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July 10, 2015 in Home Improvements, Idea Corner

Hide Any Ugly In The Home With A Hinged Canvas

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Not every necessary utility in a home is cute to look at. Fire alarms? Thermostats? Security systems? Those clunky squares aren’t a good look.

Luckily, The Third Boob has a great idea to hide those unsightly objects, a hinged canvas of any painting or photo. In just a few steps, the walls will look great and these systems will be easily accessible.

Start by gathering these materials:

  • Chosen canvas
  • Two flat hinges
  • Screw driver

After picking out the perfect painting of a sunset or photo of the family, attach two flat hinges the top and bottom of one side of the canvas. Once attached to the canvas, secure the hinges to the wall. Make sure to screw the hinges tightly to ensure the safety of the system and stability of the canvas.

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And that’s it! Enjoy large scale beauty without any of the nuisances of utilities cluttering up wall space.

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July 8, 2015 in Home Improvements, Idea Corner

Ready For New Flooring? Look No Further Than This Floating Laminate Install Tutorial!

Laminate flooring installation

There are many reasons why people are opting for laminate over hardwood flooring these days. Setting aside cost, laminate has more durability over most hardwood options. And it doesn’t hurt that laminate is as easy on the eyes as it is to install. And for the simplest installation of floating laminate flooring, look no further than this tutorial from One Project Closer.

Here’s what’s needed to get this project done:

  • Laminate flooring
  • Plastic Underlayment
  • Shoe molding
  • Molding adhesive
  • Thresholds
  • Miter saw
  • Table saw
  • Jig saw
  • Coping saw
  • Utility knife
  • Level
  • Hammer or rubber mallet
  • Pry bar
  • Multitool or flush-cut saw
  • Finish nail gun
  • Compressor

This may seem like a long list, but don’t let the length fool you, this project can be done by most novice home improvers. Let’s get started!

Begin by preparing the subfloor, making sure that the surface is level and acclimated to the climate of the room. Then plan out how the boards will lay in the room, making sure the planks will be uniform and equal.

DSC_0056Now it’s time to lay the plastic sheeting. These sheets should be running tight along the walls and secured with the adhesive on the bottom of each sheet.

Time to lay the boards! Make sure to leave a 1/4″ gap around the perimeter for any expanding or contracting that might occur in the wood. It’s important to have tools on hand to cut the pieces to size, especially when it comes to door jambs and doorways.

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Once all the locking tongue and groove floor boards are in place, focus on the shoe molding and threshold pieces.

For the shoe molding, use a nail gun, making sure to nail into the baseboard. For the threshold pieces, only gluing with molding adhesive is necessary.

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When complete, marvel not only at the time and money saved, but the sophisticated look achieved! Are you in need of Flooring installation in Chicago for laminate, hardwood or LVP, Give us a call or scroll to the top to fill out out estimate form.

July 3, 2015 in Home Improvements, Idea Corner

Upcycle A Thrift Store Chair Without Losing The Vintage Charm

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Some chairs have beautiful bones but need some help with aesthetics. Well luckily Camp Clem has a solution for any homeowner: a simple, inexpensive upcycling project for any thrift store chair find. 

These are the required supplies to take any chair from drab to fab:

  • Sander
  • Primer
  • Tan paint
  • Paint brush
  • Sponge Brush
  • Aqua paint
  • Sand block

The first step is to sand down the chair lightly. Then, prime the chair completely.

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Once primed, paint the chair with tan to show through for that aged look. When dry, apply a coat of aqua with a sponge brush.

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For that distressed look, utilize a sand block on the surface of the entire chair. This will cause the tan and original wood color to show through. To show extra wear, locate the areas of most wear on the original chair before beginning this project.

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When completed, this project will result not only in a pop of color but a dash of vintage as well!

July 1, 2015 in Home Improvements, Idea Corner

Revamp Any Set Of Stairs With This Simple Wallpaper Project!

Stairway on a luxury house interior

Bored with walking up the stairs and seeing bland wood? Well, with this simple tutorial from Sunset, anyone can take a set of stairs and turn them into a piece of art.

First, gather these materials:

  • Wallpaper
  • Wallpaper paste
  • 2-inch sponge brush
  • Scissors
  • Craft knife

Start by carefully measuring each stair riser separately. Then cut the wallpaper exactly to size.

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Apply wallpaper paste with a 2-inch sponge brush to adhere the wallpaper to the stair. Begin at the top right corner and continue across the top and down the sides, wiping off any excess paste with a damp sponge.

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Allow a few hours to dry and then, voila! Enjoy gorgeous new stairs all guests will be talking about.

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