Actually, not necessarily tricky, but time consuming (measuring, marking, taping, painting... over and over and over). I was in there painting for probably two days straight (I had a babysitter, thankfully). But I really got to understand painters tape, and actually, if you have Frog Tape available to you (mine was green), I really recommend it. I used it for most of the project but ran out, and the small hardware store near me only had the regular blue kind, so I used that for the last third of the walls. I thought the Frog Tape was easier to work with. 

FIXTURES:
-We swapped out the vanity ($298) and sink ($80) for ones we found on HomeDepot.com (free shipping). We really liked the beadboard vanity because it matches the look of the rest of the cottage, but you could easily find one cheaper (especially on CL). The retro-looking faucet ($125) was another splurge, but it had the look I wanted. We also got a nice new medicine cabinet ($109) and light fixture above it ($42). The original fixture was black, and just stuck out too much against everything else, so we used metalic spray paint to change it up.

HOOKS:

I love the hooks. I'm not a big fan of towel bars in the bathroom. They work for hanging clean towels for decorative purposes, but I don't see the point besides that. You can't hang a wet towel back on it, and it's a pain to fold it perfectly and place on the bar. I just don't like them. I think hooks are a much more practical choice. Hence, the starfish hooks (from PB teen) and white hooks above the toilet. 

W-E-T LETTERS:
I got the letters from the craft store and sprayed them with metallic paint (so they're a lot lighter than they look). I actually really like separating the towels like this, because it's clear which towels are clean and which have been used. And it (hopefully) encourages us to use a towel more than once before throwing it in the laundry basket.

WATER-SAVING FLUSHER:
And on the subject of being "green," I also included a shot of our new eco-friendly flusher that lets you control the amount of water being used when you flush the toilet. Aside from the training session we had to give the kids and guests, it's a really cheap and easy way to save water. You can get a flush kit at the hardware store; my husband installed it himself in about 15 minutes.

Added a little wall art, and we were all set! I got it done in time for the party, and now I love it so much. I especially love how slant of the ceilings makes the stripes look. Anyone have any tricks for painting stripes? My arms were KILLING me by the end of this!

  Linking up to: Metamorphosis Monday

Pillowcase Dresses for Project Yesu

Pillowcase Dresses for Little Girls in Uganda

Mallory's Project Yesu is Inspirational!  

"Everything happens for a reason." We hear this all the time, and I like to believe it's true, but sometimes that's harder than others. In this case, I do believe it! This week one of my projects was featured at Someday Crafts, and while I was there checking out their site, I noticed the "Crafting for a Cause" link, and I was intrigued. Project Yesu, and organization started by a remarkable young woman named Mallory, is looking for handmade pillowcase dresses to bring with them on their upcoming trip to Uganda (this is their second time going). They're looking for lots and lots of dresses to bring to the little girls over there, and how can anyone say no to that?

I had enough of this fabric on hand to make two dresses, probably around sizes 6 & 7. Maybe they'll go to sisters! In any case, I was happy to be able to help in some way. I often feel like I want to be doing more to help those in need, but with my (and my kids') current schedule, I haven't been able to commit to too much. And when all was said and done, it took me about an hour and a half to complete these (and that was with many kiddo interruptions). I'm glad to be able to help in some way.

I urge you to visit the Project Yesu site to find out more about the cause, because I fear I won't do it justice. But what I can say is that I am so impressed with Mallory and all she has done with Project Yesu, especially at such a young age. 

So I felt like this was a good week--a cool feature at Someday Crafts leading to lending a hand to an amazing cause. If you can carve out a little time to make one of these pillowcase dresses for a girls in Uganda, I know Mallory would be grateful. 

Incidentally, I just noticed the new front cover of the spring Hanna Andersson catalog. You guessed it, pillowcase dresses!
 

They're collecting dresses until May 31, 2013, so you still have time. The tutorial I used (from Sew Like My Mom) was the one they recommended on their site, but there are plenty of patterns out there!
 

DIY Diaper Clutch

DIY Diaper Clutch (pattern by Lemon Squeezy Home)

A quick, easy, and inexpensive baby gift

I had been looking for a quick diaper clutch tutorial to make one for my new sister-in-law (so I could include something handmade for her shower gift), and now that her due date is a week away, I'm glad I finally got one done! EEP! Well, at least it's done. Mailed today--hopefully it arrives before baby!

I found this amazing tutorial by Christie at A Lemon Squeezy Home. She makes the whole process really simple, has great photos, and even gives you a document to print out your pattern. My printer was out of ink, so I used hers as a guide and made my own out of pattern paper.

This was a super easy and quick project, which was exactly what I was looking for! It doesn't take much fabric, either, and I was able to use some scraps from the rag quilts I made my girls, so that was a plus! Also, I think it's kinda sweet using the same fabric for their new cousin.

Thanks, Christie, for making this so easy for me!