Do It Yourself

Since we’re always doing projects around the house, I decided to create a D.I.Y. section on my BLOG.  Here I’ll be posting pictures of all our projects, big and small.  The D.I.Y. goal is to design, plan, create, build/make it with a sense of accomplishment, and of course to save a bunch of money in the process.  Hope you will enjoy this new segment!

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BBQ Tear Down

Our first big project for 2013 was to tear down that bad ass
built-in concrete BBQ pit in the back yard, which we hated.  The cheapest tear down & haul away quote we got was $500 and we just couldn’t see spending that kind of money.  Our wonderful friends George and Mike offered to help us tear down that bad boy, so we took them up on their offer.  Here are the “before” and “after” pictures, followed by a series of photos of the tear down.

BEFORE…

AFTER…
The area looks so much bigger now and we’re able to put our patio table and chairs under the patio cover.

The first thing we had to do was protect the window and sliding glass door from flying concrete.

We started by breaking off the edges that were hanging over past the base.

Yep, good old fashioned muscle to destroy this thing.  We all had a sledge hammer.  It was a very cold day but we soon discovered that we were happy it was cold because we worked up a sweat for sure.
 
The BBQ pit was just sitting on the concrete and only had rebar in the top portion, not the cinder blocks, and there was no mesh which made it much easier to break apart.

We loaded up George’s truck and the guys made 3 trips to the dumps.  Each trip I stayed behind and kept hacking away at the concrete.

Almost done… how exciting!!!

The last few bits and pieces
A well deserved cocktail after the job was complete, then we had a nice dinner because we were hungry after all that work!

Listen to this because it’s the best part.  Although we reserved 2 days for the tear down, we actually completed the job in 5 hours, and that included a lunch break and the 3 trips to the dumps!  And wait, there’s more… It only cost $36 total to dump the concrete!!
A SPECIAL THANKS TO GEORGE & MIKE!!!

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Creating in my Craft Room

I put up this “Create” stencil over my work area… I just love it.
I still need to paint the walls below the decorative molding and add my theme colors… yet another project!

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Brick Walkway on the Front Side Yard

This is where we bring the garbage & yard waste cans to the curb.  We had to pull the cans over the bark, which in turn deposited bark onto the lawn.  It was hard to pull the cans over the bark and the bark made a mess, so we decided to correct that problem.  We were able to complete this small project in one day, but we were sore the following day.

BEFORE…

AFTER…

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Kettle Bell Construction
I made my own kettle bell for my boot camp home workouts.  Mine is about 13 pounds and would cost about $20 if you purchased it at Walmart.  I only spent $3 to make mine and it turned out so darn cute!!
You will need a plastic kitchen bag or shopping bag, sand, grey duct tape, and decorative duct tape.  Everyone already has plastic bags in the house and duct tape.  If you need sand, go to your local playground and get some for free.  The fancy duct tape is $3 at Big Lots and $3.29 at Walmart.

Start by filling a plastic bag with sand and shape it the way you want, tape it down.  I used 3 bags just to make sure it’s very durable.

I took one more bag and placed the sand bag inside and twisted it as shown.

Tape up the twisted plastic with grey duct tape and this will become your handle.

Figure out the size/opening you want for the handle and tape down the other end securely.  I used a lot of duct tape because I wanted to be sure the handle holds when I’m flinging this in the air.

Cover the entire kettle bell with duct tape in both directions.  I put 2 layers on mine.

Add the decorative tape over the grey tape.  And here’s the finished product!!  You can also use 2 different decorative tapes to make your kettle bell even cuter. 

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Step Stool Papa made this step stool for little Alex so he could have his very own.  His brother Joey was “sharing” the one Papa made for him a couple of years ago.  Papa has made 4 of these for the four youngest grandkids and they have used them for years.

The kids are proudly showing off their stools and you can see how happy Alex is to have his very own step stool.  Of course what would a step stool be without a secret compartment to put your “stuff”.

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Cabinet Repair… Just the Start

When we bought our new “short sale” house, the cabinets throughout the house had a lot of damage.  There is raw wood showing, water damage, and nicks to the wood.  We brought in several people for quotes and they ranged from $4,200 to over $10,000!!!  NOT!!!  Our neighbor Leo had the same exact problem and he repaired his cabinets himself.  So with some pointers from Leo, we decided to try it ourselves and save A LOT of money.

  We took a cabinet door to Sherwin Williams and they matched the stain.  I started “testing” in the laundry room to experiment with the proper technique.  Once I had the technique down, I proceeded to complete the laundry room, all the bathrooms and the entertainment center.  The cabinets are not perfect by any means, but they look so much better.  I still need to complete the bar area and kitchen, which is where most of the damage resides.

Here are a couple of before and after photos of a bathroom cabinet.

BEFORE…

AFTER…


BEFORE…

AFTER…

We are also installing quarter rounds throughout the house to finish off where the cabinets meet the tile.  We also purchased fancy molding (you can see them on the garage floor in the background) for the family room, bar, and kitchen and it’s going to really dress up the cabinets.  Here I’m staining the quarter rounds, then I’ll varnish them prior to the install by Hank.  I’m keeping track of the cost and I’ll let you know the total cost once we’re done with the project.  My guess is it will be under $250… yippee!!

Gotta LOVE the D.I.Y. and the cost savings!!