Welcome to my new site, it's still in development, but adding content all the time!
Welcome to my new site, it's still in development, but adding content all the time!
Ok, that sounds really bad. Is this why my site gets so many hits?
Flipping old furniture: it's sustainable, it's frugal, it's fun! Sometimes. Other times, your roommate walks in and complains that the room reeks of turpentine and failure. Here's how to stay on the winning end of upcycling!
Safety gear. Drop clothes. Ventilation. All non-negotiables. Make sure your piece is clean and dust free, as well as patched in any beat up spots. If you are repainting, you'll want to rough up the surface well with a fine grit sandpaper and invest in a good bonding agent as a primer, or your beautiful creation will scratch easily.
Stripping, you don't want to do it unless you have to. Get your mind out of the gutter, I'm talking about chemical stripping of old finishes. It's messy, it's bad for the environment, and did I mention how messy it is? Buy-- or better yet, rent-- a sander and put some muscle into it! It's hard work to get the finish completely off an item; if you're looking to re-stain, consider just staining a portion of the piece and painting over the rest (like those pesky chair legs).
Equally important to your primer coat is your top coat. If you don't have a professional sprayer (like most of us), use a brush to apply a top coat. Top coat in a spray can does exist, but I find that the texture tends to collect dust easily and it harder to keep clean than a good ol' coat of polyurethane.
Don't forget the hardware! New drawer pulls are easy. I avoid replacing hinges unless they are super ugly because new ones don't always hang the right way. When in doubt, spray paint is your go-to for making hardware look brand new again.
Practice definitely pays off with refinishing so don't be discouraged if your first try is a hot mess. Or second, or third... you'll find your inner designer in no time!
You're waiting for a text from your BFF about how their date went, knowing full well it was a disaster because you fell down a cyberstalking rabbit hole and hour ago and discovered a picture of said date at Furry Con '10 with a bae that didn't even need a costume so you leave your phone on the bed and fall asleep watching We Were Liars on endless loop. You wake up with ten Squishmallows on fire and no idea whether your BFF is captive somewhere in squirrel footed pajamas.
Click over to the seriously sobering people at Safeelectricity.org to learn how to keep yourself and what's left of your Boba Tea Mallow unharmed.
The American Cleaning Institute sounds like a whole bunch of not very exciting folks sitting in a sterile room doing nothing remotely fun enough to actually obtain any of the stains they know how to remove. Yet, their A-Z list is impressive. Click over to their incredibly starchy website to keep your clothes spot free. Word of caution: never bake in stain via the dryer before attempting to get it out. Also, don't put your dog in the washer.
The giant puddles on the floor, all those neon colors being thrown together, your mom shaking her head in disapproval. The last time you made Jell-O shots? Or your attempt at mopping the floor after watching all those TikTok videos? Yes, they are a train wreck you somehow can't stop watching but where can you learn how to care for your floors properly? Right here, of course! Click through to The Spruce to read a quick and helpful guide that will not have you swimming in a sea of harmful bubbles.
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